Tag: addiction

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Your Shoulder To Lean On: Being a Recovery Ally

Addiction recovery is a community effort. It takes all kinds of people, working together, to beat addiction. For our loved ones who are suffering from substance abuse, but who want to get help, we can lift them up by being good recovery allies. It can be overwhelming to try and think of the best way to be your loved one’s shoulder to lean on. What’s the boundary between enabling and constructive support? How does one avoid fostering an environment of codependency? Is it alright to take time out for oneself? This infographic boils the “Do”s and “Don’t”s of being a recovery ally down to a few easy to remember points for first-time supporters. The second half of the infographic shines a spotlight on a few key things to remember about the culture of recovery and addiction, such as relationships, trigger awareness, how to stop harmful stigmas, and managing self-care. With help, any willing addict can reach for and grasp recovery – all it takes is a little knowledge, and a lot of courage and persistence.

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Substance Abuse in the Armed Forces

Members of our armed forces, particularly those who have been deployed in warzones, deal with many issues beyond the battlefield. Many suffer from severe post-traumatic stress syndrome (PTSD) brought on by combat experiences. For others, merely reintegrating into society at home can be stressful and challenging. While drug use is strongly discouraged in the armed services, many veterans know that there is a general culture of acceptance of alcohol abuse. Soldiers, seamen, airmen and Marines work hard — and tend to play hard. For many vets, however, this cycle becomes an addiction and begins to affect their health and their relationships.

RehabHotline has created this infographic to inform viewers of the problems service members face with substances and also as an outreach tool to let veterans and their families know that they are not alone if they are dealing with chemical dependency problems. There is help available.

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High Life: Illegal Drugs and Conformity

A staggering 73 percent of teenagers polled admitted that school stress was a primary factor in their decision to use drugs, yet a mere seven percent of parents thought their kids might turn to drugs as a stress coping mechanism. Stress related to peer pressure might also cause a young person to engage in conformity by taking drugs to please others. 65 percent of respondents said they took drugs to boost self-esteem.

Everyone gets stressed from time to time, and some teens are turning to drug use to ease the burden. Marijuana and prescription drugs are among the easiest targets, with users often able to access them in as little as an hour.

Whether you’re a parent, teen or just concerned about this issue, it’s important to realize how using drugs to handle stress is becoming more popular among teens, and as a society, we can’t afford to turn a blind eye to the practice.

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The Science of Habit: Popular Habits vs. Popular Addictions

Did you know that we spend half the day in zombielike automation, repeating routines we set up days, months, or even years ago? Habits are difficult to avoid forming – routine is just human nature at work!

However, some habits aren’t so good. Over time these bad habits turn into full-force addictions, bad for our health and our mental state of being.

Though the average habit takes 66 days to form, easy habits take less time and habits that require some amount of concentration or a concerted effort to change can take longer. Take a look at this infographic by 12 Palms Rehab to see how you can change your bad habits for the better – before it’s too late.

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Addiction and the Workplace

Ever wondered how many people in your office could be suffering from an addiction – whether that is alcohol, drugs or sex? Addictions don’t just stay in your personal life – they stay with you even when you are working – take a look at statistics.

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Your Brain on Drugs

Check out this infographic, brought to you by bestrehabcounselingdegrees.com, to learn about why the human brain is so easily addicted and what it is that makes us unable to quit.