Drugs Don’t Cause Addiction
by Thaddeus Camlin, PsyD Saying drugs cause addiction is like saying clouds cause tornadoes. Tornadoes are caused by a complex combination of factors including warm, moist air, changes in wind direction and speed, and an unstable atmosphere decreasing in temperature rapidly with height. Similarly, addiction is caused by a complex combination of factors, not drugs […]
Addiction Treatment is Sick, Not the People Treated
by Thaddeus Camlin, PsyD Labeling people who’ve been traumatized as sick, is sick. There’s nothing pathological about being severely affected by the worst of life’s horrors. There is something deeply pathological when natural reactions to unnatural situations are described as sickness and disease. There’s nothing sick or diseased about someone experiencing post-traumatic stress after catastrophic events then easing the aftershocks […]
HBO’s Euphoria TV Show Goes 0/2 on Addiction
by Thaddeus Camlin, PsyD The latest installment of HBO’s Euphoria is chock-full of harmful addiction myths and contradicting information. The show’s main character, Rue, is a young and intelligent woman with a history of severe trauma. Her father died young from cancer, she was drugged and nearly raped, and she was cheated on and heartbroken by her first true […]
Is Walmart to Blame For The Opioid Epidemic?
by Thaddeus Camlin, PsyD Villains certainly make prime scapegoats. Because villains make great targets they are also susceptible to false allegations and wrongful convictions. Despite its dominance in the retail sector, global mega-merchant Wal-Mart manages to retain a special sort of derision from many. Recently, Wal-Mart’s been under fire for ignoring red flags as opioid […]
New Year’s Resolutions & The Abstinence Violation Effect
by Thaddeus Camlin, PsyD The ‘us & them,’ ‘normies and addicts’ mentality continues to lose its stronghold in addiction theory. The more addictive behaviors are recognized as a manifestation of normal human learning rather than diseased character defects and spiritual maladies, the better. New Year’s resolutions, and their reputation for failure that often precedes them, […]
Questioning the ‘Substance Abuse’ Label
by Thaddeus Camlin, PsyD Abuse conjures amongst the most abhorrent of associations. People who are abused often turn to substances because they provide reliable and effective short-term relief from intrusive and disruptive trauma symptoms like nightmares, flashbacks, and panic attacks. From that perspective, referring to people who were abused as ‘substances abusers’ doesn’t make much […]
Anecdotal Account of MDMA-Assisted Psychotherapy
by Anonymous A psychedelic treatment renaissance is underway, driven by a proliferating body of empirical support. The schedule I status of psychedelic compounds all but suffocated scientific research for decades and continues to stifle the pace of progress. While the weight of excessive bureaucracy continues be a drag on scientific investigation of psychedelics and their […]
Why People Choose Drugs and Alcohol Over Family
by Thaddeus Camlin, PsyD The aphorism ‘blood is thicker than water’ reminds us to prioritize family. When it appears that people choose drugs and alcohol over family doubt reverberates through the deepest truths of human bonds. We become so focused on how someone could choose drugs and alcohol over family that we miss the bigger […]
2020 Cochrane Study Says AA is More Effective than CBT
by Thaddeus Camlin, PsyD A 2020 mega study from research juggernauts Cochrane garnered substantial attention when it concluded that “there is high quality evidence that manualized AA/[Twelve Step Facilitation] interventions are more effective than other established treatments, such as CBT.” Click-bait headlines proliferated touting things like, “AA Superior to CBT for Alcohol Addiction,” and, “AA […]
How Absorbing Activities Can Help Addictive Problems
by Thaddeus Camlin, PsyD Addiction is characterized by a narrowing of behavior patterns. As a particular behavior begins to dominate others, problems are likely to arise. Expanding and diversifying behavior patterns is vital to overcoming addictive problems. Identifying and participating in activities that capture and sustain our engaged interest is essential to well-being, and improved […]