AddictionInfo brings together the most current and progressive thinking in the field of alternative drug, alcohol and other behavioral addictions. Current research and clinical trials continue to uncover new and effective, research-based, non-12-step treatment options. The site was created over ten years ago by Dr. Marc Kern, a pioneer and recognized expert in the field of contemporary addiction treatment.
This valuable, online resource has grown to include over 3,200 useful and practical articles, written by world-class authors on the cutting edge of their profession, plus current addiction news stories. These articles communicate addiction information in a succinct manner that makes it easier for the reader to understand.
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Dilbert on Overcoming Internet Addiction
- By Marc F. Kern
- Published 11/22/2008
- Internet and gaming addiction
- Unrated
When 12-Step is Not Enough: Alternative Recovery Strategies for Alcoholics
- By Marc F. Kern
- Published 11/17/2008
- Addiction Research , What Are Your Recovery Options
- Unrated
A PowerPoint presentation by Marc Kern, PhD at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, in collaboration with the Addiction Psychiatry group of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, for Perspectives on Addiction: A Round Table for Addiction Professionals.Rational Alternatives to Alcoholics Anonymous
- By Marc F. Kern
- Published 08/6/2008
- What Are Your Recovery Options
-
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I just found when I was diagnosed with an addiction, actually several
simultaneously, and was sent to a psychologist one of their
recommendations was to go to a twelve step meeting. And you know I
tried it. I went two or three times. I just didn't feel that it clicked
with me. I didn't understand it. Being trained as an architect in undergraduate school, things made
sense. They were logical, one thing, you know, was built upon another.
The twelve step program did not fit that mindset; that prototype. And
so I started on a journey to find out if there were ways to
recover other than the twelve step program.
Stages of Change Model
- By Marc F. Kern
- Published 04/19/2008
- Stages of Change , Key ideas and recovery tools
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Before you begin to make changes in your life, I would like to introduce you to a useful theory -- called the Stages of Change Model, or SCM -- about the mind/body stages we go through when we do change. The SCM model has been applied to a broad range of behaviors including weight loss, injury prevention, and overcoming alcohol and drug problems.
The Addictive Process and Addictive Behaviors
- By Ruth C. Engs
- Published 06/22/2007
- Understanding Addiction , Understanding Why People Do Drugs
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An individual can become addicted, dependent, or compulsively obsessed with any activity, substance, object, or behavior that gives him/her pleasure. Several researchers imply that there is a similarity between physical addiction and psychological dependence.
Recent Articles
Colleges Confront Misuse of Prescription Drugs
- By Join Together
- Published Today
- Drug News
- Unrated
College prevention programs used to dealing with alcohol and illicit
drugs are devoting more attention to drugs like Ritalin and Adderral,
but with limited success. Richard Clark, director of medical toxicology
at the University of California at San Diego, said that the drugs are
being used as mood-lifters and appetite suppressants as well as to
improve concentration.
Kudzu and St. John's Wort and Alcohol Intake
- By Misc Author
- Published Today
- Tools for Alcohol
- Unrated
Preliminary studies investigated the effect of two herbs, kudzu
(Pueraria lobata) and St. John's Wort (Hypericum perforatum) on alcohol
intake. Male and female subjects who took the kudzu capsules drank an average
of 1.8 beers in 90 minutes, compared to the average of 3.5 beers
consumed by the subjects who took the placebo. Recent preminary studies have found that St. John's Wort may also decrease alcohol intake.
Sex addiction divides mental health experts
- By News Services
- Published Yesterday
- Addiction In The News
- Unrated
Tiger Woods, who recently admitted to multiple extramarital affairs,
said he is receiving treatment. David Duchovny, who plays a
sex-obsessed professor on the TV show Californication, underwent rehab
in 2008. Dr. Drew Pinsky has launched a reality series dealing with the
subject. Sex addiction talk seems to be everywhere. But mental health experts are split on what underlies such behaviour.
Traumatic Flashbacks More Likely Among Moderate Drinkers
- By Join Together
- Published Yesterday
- Alcohol News
- Unrated
Moderate alcohol consumption prior to a traumatic event like a car
crash or sexual assault has been linked to higher rates of flashbacks
among victims. Researchers from University College London also
found, however, that no increase in flashbacks was reported by those
who drank heavily before their trauma.Low-tech treatments work better
- By Misc Author
- Published Yesterday
- What Are Your Recovery Options
- Unrated
The biological discoveries have been so much more illuminating than the
Freudian notion that addiction stems from "dependency needs" dating to
childhood. It's understandable, then, that more funding, and seemingly
all the excitement, has gone to discover medications and vaccines for
addiction, not to implement behavioral therapies. And although the
media laud the smallest steps toward a cocaine vaccine, when a study
shows—yawn—that rewarding abstinence can get addicts off meth, that
couples counseling can treat alcoholism, or that cognitive-behavior
therapy can break the grip of coke addiction … silence.Secondhand Smoke Can Damage Teens' Arteries
- By Join Together
- Published 03/8/2010
- Smoking News
- Unrated
Teens exposed to secondhand smoke have measurably thicker arteries than
adolescents who are not exposed, suggesting that for children "even a
little exposure to tobacco smoke may be harmful for blood vessels,"
according to researcher Katariina Kallio of the University of Turku in
Finland.
Jeff Bridges: an addictive hero in "Crazy Heart"
- By Misc Author
- Published 03/8/2010
- Alcohol News
- Unrated
What are the odds of Bad Blake, Jeff Bridges’ alcoholic, chain-smoking country singer, overcoming and/or surviving his demons? The
premise [of the movie "Crazy Heart"]: Otis "Bad" Blake ( Jeff Bridges)
is a 57-year-old country singer and songwriter who has fallen on hard
times. He's an alcoholic and chain smoker. He's experiencing frequent
blackouts and episodes of vomiting from the alcohol, and he has jitters
when he goes more than a few hours without a glass of whiskey. While
playing in a small nightclub in Santa Fe, N.M., he becomes romantically
involved with a newspaper reporter played by Maggie Gyllenhaal and
befriends her 4-year-old son, Buddy (Jack Nation). But he continues to
drink.
