Tragedy always brings sorrow, no doubt.  In the aftermath, though, we can take lessons from those working to prevent tragedies from repeating.  Efforts to support victims of the Ft. Hood shootings on November 5, 2009, are generating valuable lessons for those in need of mental health treatment and alcohol and drug treatment, and their loved ones.  Seek help.

Those who suffer from mental health disorders, alcohol dependence, or drug addiction generally do not ask for help at the first sign of problems.  They may also suffer co-occurring substance abuse and mental health disorders.  In any of these cases it is likely that problems will mount before they ask loved ones for help, if ever.  It is fair to say they are simply incapable of seeking help until it is too late.

To individuals who don’t have a problem with alcohol, drugs or their mental health, this may seem odd.  When a problem can’t be solved individually, it is easy to ask someone for help.  So if an individual in need of help is incapable of asking for it, others will generally not offer it because in polite society that may be rude.

Mental health and addiction professionals continually seek ways to get early help to individuals in need.  A simple suggestion to the public is in the excerpt below from an article on the Behavioral Healthcare website.  "Look to your left, look to your right and look within and basically determine who needs help."  This is true for veterans and the general public alike.  

-- Begin external content –

Fort Hood, TX — Lt. Gen. Robert Cone, III Corps and Fort Hood commanding general, announced the formulation by post leaders and health experts of a behavioral health campaign plan addressing the psychological and emotional needs of the community during a special live broadcast Monday night.
***
"Frankly, I believe as tragic as this incident may be, there could be some goodness that comes from this," he said, "and that is, in fact, that we could establish a baseline for our real mental health needs here at Fort Hood."
***
"First and foremost, seek help if you need it," Cone said. "If you're suffering from the effects of this incident you need to come forward and let us help you with it.

"Look to your left, look to your right and look within and basically determine who needs help," he added. "We've got the resources here right now. We've had a huge surge in the number of behavioral health providers that are available and we can accommodate the number of folks we think will come forward."

--Source: http://www.behavioral.net/ME2/dirmod.asp?sid=&nm=&type=news&mod=News&mid=B20DF0482CF84DBA94F725711F709DD7&tier=3&nid=5BEF728A0CC140559D990B97AB53F240 –

Tarzana Treatment Centers in Los Angeles has the resources to provide mental health treatment for veterans and others as part of our commitment to integrated behavior healthcare in alcohol and drug treatment.  If you or a loved one needs help for alcohol dependence or drug addiction, please call us now at 800-996-1051 or contact us here.

Southern California Locations for Alcohol and Drug Treatment
Tarzana Treatment Centers has locations all over Southern California in Los Angeles County. Other than our central location in Tarzana, we have facilities in Lancaster in the Antelope Valley, Long Beach, and in Northridge and Reseda in the San Fernando Valley.

Drug addiction is mainly driven by internal factors with individuals who suffer.  But external cues, or triggers, can affect the progression of drug use, or relapse for those in recovery.  So it is very important for those who suffer from drug addiction, as well as alcoholism, to be aware of their triggers, and for loved ones to understand how they work.

Triggers, generally defined, are anything that sparks an emotional response in addicts that in turn lead them to a thought that their substance of choice will calm them.  The trigger can cause stress, sadness, or glee.  They are such a high risk of relapse that triggers are typically addressed in drug or alcohol detox, early in treatment.

Loved ones often wonder why anyone in recovery from drug addiction or alcohol dependence would use a drug to make things better after gaining awareness of the damage it had caused them.  The fact is that the trigger mechanism is out of the addict’s control.  The decision of whether to use drugs or not is something that requires work.  So it is an effective defense for addicts to inform family and friends about specific triggers.

A trigger does not necessarily involve the drug of choice, like a heroin addict seeing a picture of a needle.  It can be a neighborhood, event, person, and even the sunrise.  Triggers from sensory cues tend to last for a lifetime, but lose power when a program of recovery is followed.  Because of this, addicts must always be prepared to either avoid triggers or know what to do when faced with them.

The excerpt below is from a study about the relationship of news media reports and opioid overdoses.  It is interesting to note that opioid addicts are more likely to overdose with a relapse, especially after a long period of abstinence.  Since the disease is progressive they may use a high dose to feed their addiction, but the body simply can’t handle it anymore.    

Those who suffer from drug addiction and their loved ones need to be vigilant about triggers.  Use the information in this article, along with the study, for knowledge as a defense.

-- Begin external content --

Historical studies of news media have suggested an association between reporting and increased drug abuse. Period effects for substance use have been documented for different classes of legal and illicit substances, with the suspicion that media publicity may have played major roles in their emergence. Previous analyses have drawn primarily from qualitative evidence; the temporal relationship between media reporting volume and adverse health consequences has not been quantified nationally. We set out to explore whether we could find a quantitative relationship between media reports about prescription opioid abuse and overdose mortality associated with these drugs. We assessed whether increases in news media reports occurred before or after increases in overdose deaths.

-- Source: http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0007758 –

Tarzana Treatment Centers in Los Angeles staffs addiction counselors in medical detoxification units as part of our commitment to integrated behavioral healthcare in alcohol and drug treatment.  If you or a loved one needs help for drug addiction or alcohol dependence, please call us now at 800-996-1051 or contact us here.

Southern California Locations for Alcohol and Drug Treatment
Tarzana Treatment Centers has locations all over Southern California in Los Angeles County. Other than our central location in Tarzana, we have facilities in Lancaster in the Antelope Valley, Long Beach, and in Northridge and Reseda in the San Fernando Valley.

Alcoholism and drug addiction are diseases that are typically driven by fear.  This is true whether these individuals are using their substance of choice or are in recovery.  Understanding this may help those in recovery, and help the loved ones of those still suffering to cope.

Fear paralyzes alcoholics and drug addicts.  Worry about the effect current actions will have on the future or how past actions have affected the present can cause great indecision.  Many thoughts flow through the mind at these times, and it stops individuals from even leaving point A to start toward point B.  

Without a program of recovery, alcoholics and drug addicts will reach for their substance of choice for relief.  The common reason will be to “clear their heads”, but it is really an attempt to escape from reality.  So, at its core, alcohol dependence and drug addiction drives sufferers to drink and use drugs by instilling fear in them.  It can be a deadly cycle.

This can seem foreign to those who don’t suffer from alcoholism or drug addiction because fear is often a motivator for them.  When it doesn’t motivate, fear is seen as irrational and forgotten.  This makes communication with addicted loved ones difficult because there is no natural way to relate.  Understanding the addict mind may help loved ones, but addicts need recovery to change.

Individuals learn tools in recovery to stop the fear before it starts.  12 Step programs teach individuals to “Let it go”, and take life “One day at a time”.  Sayings like these are repeated over and over because fear is deep-seated in newcomers to recovery.  When put into practice, these concepts slowly reduce fear, allowing individuals to face life instead of escape from it.

Knowing that fear drives alcohol dependence and drug addiction can help those in recovery to understand the usefulness of the 12 Steps and other programs.  It gives meaning to the words they hear and read, making a vital connection between the program and their lives.  And they must remember this every day of their lives.

Understanding the fear problem is just the beginning for loved ones of alcoholics and drug addicts.  Support groups, like Al-Anon, can help family members and close friends to start living their own lives.  Addiction is a family disease that drags everyone into a co-dependent, fear-based way of thinking, and they all need to recover.

Tarzana Treatment Centers in Los Angeles provides family services as part of our commitment to integrated behavioral healthcare in alcohol and drug treatment.  If you or a loved one needs help with alcoholism or drug addiction, please call us now at 800-996-1051 or contact us here.

Southern California Locations for Alcohol and Drug Treatment
Tarzana Treatment Centers has locations all over Southern California in Los Angeles County. Other than our central location in Tarzana, we have facilities in Lancaster in the Antelope Valley, Long Beach, and in Northridge and Reseda in the San Fernando Valley.

Teen behaviors are clues to parents that they are engaging in alcohol abuse or drug abuse.  They just need to know what to look for.  Gambling, for example, is a possible sign that a youth has a future with alcohol and drug use.  We can use this example to explain a common factor among those with alcohol dependence and drug addiction.

Humans have a natural defense that keeps them from engaging in behaviors that will cause loss, pain, or destruction to themselves.  With gambling, individuals will typically quit when they win or lose a little.  But a small percentage will experience a thrill from gambling that will keep them playing whether they are winning or “losing the farm”.

The thrill associated with gambling is closely associated with the desire to escape feelings with drugs or alcohol.  It isn’t just a distraction from feelings.  Brain chemicals are released that mimic the effect of alcohol and drugs for an addict.  So adolescents who have the fever for gambling are basically no different from those abusing alcohol or drugs.  They just use behavior rather than a substance.

Gambling, internet use, video games, shopping, and sex are only a few of the behaviors that alcoholics and addicts in recovery use in a cross-addictive manner.  So if parents know that teens are gambling, it is a good idea to discuss adolescent alcohol abuse or drug abuse with them.  With teen prescription drug abuse on a fast rising trend, it is better to be safe than to dismiss the behavior as a “phase”.

The excerpt below from Alcoholism & Drug Abuse Weekly offers a brief view of how teen gambling could be a sign of other problems.  A link to the journal’s website follows.  Parents need to be aware of all signs of teen alcohol or drug abuse if we want to reverse trends.

-- Begin external content --

Risky or problem gambling among young adolescent boys is associated with general deviance at this age, according to a study published in the October issue of the Journal of Adolescent Health. According to John Welte, Ph.D., and colleagues, youth without symptoms of conduct disorder have a five percent rate of risky or problem gambling, compared with a rate of 23 percent among youth with conduct disorders.

However, while this association is very strong among 14- to-15 year-olds, it does not exist among 20-to-21 year-olds. The authors conclude that risky gambling that emerges in young adulthood has different origins.

-- Source: http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/110575473/home --

Tarzana Treatment Centers in Los Angeles provides youth alcohol and drug treatment as part of our commitment to integrated behavioral healthcare in alcohol and drug treatment.  If you or a loved one needs help with alcohol dependence or drug addiction, please call us now at 800-996-1051 or contact us here.

Southern California Locations for Alcohol and Drug Treatment
Tarzana Treatment Centers has locations all over Southern California in Los Angeles County. Other than our central location in Tarzana, we have facilities in Lancaster in the Antelope Valley, Long Beach, and in Northridge and Reseda in the San Fernando Valley.

When a loved one suffers from alcoholism or drug addiction, many believe that it is because the individual lacks willpower.  But the truth is that willpower is more of a problem than the lack thereof.  Alcoholics and drug addicts need strong willpower to feed their obsessions.

The process can be compared to the drive for success in achieving goals.  The stronger the desire to attain a goal, the more an individual will prioritize for it.  People will sacrifice and take risks to reach goals they believe will improve their lives.  Where alcoholism and drug addiction are concerned, there is no higher goal than to get the next drink, hit, or fix of their drug of choice.

For those who are unaware, most alcoholics and drug addicts enter treatment only after they “hit bottom”.  They have been willing to harm relationships, deplete bank accounts, and suffer legal consequences for alcohol or drugs.  The mounting problems did not meet the level of urgency they felt for more of the substance.

The strong willpower, coupled with the physical need to continue using alcohol or drugs, places a brick wall in the way of suggestions to enter treatment.  Family and friends are seen as a threat to the relationship they have with a substance because they want to take it away.  So the will to protect the relationship grows.  

This does not mean it is a hopeless endeavor to suggest treatment before problems pile up.  Indeed, it is not likely that demands will work.  The approach must be made in a loving manner when the individual is momentarily sober.  The best way to break the willpower of an alcoholic or drug addict is to organize an intervention.  

So the next time someone says to you that alcoholics and drug addicts lack willpower, show them this article.  Remember that alcoholics will crawl in the rain at 1:00am, and drug addicts will brave dangerous encounters in dark corners of a park, just to get what they need.  That is sheer willpower.

Tarzana Treatment Centers in Los Angeles can help with interventions, and provides drug and alcohol detox as part of our commitment to integrated behavioral healthcare in alcohol and drug treatment.  If you or a loved one needs help with drug addiction or alcohol dependence, please call us now at 800-996-1051 or contact us here.

Southern California Locations for Alcohol and Drug Treatment
Tarzana Treatment Centers has locations all over Southern California in Los Angeles County. Other than our central location in Tarzana, we have facilities in Lancaster in the Antelope Valley, Long Beach, and in Northridge and Reseda in the San Fernando Valley.

Alcoholics and drug addicts take action when faced with trouble.  The only problem is in the solution they choose.  They choose to escape from trouble by drinking alcohol or using drugs.  The reason is that the disease of alcoholism and drug addiction is marked by the lack of a defense mechanism in the brain.

A basic example would be if you are walking down a hall at work, and a co-worker accidentally bumps into you.  In most cases a simple “excuse me” and “no problem” would end the innocent occurrence.  But alcoholics and addicts can only rarely just let it go without some time to dwell on why it happened.  They believe that something must have caused it.

That innocent bump in the hall can become an obsession in the mind of an alcoholic or drug addict, and turn into a belief that he is going to be fired.  This process of turning a mountain into a mole hill plagues them every day, and they believe it is normal.  This makes life appear to be an uphill battle, with everyone against them.

Alcohol and drugs temporarily ease the tension and bury the feelings of frustration.  But it all comes back as the effects wear off, and the need to defend against the mounting pain grows.  Drinking alcohol and using drugs as a defense becomes a habit through learned behavior, and is cherished as the only answer.

It is an important aspect of the disease to understand, while it may seem silly to some that believe alcoholics and drug addicts are weak.  And from a certain perspective it is a weakness.  The point is not to excuse the behavior of individuals with the disease.  It is simply to help those suffering from the disease to understand, and bring awareness to their loved ones.

The lack of a defense mechanism is one of many disease components.  Pace University has posted an article that includes it as part of a detailed look at alcoholism and drug addiction.  A portion of the article that relates to adolescent alcohol and drug abuse is below, followed by the link to the full version.

-- Begin external content --

Students give many different reasons why they may drink. Some students say they drink because of peer pressure and to be part of a crowd. Some use alcohol to avoid difficult situations that may arise at school and work and with family and friends. Others use alcohol to avoid uncomfortable feelings, like anxiety or sadness. Anyone who drinks runs the risk of developing an alcohol problem. A serious problem can develop quickly, especially among college students.

-- Source: http://www.pace.edu/page.cfm?doc_id=5117 –

Tarzana Treatment Centers in Los Angeles provides addiction counseling during medical detoxification as part of our commitment to integrated behavioral healthcare in alcohol and drug treatment.  We also provide teen alcohol and drug treatment services.  If you or a loved one has a problem with alcohol dependence or drug addiction, please call us now at 800-996-1051 or contact us here.

Southern California Locations for Alcohol and Drug Treatment
Tarzana Treatment Centers has locations all over Southern California in Los Angeles County. Other than our central location in Tarzana, we have facilities in Lancaster in the Antelope Valley, Long Beach, and in Northridge and Reseda in the San Fernando Valley.

There are several reasons that teens engage in prescription drug abuse.  The obvious one is peer pressure.  But while peer pressure has great influence where adolescent prescription drug abuse is concerned, it is less effective when parents take positive action.  Action starts with knowledge, and parents should know that boredom and a low-risk perception are also reasons for use.

We all know that the mind of a teen is in constant input mode and output is often abrupt and random.  They are always looking for something to do, consciously or sup-consciously.  So, for many, drug abuse is an escape from that turmoil.  If teens are encouraged to be involved in positive activities boredom has less time to set in.

Most teens will not turn to alcohol or drugs like marijuana, cocaine, methamphetamine or heroin because they understand the risks that come from alcohol abuse and drug abuse.  But many of those same teens report in surveys that they see little or no risk in using prescription drugs recreationally.  Parents need to educate the youth of our society about the truth.

There is no guarantee that talking to your teens will prevent them from prescription drug abuse.  But if they don’t hear about the risks, they will only have peer pressure as input.  Remember that every little thing you say plants a seed that will grow with their experiences.  And most teens that see risks with alcohol and illegal drugs will make the risk connection in their minds.

Lassen County News posted an article about the teen prescription drug abuse problem in their California County.  The excerpt below offers tips for parents to identify when teens are using prescription drugs.  The full article link follows the excerpt.

-- Begin external content --

Signs parents should look for
Goodridge provided signs parents should look for to help determine if their child might be having a reaction to prescription drugs.

He said if a teen is awake when they are supposed to be sleeping or sleeping when they should be awake, that could be a side effect of a prescription drug.

If a teen comes home looking pale, clammy and has shallow breathing, parents need to call 911.

Opioids can depress breathing, but if a person has combined the drugs with medication such as Xanax, Avidan or alcohol, it can make the symptoms worse, Goodridge said.

Parents should also be watchful if their child is withdrawing from activities they normally enjoy, or if all at once the friends they hang out with have a sudden change in behavior, then Goodridge said parents need to start asking questions. The changes might not even be drug-related, but something is probably going on, he said.

-- Source: http://www.lassennews.com/News_Story.edi?sid=5894&mode=thread&order=0 –

Tarzana Treatment Centers in Los Angeles provides youth alcohol and drug treatment with prescription drug detox as part of our commitment to integrated behavioral healthcare.  If you or a loved one has a problem with prescription drugs, please call us now at 800-996-1051 or contact us here.

Southern California Locations for Alcohol and Drug Treatment
Tarzana Treatment Centers has locations all over Southern California in Los Angeles County. Other than our central location in Tarzana, we have facilities in Lancaster in the Antelope Valley, Long Beach, and in Northridge and Reseda in the San Fernando Valley.

People have a hard time understanding why loved ones suffering from alcohol dependence or drug addiction wait so long to enter alcohol and drug treatment.  A major reason for this is denial of reality.  As bad as things look to the outsider, alcoholics and drug addicts just don’t see it.

Denial should not be compared to a blindfold.  It’s more like blinders on a racehorse.  Alcoholics and drug addicts are well aware of the problems they face in life.  But they are incapable of accepting the consequences they suffer because alcohol and drugs are an important part of their lives.  As far as they are concerned, alcohol or drugs are a solution and far from a problem.

It comes from a belief that absent their calming substance things would be much worse, not better.  When a thought that problems stem from alcohol or drugs begin to enter their minds, it is quickly dismissed as preposterous.  There is a tunnel vision that temporarily pushes these thoughts out of sight along with all of the problems that need to be solved.

Even deeper in their psyche is an incapability to deal with emotions.  Denial protects alcoholics and addicts from feelings.  When they are confronted by a loved one, they will run to the comfort of alcohol or drugs to “clear their heads”.  The escape from emotions is a comfort.  In fact, it is usually the only comfort they have.  

This cycle is never-ending because alcohol and drugs are both the solution and problem for the alcoholic and addict.  But the solution illusion always wins in their minds.  Thus, they will not seek alcohol and drug treatment until problems are insurmountable or the family calls for an intervention.

Sadly, it takes a shock to the system to drag the alcoholic and drug addict into reality.  Once denial is shattered they may feel lost, so care must be taken to avoid provoking them back to denial.  The best bet is to be firm with the shock, but have loving arms to catch them when they fall.  Then immediately contact an alcohol and drug treatment center.

Drug-addiction.com, an informative website, posted an article a few years back that offers a glimpse at the problem of denial with the disease.  The portion excerpted below shows pertinent statistics, and the full article offers some additional insight.

-- Begin external content --

According to the results of the survey, of the 5.0 million people who needed but did not receive treatment in 2001, an estimated 377,000 reported that they felt they needed treatment for their drug problem. This includes an estimated 101,000 who reported that they made an effort but were unable to get treatment and 276,000 who reported making no effort to get treatment.

"We have a large and growing denial gap when it comes to drug abuse and dependency in this country," said John Walters, Director of National Drug Control Policy. "We have a responsibility--as family members, employers, physicians, educators, religious leaders, neighbors, colleagues, and friends--to reach out to help these people. We must find ways to lead them back to drug free lives. And the earlier we reach them, the greater will be our likelihood of success."

-- Source: http://www.drug-addiction.com/drugs_and_denial.htm --

Tarzana Treatment Centers in Los Angeles can help with intervention as part of our commitment to integrated behavioral healthcare in alcohol and drug treatment.  If you or a loved one needs help with alcoholism or drug addiction, please call us now at 800-996-1051 or contact us here.

Southern California Locations for Alcohol and Drug Treatment
Tarzana Treatment Centers has locations all over Southern California in Los Angeles County. Other than our central location in Tarzana, we have facilities in Lancaster in the Antelope Valley, Long Beach, and in Northridge and Reseda in the San Fernando Valley.

People who don’t suffer from drug addiction, and most who do, do not understand the process of this disease.  Even if they are curious, it seems like a daunting task to even begin learning about how the addicted brain works.  So it is fortunate that the potential cocaine vaccine is in the news because the information is currently widely available.

Many individuals are content with the knowledge that drug addiction is a physical and psychological disease that operates on obsessions and cravings, if that much.  When the disease hits home, though, that information just doesn’t seem enough.  By then their attention is focused on the visible problem rather than the processes that make it happen.

As interest grows among the general public, more will be written and reported about the cocaine vaccine.  Each new article reveals a piece of the puzzle that makes up the processes of the addicted brain.  This is important for those seeking understanding because the research is bringing many facts to light about the underlying disease of addiction in an easy-to-read manner.  

A basic understanding of the normal brain processes may be necessary in reading some articles.  But most articles on the subject are taking that fact into account and giving brief explanations.  So just starting to read articles about the cocaine vaccine should yield better understanding of the disease of addiction.

An article has been posted on Sciencedaily.com about computer models of cocaine addicts’ brains.  A portion is copied below.  It is a good example of an article that may seem complex, but is understandable and can encourage further reading.

-- Begin external content --

Glutamate is the major chemical released in the synaptic connections in the brain; the right amount present determines the activity of those connections. Using the computational model, MU researchers found that in an addict’s brain excessive glutamate produced in the pleasure center makes the brain’s mechanisms unable to regulate themselves and creates permanent damage, making cocaine addiction a disease that is more than just a behavioral change.

“Our model showed that the glutamate transporters, a protein present around these connections that remove glutamate, are almost 40 percent less functional after chronic cocaine usage,” Mohan said. “This damage is long lasting, and there is no way for the brain to regulate itself. Thus, the brain structure in this context actually changes in cocaine addicts.”

-- Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/09/090922160104.htm --

Tarzana Treatment Centers in Los Angeles provides addiction education and medication assisted treatment as part of our commitment to integrated behavioral healthcare in alcohol and drug treatment.  If you or a loved one needs help with drug addiction or alcohol dependence, please call us now at 800-996-1051 or contact us here.

Southern California Locations for Alcohol and Drug Treatment
Tarzana Treatment Centers has locations all over Southern California in Los Angeles County. Other than our central location in Tarzana, we have facilities in Lancaster in the Antelope Valley, Long Beach, and in Northridge and Reseda in the San Fernando Valley.