Gratitude as a Recovery Tool During the HolidaysAddiction, BlogBy The Ranch PADecember 19, 2016By Jack Gilbert, LCSW For many, the holidays are a wonderful time of year, but for people in recovery, the holidays can sometimes be painful and overwhelming, making them vulnerable to relapse. Gratitude is a practice that can be helpful all year round, but particularly during the holiday season. For instance, simple practices like keeping… Details
Protecting Your Sobriety During the Holiday Season By Jack Gilbert, LCSWBlog, SobrietyBy The Ranch PANovember 22, 2016For anyone in recovery, especially those new to recovery, the holidays can feel frightening and overwhelming. For some people, this can be a time when old behaviors re-emerge and they are at risk of relapsing.
Demerol Rehab: Treatment & WithdrawalAddiction, BlogBy The Ranch PASeptember 14, 2016Demerol, also known as meperidine, is a powerful — and powerfully addictive — painkiller. Similar in nature to morphine, Demerol is an opioid narcotic that can cause serious side effects when abused or used in conjunction with other substances, including alcohol. Withdrawing from meperidine alone is not only extremely challenging, it is also unwise because… Details
An Alarming Trend in Newborns: Mothers Sharing Their AddictionsAddiction, BlogBy The Ranch PASeptember 7, 2016In the 1990’s an epidemic of babies born addicted to crack cocaine called attention to the problem of drug use and addiction in pregnant women. Effective drug rehab became more available to pregnant women and seemed to help this trend subside.
U.K. Plans Blanket Ban on Legal HighsBlog, Drug AbuseBy The Ranch PAAugust 22, 2016Designer drugs (or legal highs) have presented a legislative challenge since they first appeared on the market, but the U.K. is looking to defeat the designer drug trade with sweeping legislation that will cover existing legal psychoactive substances as well as newer designer drugs. The new laws could land anybody who sells or produces such… Details
The Cost of Drug Overdoses to American LivesBlog, Drug AbuseBy The Ranch PAAugust 15, 2016Drug abuse is a matter of life and death in the U.S. — and a recent look at the statistics shows death is becoming an increasingly more common outcome. Drug overdoses are the leading cause of injuries, which are the leading cause of death for Americans between the ages of 1 and 44, according to… Details
Does Tramadol Help Opiate Withdrawal, and what are the Symptoms?Blog>Painkiller AddictionBy The Ranch PAJuly 25, 2016Getting over an addiction to opiates is difficult, but tramadol may be able to help by reducing the symptoms of withdrawal. There are so many things that make recovering from drug abuse so challenging. The terrible, uncomfortable and sometimes painful symptoms of withdrawal can sabotage even the most serious attempts to quit using opiate drugs.… Details
Why Is Drinking a Badge of Honor for Men?Alcoholism, BlogBy The Ranch PAJuly 18, 2016You’ve decided to get sober, either as the result of an internal or external desire to turn your life around. Perhaps you were in danger of losing your job, family or freedom. There may have been a compelling thought that “enough is enough.”
What the Way You Drink Says About the Way to StopAlcoholism, BlogBy The Ranch PAJune 23, 2016If someone suggested you give up drinking, how would you respond? No way. I’m no fun when I’m sober. I don’t drink that often. I just drink a lot when I do. I don’t think I could. It’s my nature. It’s not interfering with my life, so why stop? It helps me more than it… Details
Drugs Might Be Less Enticing to the Challenged BrainAddiction, BlogBy The Ranch PAJune 13, 2016Enriching experiences and learning opportunities don’t just make life more satisfying — they might make your brain more resistant to addiction. So suggests a study published in the October 2015 edition of the journal Neuropharmacology. Researchers based in the University of California, Berkeley compared the drug-seeking behavior of mice kept in a deprived environment with… Details