Author Archives: Alta Loma

Can E-Cigarettes Cause You to Relapse in Smoking?

Can E-Cigarettes Cause You to Relapse in Smoking?

Medical News Bulletin says that 34 million Americans smoke and that smoking starts typically in a person’s teen years. When youth are encouraged to pick up flavored alternatives like vaping, it can actually increase the number of young smokers. You must abstain from vaping if you used to smoke, as it can increase your chances […]

What Can a Study About a Sea Slug Teach Us About Drug Addiction?

What Can a Study About a Sea Slug Teach Us About Drug Addiction?

The choices our brain makes may seem smart, but could actually leave disastrous results for our bodies. For example, drugs and alcohol may have empty calories, but our brains still crave them because of how they make us feel. Recently, the University of Illinois decided to use a sea slug to study the cravings of […]

Tips for Taking Care of Your Mental Health During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Tips for Taking Care of Your Mental Health During the COVID-19 Pandemic

In 2015, it was estimated that up to 1 in 5 adults in the United States dealt with mental illness the previous year. As many as 1 in 25 adults lived with a “serious mental illness,” according to the Center for Disease Control (CDC). All of us are at risk for “mental breakdown” during this […]

How Did a Cat Help a Man Overcome His Addiction?

How Did a Cat Help a Man Overcome His Addiction?

Hunter Michael Shepard was battling drug addiction ever since he was 12 years old. After years of treatment facilities, Shepard was able to get the help he needed and has been clean for 846 days. Even though his parents were there to support him in his recovery, Shepard thanks his orange cat, Pete, for what […]

Threats and Solutions to the Addict During a Pandemic

Finding Light|Depression

Struggling with addiction is difficult on the best day. When battling addiction while simultaneously fighting the risk of a virus, fear can quickly begin to feel like a threat to your sobriety. Dr. Peter Grinspoon recently published an article entitled “A tale of two epidemics: When COVID-19 and opioid addiction collide.” He explains that addicts […]

Low Self-Esteem or High Self-Esteem: How They Both Challenge Recovery

mental health

Contrary to popular belief, not all people with substance use disorders (SUDs) are plagued with low self-esteem. High self-esteem can cause its own unique set of problems when it comes to addiction recovery. Where Does Self-Esteem Come From? Self-esteem comes from experiences with people and activities. Childhood experiences play a huge factor. If you were […]

Don’t Let Fear of Failure Undermine Your Recovery

Don’t Let Fear of Failure Undermine Your Recovery

Recovery can be incredibly difficult to navigate at times. It’s particularly scary at the very beginning when you don’t know what to expect. Seeking treatment is a major change – and starting recovery can be nerve-racking, because we all crave what we’ve been used to. It’s also not uncommon for those in early recovery to […]

Can People in Recovery Ever Regain Their Self-Esteem?

Ways to Keep Busy during Recovery

They absolutely can – but it’s not always easy. Even when you achieve sobriety, feelings of self-doubt can still linger. Self-esteem is defined as a person’s overall sense of self-worth or personal value. In other words, it’s how much you appreciate or like yourself. When we drank and used substances, our self-esteem was very important […]

The Risks of Prescription Opioid Addiction

The Risks of Prescription Opioid Addiction

Every day across the United States, millions of Americans of all ages struggle with pain – whether it be from an accident, a critical health situation, a sports injury, or something else. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), approximately 50 million American adults experience chronic pain. That’s over 20% of […]