Looking for some inspiration?
By Tom Horvath, PhD I was recently contacted by a website putting together a list of 50 very brief accounts, including before and after pictures, about individuals resolving addictive problems. I was pleased that they included a few quotes from me, about the process of change. https://www.boredpanda.com/best-all-times-before-after-addicts-transformation/ Perhaps the most important fact to know about […]
Does Alcohol Kill Brain Cells? Part Three
Part Three from the Series: Does Alcohol Kill Brain Cells? Research on Clinical Samples by Kenneth Anderson, MA Stavro et al. (2013) conducted a review of clinical studies of cognitive impairments in people with alcohol use disorder (AUD) and their reversal with abstinence. IQ was found to be unaffected by AUD; there were no significant […]
Sources of Pleasure
What are your sources of pleasure? By Tom Horvath, PhD If you’ve had addictive problems, you may easily recall experiences (with substances or activities) that you found intensely pleasurable. Addictive behavior can provide that! However, regardless of how much you are still having that type of experience, you can understand and appreciate yourself much better […]
Does Alcohol Kill Brain Cells? Part One
Does Alcohol Kill Brain Cells? Part One: Post-Mortem Brain Research By Kenneth Anderson, MA It is a commonly held belief that alcohol kills brain cells; however, is there any truth to this belief, or is it simply a myth? While it is clear that pathological conditions such as Korsakoff’s syndrome or alcohol-related dementia result in […]
Life and Values: Thinking Back After Thinking Ahead
By Tom Horvath, PhD I expect that you know everything I am about to write about. However, I hope this blog will be a useful reminder about life and values. A well-lived life is based on values. We act on values we are not even aware of. However, we know many of them. Becoming even […]
The Alcenas Hospital and Lakeside Milam
By Kenneth Anderson, MA The history of alcohol treatment since the 1960s has been a history of practitioners ignoring science and the scientific method and forming conclusions based on observations of clinical populations without testing hypotheses, then self-publishing these hypotheses or publishing them in the popular press rather than in peer-reviewed scientific journals. Some of […]
Is Alcohol a Depressant? The Biphasic Effects of Alcohol
Kenneth Anderson, M.A. First, it is important to define our terms. A stimulant is a drug which raises levels of physiological or nervous activity. A depressant is the opposite of a stimulant, i.e., a depressant is a drug which lowers levels of physiological or nervous activity. A depressant is not a drug which causes depressed […]
A Closer Look at the Rat Park Experiment, Part 3
By Kenneth Anderson, MA Part 1 reviewed some of the historical background which led up to the rat park studies. Part 2 reviewed the rat park studies themselves. Part 3 will look at where we have gone since. Follow-ups to Alexander’s Rat Park Experiment The July 5, 1985 issue of The Journal of the American […]
A Closer Look at the Rat Park Experiment, Part 2
A Closer Look at the Rat Park Experiment, Part 2 By Kenneth Anderson, MA Part 1 reviewed some of the historical background which led up to the rat park studies. Part 2 reviews the rat park studies themselves. Part 3 will take a look at where we have gone since. Bruce K. Alexander’s first rat […]
Preaddiction – A Helpful Term?
by Tom Horvath, Ph.D. Would the term “preaddiction” be helpful? The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) jointly issued a Request for Information on this term. The details of the Request are at the very bottom. Below is what I sent them (slightly edited): ** […]