How to Be Unpopular in the Addiction Treatment Industry
by Thaddeus Camlin, Psy.D. This week we look at how to be unpopular in the addiction treatment industry – a topic we at Practical Recovery are certainly experts in! 1. Treat Addiction in Stages, Not Steps To be unpopular in the addiction treatment industry, the first step is to treat addiction in stages, not steps. […]
Gradualism: A New Term For Harm Reduction?
by Thaddeus Camlin, Psy.D. There is a litany of terms in the addiction world – including addiction – that need to go. Recently, noted author and leading thinker in the field of substance use, Anne Fletcher, M.S., R.D., L.D., wrote an article pointing out the flaws in the term ‘harm-reduction.’ I’ve been guilty of slinging […]
How to Quit Drinking Through Self-Guided Change
How to Quit Drinking? Self-Guided Change by Thaddeus Camlin, Psy.D. For those who wonder how to quit drinking problematically, it is important to understand that seeing through the cultural brainwashing is arguably the most challenging aspect of overcoming addiction. For starters, most people who have a “problem” according to family and society are not “addicts” […]
Social Constructionism and the Roots of Addiction
Updated November 9, 2021 Addiction is a Social Construct by Thaddeus Camlin, Psy.D. The perpetually changing understanding of addiction provides clear evidence of its social construction. With rare exception, the infectious agents that cause a disease don’t change, the pathological biological processes of a disease don’t change, and the biologically degenerative conditions of a disease […]
The Future of Addiction Treatment
Alternatives to Abstinence Will Be Mainstream by Thaddeus Camlin, Psy.D. Step aside ‘abstinence-only,’ your monopoly on addiction treatment is finally coming to an end. It has taken some time, decades even, for practical approaches to recovery to gain respect and prominence. Finally, with an opioid epidemic in full swing, treatment rooted in approaches that are nearly […]
The Opiate Epidemic: Solving the Crisis
How to Solve the Opioid Crisis by Thaddeus Camlin, Psy.D. In an age when Americans agree on few things, an issue that unites us toward a common goal could be deeply and profoundly healing. On the costs of the opioid crisis in America, there is little disagreement. People from both sides of the aisle, all […]
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 […]
High Sobriety: An Interview with Joe Schrank
High Sobriety: Cannabis Inclusive Treatment Opens in Los Angeles An Interview with Joe Schrank, by Tom Horvath, Ph.D., ABPP In an effort to offer another pathway to recovery, High Sobriety in Los Angeles opened last month a residential treatment facility that includes the option of prescribed cannabis. The home page states: “For generations we have been […]
Using Marijuana to Treat Addiction
Using Marijuana to Treat Addiction Cannabis: A Gateway to Recovery? by Thaddeus Camlin, Psy.D. As the failed cannabis prohibition effort continues to die a slow death, some interesting new growth is emerging in the wake. One Cannabis friendly treatment center, High Sobriety, is already up and running in California and it may be a prelude to a much […]
Changing Habits: Learning to Cope with the Urges
Adapted from Pages 32 and 34 of the SMART Recovery Handbook, 3rd Edition This post has been updated from the original version that first ran in 2015. With so many people on day two of their 2018 New Year’s resolutions, it seems appropriate to offer some basic strategies for coping with urges that tempt us […]