Many treatment centers are now offering yoga for addiction recovery for their clients, from detox through sober living. This can be a beneficial tool, but it can also backfire if not handled carefully and properly. Unfortunately, the clients are the ones who may suffer. Yoga isn’t just another form of exercise, like going to the […]
Is Lyrica Addictive? It Was the Worst Detox of My Life
Is Lyrica Addictive? My personal experience has been that it is. This is a short testimony of my experience with the frequently prescribed drug known as Lyrica, also known as Pregabalin. Medication can impact one person one way and then the other a different way, so keep that in mind while I go over what […]
Is Wellbutrin Addictive?
Is Wellbutrin addictive? In my experience, it’s not. This is a short testimony of my experience with the frequently prescribed drug known as Wellbutrin. Wellbutrin is prescribed for various reasons, from depression and smoking cessation to anxiety. It can even be used as a performance enhancer for men who struggle with ED. It wasn’t until […]
Heroin Addiction Stories — Jazz and Heroin: My Real-Life Heroin Addiction Story
Heroin addiction stories run the gamut, and I hate to say it this way, but I can tell you that mine is one of the worst you’ll ever read. I can tell y’all one thing for certain: I got introduced to an adult world at a very young age. The reason for this was because […]
Is Gabapentin Addictive? It Was for Me
Is Gabapentin addictive? My experience has been that it is. This is a short testimony of my experience with the frequently prescribed drug known as Gabapentin. Gabapentin is prescribed for seizures and nerve pain, but it’s also prescribed for anxiety. A common question asked by many prior to taking a medication is this: is the […]
I’m So Lonely | What to Do When You’re Feeling Totally Alone
When I was stuck in my addiction, one of the most common thoughts I had was, “I’m so lonely.” Being alone was something I absolutely couldn’t take. I tried as hard as I could to never be alone because I knew that, for me, it was dangerous—I would get suicidal. Of course, for me, the […]
What It’s Like to Have Anxiety
What it’s like to have anxiety is like having a rock on your chest. It’s like having your breath taken away in the worst way possible. It’s like this low-level, unplaceable fear that comes from nowhere and everywhere. Anxiety is like fear, except it’s not. It’s this thing that eats you alive, that takes you […]
Is Alcoholism a Mental Illness? Absolutely
Alcoholism is absolutely a mental illness, and so is drug addiction. They’re as dangerous as depression, as debilitating as anxiety, and as horrible as OCD. Setting aside for a moment the fact that alcoholism is defined as a mental illness by just about any doctor you’ll talk to (and is also defined that way in […]
Long-Term Effects of Substance Abuse
The long-term effects of substance abuse can be incredibly serious. Substance abuse destroys lives. When you use drugs for a short time, you may not experience negative repercussions, but any length of use exposes you to possible long-term addiction and potentially devastating effects. Knowing these long-term effects of substance abuse may help stop you, or […]
Why Mental Health Is Important
It’s so strange to think about the fact that we have to ask why mental health is important. No one ever asks why physical health is important—this is a given. We all agree on it. We all know it. We all at least feel properly guilty and ashamed when we don’t take care of our […]
Why Is Life so Hard?
Why is life so hard? I think there are several reasons, but before we get into them, we have to define what it is about life that’s so hard in the first place. Life can be broadly broken down into a few different aspects: Work Love Health Meaning Fun Spirit There’s probably more, but these […]
Overcoming Fear
Overcoming fear can seem impossible, especially if you suffer from Generalized Anxiety Disorder like I do. Sometimes fear feels so completely overwhelming that we’re paralyzed. Sometimes it feels like fear’s got us by the balls and won’t let go. What do we do then? It’s a hard question to answer, especially when your heart is […]
The Perfectionist | Fear of Imperfection and Procrastination
“My greatest weakness is that I’m a perfectionist, haha.” How many actual perfectionists have said this in job interviews before? If only that was a joke. If only my fear of imperfection (an outgrowth of my OCD) didn’t cause me to procrastinate so much that I don’t get anything done in the first place. It’s […]
MDD | This Is What Major Depressive Disorder Looks Like
MDD (Major Depressive Disorder) is something I’ve suffered from my entire life. We always talk about MDD as a disease, but what does that mean really? Does the disease model make a difference in how something like this affects my life? It does. Defining it as a disease means that it has nothing to do […]
Anxiety Neurosis | Free Floating-Anxiety Explained
Anxiety neurosis, also known as free-floating anxiety or Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) is easily the worst kind of anxiety you can have. Here’s what it looks like. Something’s wrong. Something’s wrong and I can’t breathe I can’t breathe I can’t breathe I— I just need to go outside. Maybe I need a drink. Damn I […]
What Are Boundaries? Setting Boundaries with an Alcoholic or Addict
Boundaries are rules that we set with other people. These rules govern what they can and cannot do to or with us, but they also describe the consequences of what will happen if those boundaries are crossed. Setting boundaries is healthy, and for most people, this is just sort of done naturally. They’re happy to […]
OCD–Intrusive Thoughts, Obsessive Cleaning, and Checking Everything Twice (and Three times, and Four… Five… Six…)
Since I was a kid, I’ve had OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder). OCD can manifest in a variety of ways. Here’s what mine looks like. This house isn’t clean. This house isn’t clean. I need to write. I need to work. I need to make money but it’s not clean it’s not clean it’s not clean […]
Anxiety and Addiction—Substance-Induced Anxiety That Doesn’t Go Away
If you’re a tweaker, you probably have a pretty damn good idea what substance-induced anxiety feels like. Anxiety and addiction are as closely related as depression and addiction. One usually follows or causes the other. Many of us use to self medicate and get rid of the anxiety, and the addiction follows. For many more, […]
It’s Not That I Want to Die—It’s That I Don’t Want to Exist
“I don’t want to exist,” is so much different from “I want to die,” and actually being suicidal, but normal people… well, they’ll just never get it. Depression is a bitch, and I’ve suffered from it my whole life. It’s hard to explain to someone who’s never suffered from it. It’s hard to explain the […]
