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We need improved access to substance abuse treatment in the United States. Ludicrous wait times and addiction treatment prices are costing Americans too much in every way. Improving access to substance abuse treatment would save lives, money, and countless intangible types of loss.
Recently I was Googling something and the phrase, "how to overdose without dying" appeared. I was surprised and concerned--how bad of a place does one have to be in to Google that, and why is it common enough to appear as a search term? This made me think of other red flag searches. When we are not aware of how bad off we are, searches like, "how to overdose without dying" can alert us to danger (Suicide Hotline Phone Numbers). Here are some phrases that should cause you to check your mental health if you find yourself or a loved one typing them--and some words of encouragement from someone who has actually Googled, "how to kill yourself" and gotten annoyed that it led to anti-suicide pages.
Depression can make it difficult to set emotional boundaries with people in your life. Many people I've met who suffer from depression, including myself, suffer from difficulties being assertive enough to look after their own emotional wellbeing but setting emotional boundaries is important in depression.
The difference between psychiatry and social work is important to understand. The work that psychiatrists and social workers do is very laudable. They give of themselves and help people who are in their worst circumstance to have the best outcome in life. At times, it may seem like the work that psychiatrists do and the work that social workers do is one in the same. And while there are times where both fields cross paths, there is a difference between social work and psychiatry.
Completing treatment for an addiction to drugs and/or alcohol can make you feel as though you have won a difficult battle. And while this is true, it is also important to keep in mind that support systems can be an extremely beneficial way for you to receive the ongoing encouragement necessary for remaining successful in your addiction recovery (Importance of Drug Addiction Support).
Using a 12 step program for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) recovery, in addition to traditional PTSD treatments, has been helpful to my recovery. Adapting the steps to trauma-related PTSD is easy and the benefits that I have gotten from working the steps has lessened my PTSD symptoms and improved my life. While 12 step programs are generally only thought of as useful in treating alcoholism and addiction, I have found that using a 12 step approach for PTSD recovery is favorable in other situations as well. In previous posts, I have covered the first three steps and steps four, five, and six. This post focuses on steps seven, eight and nine of the 12 step approach to PTSD recovery.
It's a common joke that people, particularly women, who go to college gain 15 pounds their first year (or semester, depending on who you're listening to), but when you have binge eating disorder and you go to college, the weight changes you could experience are nothing to joke about (Make Time For Binge Eating Disorder In College). Nothing is quite like the stress of college. When stress triggers your binge eating disorder at college, binges and weight gain can collide.
It's important to know when to let someone with a mental illness be upset. The phrase, “It’s okay not to be okay” is commonplace among the encouragements from the mental health community; and rightly so since the message is more than true and something that we all need to realize (With Mental Illness, It's Okay To Create Your Own Normal). Unfortunately, the phrase seems to stop there and “okay” means only certain types of okay. What I mean is, while people are happy to say that phrase and feel like they mean it, letting someone with a mental illness be upset isn't considered "okay."
A very effective way to reduce anxiety is to do more of what works in your life. However, any type of anxiety disorder can seem to completely take over someone’s entire being, his/her very life. Anxiety can consume our thoughts, emotions, and behaviors, making us feel trapped, isolated, agitated, worried, and afraid. When living with an anxiety disorder, it can be hard to see past all of the struggles and all of the things that aren’t working in life. It’s possible to get around that, and in the process, significantly reduce anxiety. To reduce anxiety, do more of what works.
Do you know how to spot a sexual predator? It is a sad fact of life that some people prey sexually on others--and it's not always the weak and helpless who are victims. Strong, capable people may be targeted by a sexual predator as a "conquest," and a sexual predator preys on whoever is available. So how to spot a sexual predator? In this video, I talk about three warning signs of a sexual predator.