Mushroom Therapy for Addiction Treatment
Mushroom Therapy for Addiction Treatment by Thaddeus Camlin, Psy.D. Psilocybin: The Magic in the Mushroom Empirical research supporting the therapeutic benefits of psilocybin (the psychoactive compound in “magic mushrooms”) just keeps piling up. The idea of mushroom therapy for addiction treatment may sound like a pipe dream espoused by someone named Moonbeam on hippie-hill in Golden […]
Recovery from Addiction: Self-Control
Recovery from Addiction The Coordinates to Self-Control in Recovery by Thaddeus Camlin, Psy.D. Self-control is treated like a four-letter word in some recovery circles. Many people in the process of changing a problematic pattern of behavior are told their only hope is to give up control, even self-control in recovery. The truth is that every […]
American Healthcare and Addiction Treatment
American Healthcare and Addiction Treatment by Tom Horvath, Ph.D., ABPP With the passage of “Trumpcare” in the House we have renewed our national focus on healthcare legislation. Rather than address the specifics of this bill, let’s step back and consider two often over-looked “big picture” factors when it comes to American healthcare and addiction treatment. […]
The War on Drugs: History and Implications
The War on Drugs: History and Implications by Thaddeus Camlin, Psy.D. The Politics of Consciousness Few political issues today are sources of unity and shared vision. Politics has become vehemently binary to the point that extremes on both sides see opposing views as subhuman. In the current climate of ‘us and them,’ drugs may be […]
SMART Recovery’s First Systematic Scientific Review
SMART Recovery’s First Systematic Scientific Review by Tom Horvath, Ph.D., ABPP The first systematic scientific review of SMART Recovery was published earlier this year. What is a systematic review? It reports the process of “identifying, summarizing and evaluating the quality of evidence for SMART Recovery” (Beck, Forbes, Baker, Kelly, et al, 2017, p. 2). Prior […]
Gauging Success in Recovery
Gauging Success in Recovery by Thaddeus Camlin, Psy.D. Success in recovery is about much more than abstinence. In fact, for about half of the people who recover moderation is the outcome. Basing success on abstinence sets people up for the abstinence violation effect, which can be a major factor in pushing a minor slip into […]
Why Do People Use Drugs? The Relationship Between Emotions and Addiction, pt. 6: Happiness
Why Do People Use Drugs? The Relationship Between Emotions and Addiction, pt. 6: Happiness by Thaddeus Camlin, Psy.D. The final topic of our in-depth exploration of each core emotion is happiness. Happiness is the most pleasurable, desired, pursued, elusive, mercurial emotion of all. If happiness is so pleasurable and desired then it can’t be a […]
Why Do People Use Drugs? The Relationship Between Emotions and Addiction, pt. 5: Fear
Why Do People Use Drugs? The Relationship Between Emotions and Addiction, pt. 5: Fear by Thaddeus Camlin, Psy.D. This week fear is the topic that continues our in-depth exploration of each core emotion. Why do people use drugs? Often times, people use drugs to assuage fear and alleviate anxiety. In healthy doses, many researchers consider […]
Why Do People Use Drugs? The Relationship Between Emotions and Addiction, pt. 4: Disgust
Why Do People Use Drugs? The Relationship Between Emotions and Addiction, pt. 4: Disgust by Thaddeus Camlin, Psy.D. This week disgust is the topic that continues our in-depth exploration of each core emotion. Believe it or not, disgust is often an answer to the question, ‘why do people use drugs?’ Disgust is the most generalizable […]
Why Do People Use Drugs? The Relationship Between Emotions and Addiction, pt. 3: Sadness
Why Do People Use Drugs? The Relationship Between Sadness and Addiction by Thaddeus Camlin, Psy.D. This week sadness is the topic that continues our in-depth exploration of each core emotion. If you ever wonder, ‘why do people use drugs?’ sadness is often an answer. Many of the most painful emotions (e.g. grief, bereavement, mourning) and debilitating […]