Posts by Dace Svikis, PhD, and Kenneth Kendler, MD
Research Opportunity Alcohol Use Disorder
Summary: Individuals with a history of substance use disorder might be eligible to participate in a brief online survey about personality, mental health, and substance use. Those who complete the survey and provide a DNA sample (in the form of saliva) will be compensated for their time and effort
Read MoreCHAOS, ADDICTION RECOVERY, AND THE POWER OF SYNERGY
People seeking help for the resolution of alcohol and other drug (AOD) problems in the United States encounter not comprehensive systems of care but silos of care based on single pathway models of addiction with narrow menus of derived services, each highly critical of competing silos. Far too often, people with the most severe, complex, and enduring AOD problems traverse multiple silos without finding a sustainable recovery solution. Below are some reflections on why these single pathway approaches to addiction and recovery are so troublesome and a few thoughts on how we may escape entrapment in such ideological prisons.
Read MoreFather’s Day Gift Ideas That Give Back
There are always ways to give back to others around you, even including the presents you buy. Here are some ideas for Father’s Day gifts that give back.
Read MoreCelebrating World Bicycle Day
With the help of a bicycle, we can take better care of the environment, our physical bodies and even spend time together. So how can you mark this momentous occasion?
Read MoreGreat Ways to Give Back on Memorial Day
Memorial Day means much more than time off from work and hosting a barbecue, so if you want to get involved this weekend, check out these great ways to give back.
Read More5 Health Benefits of Playing Music
No matter how old you are, what your musical taste is or whether or not you can read a note, there’s never a wrong time to learn how to play an instrument.
Read MoreBrain Recovery Following Alcohol Use Disorders
Since the early promulgation of addiction as a brain disease, I have warned that such a model could increase rather than decrease addiction-related stigma if not also accompanied by a parallel understanding of the neurobiology of addiction recovery. To that end, I joined several colleagues in calling for a recovery research agenda that includes a focus on the degree to which brain functioning is restored during the recovery process. In the intervening years, significant research has illuminated such healing processes and their implications for recovery management. The most significant of this work has been done on alcohol use disorders. The extent to which these findings are applicable to other substance use disorders remains unclear.
Read MoreHow to Use Social Media to Make a Difference
So, do you want to embrace social networking to have a positive influence on the world? Here are some ideas for how to use social media to make a difference.
Read MoreSupport National Foster Care Month
With more than 440,000 youth in foster care, there are plenty of ways to make a difference during this month. Here are ideas for how to support National Foster Care Month.
Read MoreRecovery Cascades
Addiction recovery is best viewed as a process rather than an event, but the transition into recovery can sometimes be more a cataclysm than a product of incremental steps—more a lightning strike than a process of maturational learning—and the factors that sustain recovery over time may be quite different than those that trigger recovery initiation. Where recovery stability is achieved in gradual stages and within later stages of enhanced global health and functioning in recovery, there are can be surges in growth that exert profound effects on personal identity and character and one’s relationship with the world.
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