Principles for Improving US Addiction Treatment
by Tom Horvath, Ph.D., ABPP How can the United States improve addiction treatment? The ultimate goal of support for overcoming problematic addictive behavior is to improve individual health and well-being while reducing societal costs associated with the behavior. Several countries (e.g., Portugal, Switzerland, the Netherlands) are much more effective than the US in providing this […]
The Biggest Lies in Recovery, Pt. VI: Addiction as a Disease
by Thaddeus Camlin, Psy.D. This week’s topic is the sixth and final installment in a series exploring lies that have permeated the recovery culture. Thus far, lies about success, failure, everyone in recovery being the same, shaming, and labeling have been challenged. While there are many more lies than six that have infiltrated the consciousness […]
The Biggest Lies in Recovery, Pt. V: Labeling
by Thaddeus Camlin, Psy.D. Labels Can Actually Hurt the Recovery Process This week’s topic is the fifth installment in a series exploring lies that have permeated the recovery culture. Thus far, lies about success, failure, everyone in recovery being the same, and shaming have been challenged. This week’s article challenges the lie of labeling addiction, […]
The Biggest Lies in Recovery, pt. IV: Shaming Inspires Change
by Thaddeus Camlin, Psy.D. This week’s topic is the fourth installment in a series exploring lies that have permeated the recovery culture. Thus far, lies about success, failure, and everyone in recovery being the same have been challenged. This week’s article challenges the lie that shaming people helps them change a problematic pattern of substance […]
Addiction Treatment: Why Individual Sessions are Important
by Tom Horvath, PhD, ABPP Why individual sessions in addiction treatment are important One of the most frequent complaints I hear from clients who have attended other treatment facilities is “I almost never had an individual session.” Why are frequent individual sessions unusual in US addiction treatment, and why are they important? Groups led by […]
The Biggest Lies in Recovery, pt. III: All Addicts Are the Same
by Thaddeus Camlin, Psy.D. This week’s topic is the third installment in a series exploring lies that have permeated the recovery culture. The first article challenged the lie that perfect abstinence is the only way to succeed in recovery. Last week’s article challenged the lie that most people in recovery fail. This week’s article challenges […]
The Biggest Lies in Recovery, pt. II: Recovery Failure
by Thaddeus Camlin, Psy.D. The Biggest Lies in Recovery, pt. II – Recovery Failure This week’s topic is the second installment in a series exploring lies that have permeated the recovery culture. Last week’s article challenged the lie that success in recovery is perfect abstinence. This week’s article challenges the closely related lie of recovery […]
The Biggest Lies in Recovery, pt. 1
by Thaddeus Camlin, Psy.D. This week’s topic is the first installment in a series that will explore lies that have permeated the recovery culture. Lies selected for critique will share a common theme of being detrimental to progress. The first lie on the chopping block is the lie of perfection. How strange would it be […]
The Antidote to Depression
by Thaddeus Camlin, Psy.D. Depression and substance use often co-exist. Substance use is a common method of coping with depression. Thus, abruptly stopping the use of substances can result in the intensification of underlying depression. It is important to have a specific understanding of what your personal experience of depression is in order to overcome […]
How “Triggers” Steal Your Freedom in Recovery
by Thaddeus Camlin, Psy.D. Much is being said about changing the nomenclature in the treatment of problematic substance use. The latest diagnostic manual (DSM-5) no longer uses the term ‘addiction.’ Anne Fletcher wrote about the value of cleaning up the language of addiction using powerful comparisons to other avenues of treatment. She astutely pointed out […]