Addiction

Alcoholics and drug addicts are stigmatized and negatively portrayed by the media all the time. Common stereotypes of addicts include being poor or low-income, coming from a broken family, or having suffered a major tragedy. However, addiction does not discriminate. It affects Hollywood stars, Wall Street bankers, parents, and even…

Substance use disorders (SUD) start with “I’ll give it a try” and “why not just once”—but they turn into greedy, unshakeable, demanding monsters. Once you’re hooked—whether it be on alcohol, opioids, or another drug—your entire life changes before you. You feel like you can’t live without the substance: you have…

The average American: a fat guy sitting in front of the TV dropping crumbs all over his exposed belly as he crams potato chips into his mouth. This is what many people around the world envision when asked for their take on Americans. Heck, this is how many Americans see…

The recent shift in public perception of treating addiction as a public health issue rather than a criminal one has been a huge step forward in the ongoing battle against drug and alcohol abuse. Below are some amazingly inspirational quotes about addiction recovery that are wonderful to read even if…

Statistically speaking, there’s a 51% chance that you’re currently looking at this article on your smartphone. There’s also a 90% probability that you’re reading this while sitting on the toilet, and that’s not a good thing for either of us. According to experts, 40% of the population suffers from Nomophobia…

Gambling continuously and repeatedly to the point where it causes problems in a person’s life and anxiousness is deemed a Gambling Disorder by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5)*. According to the National Council on Problem Gambling (NCPG), it is estimated that two million—or one…

One night I was sitting in my family room watching my third episode of The Office that night. I noticed the catchy theme song of the same show coming from the bedroom. My husband, son, and I had started “bingeing” this show together but my husband had gotten ahead of…

Is there a real difference between love and addiction? A colleague brought up an interesting topic for discussion the other day. He asked the simple question, “Is love the same as addiction?” This is one of those questions that, on the surface, I believed I had thought of before, though I…

Many of us have asked ourselves this question. Whether or not we gave it much thought or consideration is another matter. Most simply shrug it off, and that’s certainly the easier thing to do. We have come to accept drinking, and even some drugging, as being a normal part of…

Join Us for Two Free Workshops! Thriveworks Counseling in Grand Rapids, Michigan, will be hosting two free workshops in August 2015 — one on parenting and the other on addiction. Both workshops will be held at our office, located at 4079 Park East Court SE, Suite C. Directions: Take the…

Don’t Cope with Your Troublesome Feelings — Regulate Them Emotional regulation — learning to control and tolerate emotional distress — is a fundamental part of addiction recovery. A lack of emotional regulation skills is often what contributes to the development of addiction, since addicts turn to substance abuse as a…

“Kiwi tastes a golden nugget. It’s delicious.” In this animated short by production studio FILM BILDER, an animated kiwi gives us an impression of what addiction looks like. Watch what happens as the kiwi first tries a golden nugget, and then returns to it again and again. The kiwi consumes…