We included the results of studies on MAT and telehealth conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic, when the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) relaxed rules on MAT to enable people with opioid use disorder (OUD) to access MAT services in the context of the various public health safety measures implemented to slow the spread of COVID before scientists developed an effective vaccine.

To learn the details from that study, please navigate to the blog on our website and read:

New Developments in Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT): The Role of Telehealth

The primary takeaway from that article is that MAT via telehealth works.

Patients approve, providers approve, and expanded access means more people who need treatment can get the treatment they need when they need it. Some patients and providers prefer in-person treatment, but patients who experience significant structural barriers to care benefit most from MAT via telehealth. In some cases, lifesaving treatment with MAT would be close to impossible without some provision for using telehealth in place of in-person visits, especially with regards to initiating treatment.

The Benefits of Telehealth

Before COVID, most of us knew about telehealth and/or video visits with healthcare providers. The benefits of telehealth/video consultations are obvious. While nothing is better than an in-person visit with a real human, we all recognize that, compared to in-person visits, remote visits can be:

• More efficient
• More convenient
• Less expensive

In addition, telehealth/video consultations increase access to vital care for:

• People in rural areas
• People with mobility issues
• Patients with severe health conditions
• Immunocompromised patients

Telehealth and video care works for anything that doesn’t require a lab test or a direct physical exam. Patients can access appropriate care for common physical ailments, ask providers general non-emergency questions, refill prescriptions, and participate in therapy or counseling for mental health, substance use, and/or behavioral disorders.

This article will discuss the role of telehealth and video care in one specific area: medication-assisted treatment (MAT) with buprenorphine for people diagnosed with opioid use disorder (OUD). We want to know what kind of data the DEA and other policymakers are using to decide the long-term fate of MAT

Medication-Assisted Treatment: The Most Effective Available Treatment OUD

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) defines MAT as:

“The use of medications, in combination with counseling and behavioral therapies, to provide a ‘whole-patient’ approach to the treatment of substance use disorders.”

There are three medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD) approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for MAT: buprenorphine, methadone, and naltrexone. Research shows that treatment with MOUD for people with OUD can:

• Mitigate discomfort associated withdrawal symptoms
• Decrease cravings for opioids during withdrawal and recovery
• Block the action of opioids in the brain

Research also shows the overall benefits of MAT for people with OUD include:

• Reduced risk of overdose
• Reduced overall mortality
• Improved treatment retention, a.k.a. time-in-treatment
• Decreased illicit drug use
• Decreased criminal activity/involvement with criminal justice system
• Improvements in employment
• Improvements in relationships with family and peers

Those benefits explain why MAT is known as the gold-standard treatment for people with OUD. When people with OUD engage – and stay engaged – in MAT programs, virtually everything improves. The most important metric, however, is the fact that MAT reduces risk of overdose and death by overdose: this approach to treatment saves lives.

When COVID arrived, many SUD treatment providers worried that public health measures such as shelter-in-place orders and social distancing would have a negative impact on people in MAT programs, particularly those initiating treatment for OUD. Before COVID, federal regulations required the initiation of any MAT program – whether methadone, buprenorphine, or naltrexone – to occur in-person only. In addition, other rules required in-person counseling, therapy, and medication management.

Thankfully, however, federal authorities heard and understood the warnings issued by treatment providers, and eased restrictions around MAT for OUD. The new COVID policies significantly expanded access to care by changing rules around the use of telehealth.

Let’s take a look at those changes.

Changes to MAT and Telehealth During COVID-19

During the pandemic, federal authorities eased restrictions around MAT. We’ll focus on the changes directly related to telehealth, beginning with methadone.

Methadone

COVID-era regulations allowed clinicians to:

• Treat existing methadone patients via telehealth/video visits
• Renew prescriptions for existing patients via telehealth/ video visits
• Offer counseling and therapy via telehealth/video visits
• Initiate MAT with methadone via telehealth/video visits

Now let’s look at the changes related to buprenorphine.

Buprenorphine

COVID-era regulations allowed clinicians to:

• Initiate OUD treatment with buprenorphine via telehealth/video visits
• Continue to treat existing buprenorphine patients via telehealth/video visits
• Renew prescriptions for existing buprenorphine patients via telehealth/ video visits
• Offer MAT-related counseling, therapy, and support via telehealth/ video visits

In 2024, the pandemic is in the rear-view window. With vaccines readily available, tailored to each new strain of the virus, it’s now moving toward the status of yearly flu. It’s dangerous and even deadly for some people, but for most people, it’s now – more or less – another a respiratory illness that disrupts our lives for anywhere from a couple of day to a couple of weeks.

No fun, but no longer an acute public health crisis.

In light of this, federal regulators are in the process of reviewing the changes they made to MAT rules made during COVID. As we mention in the beginning of this article, the DEA officially made an important announcement in March 2024:

The COVID-era rules are now permanent for patients with OUD using MAT with methadone or buprenorphine in opioid treatment programs (OTPs).

However, they did not make the rules permanent for office-based opioid treatment programs, called OBOTs, where a large proportion of people with OUD engage in MAT with buprenorphine.

The people these rules impact directly – people with OUD, their families, and the providers show treat them – are now waiting to learn to know if federal regulators will make these rules permanent for OBOTs as well as OTPs, create a new set of rules for OBOTs, or decide to revert to the restrictions in place before the pandemic.

What Will Happen if We Don’t Make Rule Changes Permanent for OBOTs?

In our next article, we’ll review new research related to MAT with buprenorphine among a nationally representative sample of veterans engaged in MAT through the Veterans Administration. The research we’ll discuss addresses this question:

Among Veterans Health Administration patients receiving buprenorphine for opioid use disorder in the year following implementation of COVID-19–related telehealth policies, did patient characteristics and retention differ across treatment modalities?

Those are things providers who work in SUD treatment needs to know, because the data – and data from other studies like it – will likely shape how providers deliver MAT-associated care in the years to come.

We’ll do anything we can do to reduce the harm caused by the opioid epidemic. If the data indicate the benefits of using telehealth for MAT outweigh the risks, then we’ll advocate for leaving the new rules in place for OBOTs and look for ways we can increase the use of telehealth in our MAT programs for people with OUD.

The post Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT) and Telehealth: What COVID-era Rules Did DEA Make Permanent? appeared first on Pinnacle Treatment Centers.

Bebe Moore Campbell is a renowned advocate and author whose best-selling books on mental health topics among African Americans are standard reading for anyone interested in the subject. But she’s best known for creating MHAM.

When Congress made MMAM official, Bebe Moore Campbell opened up about her personal, family connection to the issue of mental health:

“Once my loved ones accepted the diagnosis, healing began for the entire family, but it took too long. It took years. Can’t we, as a nation, begin to speed up that process? We need a national campaign to destigmatize mental illness, especially one targeted toward African Americans…It’s not shameful to have a mental illness. Get treatment. Recovery is possible.”

Mental Health America (MHA) typically chooses a basic theme for the month, which they use as a jumping-off point for their advocacy efforts. Here’s our article on MMHAM 2023, a year with a concise theme:

Minority Mental Health Month 2023: Culture, Connection, Community

MMHAM 2024 is slightly different. Rather than a headline-type theme, organizers chose to focus on raising awareness about the mental health-related challenges common in minority communities. These challenges include:

1. Cultural and social stigma around mental health.
2. Generational differences in understanding of and approach to mental health.
3. Reluctance of people in minority communities to talk about mental health.

Mental Health America provides this free and helpful toolkit to help anyone interested in participating in MMHAM:

BIPOC Mental Health Month Toolkit

In this article, we’ll narrow the scope of our discussion to one section of the toolkit: debunking mental health myths prevalent in minority communities.

Mental Health Mythbusters: Breaking Down Stigma

In the BIPOC toolkit, Mental Health America (MHA) identifies at least six myths about seeking mental health support that persist in minority communities.

Note: BIPOC stands for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color. It’s a relatively recent acronym designed to foreground diversity in minority communities, and counter the idea that minority communities are homogenous, and only exist as the binary opposite of majority communities.

We’ll address these myths one at a time, including how the organizers at MMHAM suggest we can debunk them.

Myth 1:  Asking for help/talking about my feelings is a sign of weakness.

We understand. Everyone wants to feel strong and capable of handling their own problems and managing their own affairs without any outside help. However, evolutionary science teaches us humans evolved in groups, and behavioral science demonstrates that most of us don’t do well in isolation. What that means is that it’s in our nature to rely on the help and support of others.

Showing vulnerability takes courage and is a sign of strength.

Your friends are likely to be willing to help in any way they can. If you can’t talk to your friends or peers, though, consider your close family. If you’re not comfortable doing that, then consider talking to aunts, uncles, or people in the community you trust. For ideas about how to start a conversation, click here.

Myth 2: What happens in the family should stay in the family.

In some minority cultures, the family unit is primary. This is true for many minority communities in the U.S. For a variety of reasons, there’s a powerful tradition of keeping any challenges or problems behind closed doors. The goal is for the family to present a strong, self-sufficient, unified image to the outside world: we can take care of ourselves.

What’s important to understand, from inside of this cultural frame of reference, is that getting support for mental health challenges by any single member of the family benefits the whole family. A person can take the tools they learn in treatment and use them to improve family communication, help keep the family dynamic smooth and balanced, and help other family members overcome the challenges they face.

Myth 3: Therapy is for crazy people.

Here’s what MHA has to say about this:

“Therapy is for everyone.”

It doesn’t matter who you are, how old you are, where you’re from, or whether you have a clinical diagnosis or not. Talking to a trained professional who takes the time to listen, get to know you, and help you overcome obstacles can help improve your life. Consider these BIPOC people who discuss how therapy has helped them:

• Charlamagne tha God
• Halle Berry
• Jay Z
• Simone Biles
• Naomi Osaka

Going to therapy can help you make connections between your emotions, thoughts, and actions, which can help promote productive behavior and reduce counterproductive behavior. In addition, a therapist can teach you practical skill to manage stress and effectively process challenging emotions.

Myth 4: Mental illness is a white people problem.

First, see Myth 3, above.

Second, consider the statistics from the 2022 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (2022 NSDUH), which show the following rates of any mental illness among minority groups for people age 18+:

• Non-Hispanic, Multi-Racial: 35.2%
• Hispanic: 21.4%
• Black: 19.7%
• American/Alaskan Indigenous: 19.6%
• Asian: 16.8%

There’s another factor at work here. Data shows that around 85% of psychologists are white, but that has nothing to do with whether mental illness is exclusive to white people: it means there are more white therapists. This is slowly changing, though, and right now it is possible to find minority therapists and anti-racist therapists.

Myth 5: If you’re struggling, you aren’t praying enough.

Having a relationship with prayer, embracing spiritual traditions, and committing to spiritual development are at the root of many people’s lives. If spirituality, whether informal or organized, is important to you, you can find a therapist who shares your faith. To find counseling that aligns with a specific spiritual tradition, simply search online with terms that match your faith.

Myth 6: My ancestors and family had it worse, so I don’t have a right to feel how I do.

The people at MHA have an excellent take on this: two things can be true at the same time. Yes, your ancestors and family may have experienced racism and discrimination that’s far more extreme than anything you face, and you can feel immense gratitude for the strength and courage it took for them to survive. At the same time, you live in the here and now. It’s not only fine, but it’s beneficial for you, your family, and your descendants to recognize, discuss, and process your emotions in a healthy and productive manner. If you’ve heard of generational trauma, taking steps to heal yourself is the first step toward addressing the consequences of this persistent, damaging phenomenon.

Talking About Mental Health: Minority Mental Health Across the Generations

An important part of MMHAM this year is the fact that it’s relatively inward-directed. In the past, organizers focused on getting the message out to everyone. Minority groups, of course, but also non-minority groups in a position to leverage resources to support the immediate needs related to minority mental health. This year, the organizer target issues relevant to minority communities in general and offer insight and help for specific minority communities.

They also offer valuable resources people can use right away. They provide as tips on how younger and older generations can support one another, help finding BIPOC therapists, suggestions for how to ask for help from friends, and advice about how to get a mental health screening from a licensed, qualified professional – and then seek treatment if a screening indicates a clinical mental health issue.

This year, you can help. First, visit the Mental Health America website. Second, download the free toolkit (link in intro above). Third, share the excellent social media graphics far and wide.

The post Minority Mental Health Awareness Month 2024: Debunking Mental Health Myths appeared first on Pinnacle Treatment Centers.

We’ll share our next two lists in a moment. First, however, we’ll offer the same advice we offered at the beginning of Part One: the most important part of staying sober all summer having a recovery plan and sticking to it. If you’ve had professional treatment and support, you probably created your recovery plan with your therapist and counselors before discharge. If you haven’t had professional treatment and support, we encourage you to either 1. Seek treatment, or 2. Find a sponsor at a 12-step meeting or similar recovery group to help you create a personalized plan for the summer – and beyond – that increases your likelihood of sustainable, lifelong recovery.

You can also navigate to the blog section of our website and read our previous posts on staying sober in the summertime:

Our Summer Sobriety Tips: A Reading List

Summer Recovery Tips: 8 Ways to Stay Sober During 4th of July

Summer Recovery Tips: The Potluck Picnic (Recipes Included)

Having a plan, having a sponsor, and having a robust support system are core components of a successful recovery. In addition, evidence shows that the earlier a person with an alcohol or substance use disorder (AUD/SUD) receives professional treatment, the better the outcome. Therefore, if you think you need help, we encourage you to contact an experienced mental health provider for a full mental health/addiction assessment.

Remember the Basics

We can’t write an article about staying healthy, happy, and sober in the summer months without saying this:

Stay hydrated!

We know, we know. Everyone says it – but they say it for a reason. You don’t have to carry a fancy water bottle around everywhere you go. Just make sure you drink water throughout the day, because it helps al the cells in your body function smoothly and efficiently. And in the summer, your body loses water while regulating heat – i.e. sweating – so it’s important to drink more water when you do any kind of outdoor activity while it’s hot outside.

With that said, we’ll move to the topic at hand, which is how to fill your summer with activities that are recovery friendly. We’ll share two lists in this article: places to swim and places to escape (in a good way).

Sober Summer: Places to Swim

Public Pools

Most of us lived for the pool when we were kids. But we didn’t think about everything that went into getting to the pool. Was it a public pool? A friend’s pool? Were you a country club kid? Or maybe a swim team kid who went to the YMCA for lessons and then joined a swim club. Whatever you did as a kid, now that you’re an adult, you have to figure it all out for yourself, and the first thing you realize: it’s not free!

That’s why public pools are a blessing. They’re usually inexpensive, if not free, and their goal is your goal: make it possible for everyone to have a good time swimming during the summer. In case you’re skeptical about whether there’s actually a public pool near you, we went ahead and did some research for you. We chose a city/town at random from each of the nine states where we own and operate treatment centers, and found links for the public pools in that city/town. If your town isn’t on the list, then do what we did: google “public pools [enter location]” and you’ll find a pool. Here’s our list of links:

• Bakersfield, California: Bakersfield, CA Public Pools
• Canton, Georgia: Cherokee County Aquatic Center
• Martinsville, Indiana: Martinsville City Pool
• Elizabethtown, Kentucky: American Legion Water Park
• Boone, North Carolina: Watauga County Pools
• Pennsauken, New Jersey: Pennsauken Municipal Pool
• Cincinnati, Ohio: Cincinnati Recreation Commission (25)
• Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: Citiparks Outdoor Swimming Pools (15)
• Fredericksburg, Virginia: Doris E. Buffet Pool

From small towns like Boone, NC, to larger metro areas like Cincinnati, OH, public pools are there for you. Check the list, or search in your town: you can recreate those awesome summer pool days you may remember from childhood, or make your own memories, starting this summer.

Condo/Apartment/Neighborhood Pools

We don’t have a list of apartment pools near you – all apologies. However – unless you live in an apartment, condo complex, or neighborhood with a free pool, then this suggestion combines two things that can help you stay on track this summer: staying connected to others, and of course, going swimming. Finding a friend with a pool is easy: all you do is ask. Ask coworkers, ask old friends, ask people at 12-step meetings. Better yet, hang around by the coffee after a 12-step meeting and find a small group and organize a sober/recovery friendly pool party. You never know: you might start an annual summer tradition. Sober 4^th of July part, anyone?

Rivers/Lakes

Sometimes a pool won’t cut it. You need to get out in nature and immerse yourself in water that’s not chlorinated, get mud between your toes, and look up and see trees and the sky, rather than a canvas awning. The best way to do this is to find what country folk call a swimming hole. Those might be in rivers, lakes, or even creeks. Local knowledge is best, so you need to ask friends, or think way back and remember any non-pool places you went to swim when you were a kid.

Or you can use this list we compiled to help you find a good ‘ol swimmin’ hole in your state:

• California: Find a California State Park (By Activity and Type)
• Georgia: Swimming in Georgia State Parks
• Indiana: Accessible Beaches/Indiana Department of Natural Resources
• Kentucky: State Parks With Beaches in Kentucky
• North Carolina: Swimming at State and National Parks in North Carolina
• New Jersey: State Parks With Swimming/New Jersey Park Service
• Ohio: Family Friendly Swimming in Ohio
• Pennsylvania: Swimming in Pennsylvania State Parks
• Viriginia: Swimming at Virginia State Parks

Every state where we operate treatment centers has parks where swimming is easily accessible. Check these links and plan a fun swim day, a quick getaway, or – if you have time and can make it happen – and actual vacation.

The Beach!

Who doesn’t love the beach? Well, we suppose some people don’t: that’s okay – there’s plenty for you to do if you don’t like the beach. But we’re beach advocates and think the beach can be a great place to relax and recharge during recovery. If you live near the ocean, you know going to the beach doesn’t have to be a big production: you can just take a day and go for it. If you’re in the middle of the country, though, we have good news: plenty of state parks and rivers have recreational beach areas. Use the list of links above to find a state park on a lake or a river – and make plans to go.

One last thing about swimming, especially in rivers, lakes, and oceans: jumping into ice cold water during the summer feels amazing, and might just be the most refreshing thing, ever.

How to Escape Without Running Away

This list gave us pause, because the idea of escaping or running away/getting away from it all is dangerously close to the reason many people develop an alcohol or substance use disorder: they want to escape. Escaping with alcohol or drugs will backfire over time: we all know that. Nevertheless, we all need to escape sometimes. We all need to get away from it all sometimes. And that’s okay. But if you’re in recovery, escaping and getting away from it all can’t mean you forget or ignore the basic reality of your situation, which is that recovery comes first.

When we’re in recovery, we escape to recharge, rather than deny reality. With that in mind, here’s our next list to help you fill your time with recovery-friendly activities for a sober summer.

Places to Escape (Without Running Away)

Bookstores

Bookstores still exist. They exist in all shapes and sizes. They’re in every big city in the country. You can find them in small towns, too. The gist of what we’re saying here is that although Amazon sells more books than anyone on earth, you can still find a brick-and-mortar bookstore filled with real books on real shelves. Whether it’s a small independent mom and pop or a big chain like Books A Million or Barnes and Noble, bookstores are still out there. If you’ve never escaped in a bookstore before, here’s how:

1. Find store
2. Get a stack of books
3. Find a quiet corner – a chair or a spot on the floor – and lose yourself in those books.

Don’t worry. Anyone who works in a bookstore has done this a thousand times, themselves. They won’t hassle you because this is perfectly acceptable bookstore behavior. Honestly, they’ll be jealous they have to work while you get to read.

Movies

No explanation needed: going to a movie is a great way to escape from reality for a short period of time. Nothing beats sitting back in one of those big comfy movie theater seats, waiting for the lights to go down, and losing yourself in a comedy, romance, or action movie.

Live Theater

When was the last time you went to see a play? If it’s been a while, we encourage you to reconsider. While some theater tickets are pricey, most theaters have discount days or special deals for afternoon performances. There’s something magic about the theater that you don’t get with movies or television. You see real live humans right there in front of you, performing lines from memory with no second takes, no computer effects, and no stunt doubles. A movie or TV show is what it is: it’s fixed forever, frozen in the final edited form. But theater? When a performer steps on the stage, anything can happen. Sure, there’s a script and they’ve rehearsed the scenes, but the potential is there: when the house lights go down and the stage lights come up on a real human, it’s true: anything can happen. That’s where the magic is.

Music

Wherever you want to go, music can take you there. Concerts are great, and if you can afford Taylor Swift or Foo Fighters tickets, go for it. But we suggest finding smaller, less expensive options in your area. Look in your local papers for jazz clubs, outdoor festivals, or small, family friendly venues. Open mic nights and folk nights can be great fun. We advise against the club scene because, well, most aren’t what you’d call recovery friendly. However, we advise for finding any way to experience music as you can. Live music can be transcendental, but so can putting on your headphones, sitting back in your comfortable chair, closing your eyes, and zoning out to your favorite track. That’s a great way to recharge.

Or consider this: remember back when you were a kid and you’d invite friends over just to sit around and listen to records? You can still do that – but now you can make it recovery friendly. We bet there’s a low-key movement for old-school vinyl record enthusiasts in recovery – and if there’s not, it’s time for you to start one.

Staying Sober All Summer

This might be your first summer in recovery. If it is, we encourage you to make a solid plan and follow it. Get help from your treatment team, your sponsor, or recovery peers. Summers can be tough. You may not have realized that in the past, all your free time during the long summer days revolved around alcohol and substance use, and now you need to find a way to fill that free time. You can do it. Use the suggestions in these two Stay Sober All Summer articles, or read the articles and come up a list of recovery friendly summer activities that work for you.

One last thing, in case we forgot: stay hydrated!

The post Stay Sober During Summer Part Two: Places to Swim and Places to Escape (In a Healthy Way) appeared first on Pinnacle Treatment Centers.

But we digress.

May is Mental Health Month (MHM) in the U.S., and during the process of preparing an article to join in the annual MHM advocacy movement, we found an instructive set of statistics in the 2022 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (2022 NSDUH). Researchers asked survey respondents two questions that interest us:

If you needed treatment for a substance use disorder, why didn’t you get treatment?

If you needed treatment for a mental health disorder, why didn’t you get treatment?

We’ll share the answer in just a moment. First, we encourage you to navigate to the blog section of our website and read out article on Mental Health Month 2024:

What is Mental Health Month 2024? Learn, Act, Advocate

Now let’s look at the answers to those two survey questions.

Reasons for Not Receiving Mental Health or Addiction Treatment

The NSDUH is an important resource for two reasons: its size and its frequency. Researchers distribute surveys to over 70,000 participants across the country. Data from a sample set this large allows us to make population level generalizations. For example, if 50 percent of the sample set says “yes” to a specific question, statistical analysis tells us that – because of the large sample size – it’s almost certain 50 percent of all similar people will answer “yes” to the same question: that’s what we mean by population level generalization.

And that’s why we pay attention when the NSDUH includes questions on why people who need treatment don’t get treatment. We ask ourselves the same question every day. Now – with this reliable data – we can begin to understand.

Let’s see that the survey respondents said.

Substance Use Disorder: Reasons for Not Getting Treatment

• 78.2% of people said they thought they should be able to handle their alcohol or drug use without outside help.
• 61.3% of people said they weren’t ready for treatment.
• 52.9% said they didn’t want to go without alcohol or drugs.
• 52.2% said they didn’t know where or how to find treatment.
• 47.9% though treatment would be too expensive.
• 46.1% worried about what other people would think/say.
• 42.4% said they didn’t have time.
• 41.9% said their insurance wouldn’t cover treatment.

We’re amazed at the first bullet point, and need to editorialize immediately. Please remember:

Asking for help is a sign of strength, rather than a sign of weakness.

We understand the rest of the bullet points, too, and we spend a great deal of time working to remove barriers associated with access, cost, time, and awareness.

Now let’s look at reasons people who needed mental health treatment cited for not getting treatment.

Mental Health Disorders: Reasons for Not Getting Treatment

• 58.9% thought it would be too expensive.
• 51.6% said they weren’t ready.
• 51.2% said they didn’t know where or how to find treatment.
• 48.9% said they didn’t have time.
• 46.8% said they couldn’t find a program or provider they wanted to go to.

We see, hear, and understand – and work every day to remove these barriers to care. We encourage people who need treatment but defer for financial reasons to read these two pages published by Medicaid.gov:

• Medicaid: Substance Use Disorders
• Medicaid: Behavioral Health Disorders

For people who don’t know where or how to find treatment, these free resources can help:

• For alcohol/substance use disorder support: the SAMHSA treatment locator.
• For mental health support: The American Psychological Association (APA) treatment locator
• For opioid use disorder (OUD) treatment:
  • MAT with buprenorphine
  • MAT with methadone

In addition, you can contact us here at Pinnacle Treatment Centers: we’re always just an email or phone call away.

The post Mental Health Month: Why Don’t People Get Mental Health or Addiction Treatment When They Need It? appeared first on Pinnacle Treatment Centers.

Like it or not, this is the week that most people give up on their resolutions. In fact, it’s so common to drop the resolutions around this time that January 17^th is known as “Quit Day.”

We think that’s funny, sure. But it’s also sad. People make resolutions to improve their lives, and the fact that we formalize a day to abandon working toward improvement is funny, yes, but also cynical and, as we said, sad.

In our article and our Facebook post, we offer suggestions about how to keep resolutions. One suggestion we make is to create goals using the acronym S.M.A.R.T.: specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound.

Many of us have heard of the S.M.A.R.T. approach to setting goals, but have no idea where it came from or why it was created. In this article, we’ll share their origin, and offer some pointers about using the S.M.A.R.T. approach to keep your New Year’s Resolutions.

Origin Story: S.M.A.R.T. Goals

in 1981, business management expert George T. Doran published an article called “There’s a S.M.A.R.T. Way to Write Management’s Goals and Directives.” He saw a problem in businesses he consulted for: most managers had no idea how to make business objectives, and absolutely no idea how to write them down to make them meaningful for a business and its employees.

One interesting thing about that original article is this quote:

“The establishment of objectives and the development of their respective action plans are the most critical steps in a company’s management process.”

It applies directly not only to making resolutions, but also to recovery. Consider this:

“The establishment of objectives and the development of their respective action plans are [two of] the most critical steps in [and individual’s recovery] process.”

We barely changed a thing – and it works perfectly.

That’s why we’re taking the time to write this post: the S.M.A.R.T. approach works. We should mention one thing here, though, before we move on: in his original article, achievable was assignable, because it was important for a manager to delegate the task to a specific person who could be held accountable for the outcome.

In the context of personal goal-setting, like New Year’s Resolutions, or recovery, the assigned person is clearly the person making the resolution or the person in recovery. Therefore, replacing assignable with achievable not only makes sense, but improves the approach.

Tips on Being S.M.A.R.T. About Goals

In 2022, Forbes Magazine published an article called “The Ultimate Guide To S.M.A.R.T. Goals” that we’ll use as a guide here to help understand how to use the S.M.A.R.T. approach to keep your New Year’s Resolution past Quit Day, and also help you set goals related to recovery.

We’ll use two possible resolutions as examples, and give you tips on how to clarify each component of this approach. Let’s say for instance, the two resolutions you made are general, and you need help deciding how to achieve them. We’ll use two common goals: “Exercise More” and “Eat Healthier.”

Specific: The goal needs to be simple and clearly stated.

• Exercise More: I will walk for 20 minutes after dinner five nights a week.
• Eat Healthier: I will reduce the sugar in morning coffee from 2 teaspoons to 1 teaspoon.

Measurable: You should be able to assign a number value – or a discrete metric – to the goal.

• Exercise More: I will lose ten pounds within six months.
• Eat Healthier: I will only have one serving of red meat each week.

Achievable: The goal needs to be something doable. Running a marathon after a month of training is not achievable for most people. Going fully vegetarian or vegan might not be realistic for a person who’s never tried.

• Exercise More: I know I can walk 20 minutes each evening because I have the time to do it, I love walking, and I used to run cross country, so it shouldn’t be too physically challenging.
• Eat Healthier: I know I can eat healthier because I grew up eating better than I do now, so I know what it takes, and just need to follow through.

Relevant: The goal needs to be rational, within the scope of your immediate resources, and important to your overall life.

• Exercise More: I need to exercise more because as I approach middle age, I don’t want my body to fall apart.
• Eat Healthier: I need to improve my eating because I’m approaching middle age, and want to be healthy into old age.

Time-Bound: Deadlines, dates, and schedules motivate us like nothing else. Using time as a metric is important because it’s objective: walking 20 minutes is walking 20 minutes, no matter where, when, or how vigorously you do it.

• Exercise More: If I walk 20 minutes, five nights a week, I should be able to lose ten pounds within six months, and add Saturday and Sunday walks within three months.
• Eat Healthier: If I reduce my daily sugar intake and my weekly red meat intake, I will improve my overall eating habits.

Stay S.M.A.R.T. All Year

We believe you can make it past Quit Day and keep your resolutions all year long. If your resolution involves recovery, then we double down on that: we know you have the strength to walk the recovery path, one step at a time, one day at a time. You can use the S.M.A.R.T. acronym and approach to support your recovery journey in a wide variety of ways. It can help you:

1. Stay on track going to meetings.
2. Keep up recovery-friendly activities, like exercising and eating well.
3. Set boundaries with friends, family, and peers.
4. Prioritize your recovery.
5. Meet and exceed your expectations of yourself.

Whether your goal is large, like recovering from alcohol or substance use disorder (AUD/SUD), or small, like taking evening walks, being S.M.A.R.T. about it increases your chances of success. That’s a big deal, because successfully achieving your goals improves self-esteem and overall well-being, two things that promote sustainable, long-term recovery.

The post S.M.A.R.T. Goals for Recovery and New Year’s Resolutions appeared first on Pinnacle Treatment Centers.

It started in 2013 with only 4,000 participants.

But when people heard about the benefits, it grew.

In 2023, over 175,000 people officially signed up for Dry January through the website Alcohol Change UK – the group that organizes Dry January – and millions of people who answered a public survey on Dry January said they’d “give it a try but not sign up officially or anything like that.”

Before we continue, we must offer this important disclaimer:

If you have alcohol use disorder (AUD) – meaning you meet the clinical criteria for alcohol dependence/addiction as defined by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Behavioral Disorders Volume 5 (DSM-5), or engage in daily, chronic, or excess drinking, you should understand that if you stop drinking suddenly and completely, your body can react in extreme and dangerous ways – called alcohol withdrawal syndrome (AWS) – and in some cases, AWS can lead to death.

Please take that disclaimer seriously.

Data from the 2022 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (2022 NSDUH) shows the following facts on alcohol use disorder and alcohol use in the U.S.:

• 21 million people have alcohol use disorder (AUD), a.k.a. alcohol addiction
• 61.2 million people report engaging in past-month binge drinking, defined as:
  • Women: drinking more than 4 alcoholic beverages in 2 hours
  • Men: drinking more than 5 alcoholic beverages in 2 hours
• 16.1 million people report engaging in past-month heavy drinking, defined as:
  • Binge drinking on 5 or more days in the past month

That’s why Dry January is important: millions of people in the U.S. are at risk of developing serious health problems from drinking – and Dry January might be just what they need to get their drinking under control and their health on track – whether they have clinical AUD or not.

How Dry January Makes You Healthier

Dry January is a month-long initiative that encourages people to decrease – or totally abstain from – alcohol consumption during the month of January, improve their lives, and make them, in a word, healthier. A 2019 study on the medical benefits of Dry January called “Short-Term Abstinence From Alcohol and Changes in Cardiovascular Risk Factors, Liver Function Tests and Cancer-Related Growth Factors: A Prospective Observational Study” showed that one month of abstinence from alcohol – e.g., participating in Dry January – leads to the following outcomes:

• Reduced blood pressure
• Decreased risk of diabetes
• Lowered cholesterol levels
• Decreased levels of chemical precursors to cancer

Additional benefits of abstaining from alcohol for a month include improved sleep, improved skin/complexion, healthier looking hair, more energy, increased concentration, and improved immune function.

Dry January Health Benefits: What You Can Expect Week-by-Week

Here’s a breakdown of the benefits of Dry January published by the organization that started the movement, Alcohol Change UK.

If you decide to participate in Dry January, here are the things you may experience, and the ways you may get healthier, week-by-week, during the month of January:

• Week 1:
  • More energy
  • Improved concentration
  • Better quality sleep (but it may be hard to fall asleep this first week)
• Week 2:
  • Even more energy and even clearer thinking, known as the fog lifting
  • Decreased acid reflux, for people who have heartburn
  • Increased awareness of the need to drink plenty of water
• Week 3:
  • Weight loss, especially if you harnessed your increased energy and directed it toward exercise, activity, and/or working out
  • Improved memory, especially short-term memory. Note: short-term memory is really much shorter than most people think – it’s measured in seconds. Therefore, if you try Dry January and find you can suddenly remember why you walked into the kitchen, you can thank your abstinence for improving your short-term memory
  • Increased ability to concentrate
  • Improved attention
• Week 4:
  • Risk of breast cancer decreases
  • Risk of colorectal cancer decreases
  • Reduced risk of heart disease
  • Reduced risk of hypertension
  • Improved skin tone, health, and overall complexion
  • Reduced blood pressure
  • Reduced risk of diabetes via decreased insulin resistance
  • Lower cholesterol
  • Improved liver function
  • Enhanced/stronger immune function
  • Decreased gastrointestinal issues: less bloating, diarrhea, and/or constipation

Since everyone is different, and everyone goes into Dry January with a unique history with and relationship to alcohol, not everyone will experience all of these benefits on this exact timeline. However, a decade of research now shows that most people who abstain from alcohol for a month experience these benefits, and they happen roughly according to that timeline.

We think that’s amazing: improved memory, concentration, and sleep. Improved heart health. Improved immunity. More energy. Weight loss. Decreased risk of diabetes, heart disease, and certain types of cancer.

The real question, therefore, is this:

If you aren’t considering Dry January – why not?

If you’re all in on Dry January, please read on, and use the resources we offer below.

Dry January 2024 Resources

We recommend consulting these articles to help guide your Dry January:

• Steps for Success published by Harvard Health
• Why do Dry January published by Alcohol Change UK
• Dry January: The Benefits of a Month Without Alcohol published by VeryWellMind
• Rethinking Drinking published by the National Institute on Alcohol and Alcoholism

That last article is not Dry January specific, but includes exactly the kind of information anyone considering Dry January needs to know. Finally, you can navigate to the blog section of our website and read this article:

Dry January 2024: Everything You Need to Know

If you’re thinking of doing Dry January, we applaud you. The things you learn about yourself, your health, and your habits around alcohol may change your life for the better. At the very least, you’ll learn one of two things: quitting alcohol for a month is very easy, or quitting alcohol for a month is very hard. Maybe you’ll be somewhere in between. In any case, what you learn will teach you important things about your relationship with alcohol, which you can then use to make intelligent, informed decisions about your future alcohol consumption.

The post Does Dry January Really Make You Healthier? appeared first on Pinnacle Treatment Centers.

The survey is important for a variety of reasons, including but not limited to:

1. Large sample size – over 70,000 respondents each year – allows scientists to make population-level generalizations about drug use and health. That means, based on the data in the NSDUH, researchers can say things like “In 2021, 16.5% of adults over age 18 had a substance use disorder.”
2. The generalizations allowed by the data enable providers, policy makers, and people in the general public to understand the current state of drug use and health in the U.S.
3. Annual publication allows everyone – laypeople, providers, and policymakers alike – to identify trends in drug use and health. For instance, we can learn whether rates of addiction or overdose increased or decreased, compared to previous years.

We use data from the NSDUH to inform our treatment practices and create evidence-based, factual articles and blog posts like this one. We share the latest data so patients and families have access to the most recent, reliable, verified facts and figures about topics that are important to them.

In this article, we’ll share new data from the 2022 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, published in November, 2023. While it may be frustrating to arrive at 2024 and only recently have access to verified data for 2022, taking time is essential: researchers compile, study, restudy, revise, and review the data before publication.

Why?

They have to get it right.

They have to get it right because policymakers use this data to allocate funding, assign priorities, and write rules, guidelines, and laws related to substance use and substance use treatment. In addition, they have to get it right because people’s lives – and billions of dollars every year – are at stake.

With that said, let’s take a look at the top-line data on addiction from the 2022 NSDUH.

The 2022 NSDUH: Prevalence of Alcohol and Substance Use Disorder

There’s another thing to mention about the 2022 NSDUH before we proceed. This year, they used the updated criteria from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Volume 5 (DSM-5) for substance use disorder diagnosis, rather than a combination of criteria from the DSM-IV and DSM-V.

Here’s the new, standardized criteria for diagnosing substance use disorder.

DSM-V: How to Identify SUD

1. The substance is often taken in larger amounts or over a longer period than intended.
2. There is a persistent desire or unsuccessful efforts to cut down or control substance use.
3. A great deal of time is spent in activities necessary to obtain the substance, use the substance, or recover from its effects.
4. There is a craving, or a strong desire or urge, to use the substance.
5. There is recurrent substance use resulting in a failure to fulfill major role obligations at work, school, or home.
6. There is continued substance use despite having persistent or recurrent social or interpersonal problems caused by or exacerbated by the effects of the substance.
7. Important social, occupational, or recreational activities are given up or reduced because of substance use.
8. There is recurrent substance use in situations in which it is physically hazardous.
9. Substance use is continued despite knowledge of having a persistent or recurrent physical or psychological problem that is likely to have been caused or exacerbated by the substance.
10. There is a need for markedly increased amounts of the substance to achieve intoxication or the desired effect, or markedly diminished effect with continued use of the same amount of the substance (i.e., tolerance).
11. For substances other than hallucinogens and inhalants that have a withdrawal criterion, there are two components of withdrawal symptoms, either of which meet the overall criterion for withdrawal symptoms:
    • There is a required number of withdrawal symptoms that occur when substance use is cut back or stopped following a period of prolonged use.
    • The substance or a related substance is used to get over or avoid withdrawal symptoms

Interpreting the answers:

Survey respondents who answered “yes” to two or more of the 11 questions above met criteria for substance use disorder (SUD) and were therefore included in the total prevalence estimates for 2022.

Let’s get to the data.

Substance Use Disorder and Alcohol Use Disorder in 2022

Here’s what the new data shows.

Alcohol and Substance Use Disorder, by Substance, Adults 18+

Any SUD:

• 2021: 44.3 million
• 2022: 46.4 million

Drug Use Disorder, excluding alcohol:

• 2021: 15.6 million
• 2022: 17.7 million

Alcohol Use Disorder, excluding drugs:

• 2021: 21.8 million
• 2022: 21 million

Marijuana:

• 2021: 15.3 million
• 2022: 17.6 million

Cocaine:

• 2021: 1.4 million
• 2022: 1.4 million

Heroin:

• 2021: 989,000
• 2022: 898,000

Methamphetamine:

• 2021: 1.6 million
• 2022: 1.8 million

Opioids:

• 2021: 5.3 million
• 2022: 5.8 million

Pain Relievers (Prescription):

• 2021: 4.7 million
• 2022: 5.3 million

Stimulants (Prescription):

• 2021: 1.2 million
• 2022: 1.5 million

Tranquilizers/Sedatives (Prescription):

• 2021: 1.6 million
• 2022: 1.7 million

In places we see increases, we understand we need to increase our efforts to support people with those diagnoses.

We also ask ourselves why.

In the data above, we can see we need to increase our efforts with regards to methamphetamine addiction (increased), opioid addiction (increased), prescription pain medication addiction (increased), and prescription stimulant addiction (increased). Drug use disorder overall increased, which means, overall, we have to redouble our efforts to help those in need.

We also see that marijuana use disorder increased, which is logical, given the recent nationwide movement toward legalization: that may be the why behind that increase.

With regards to the why behind increased opioid, methamphetamine, and pain reliever addiction, they why is not as clear as with marijuana. However, stress associated with the pandemic, which persisted through 2020 and 2021 – remember, most of us didn’t get a vaccine before May 2021 – may explain these increases, alongside the increased risk of addiction related to the presence of fentanyl in substances of misuse, including amphetamines and illicitly produced sedatives and tranquilizers.

Moving Forward: Our Work in 2024

Based on this data, we’re ready to increase our efforts supporting people with opioid use disorder and stimulant use disorder – including methamphetamine – with our full array of SUD treatment options. We’ll focus on offering traditional treatment and support, robust harm reduction efforts, and an ongoing commitment to offering medication-assisted treatment (MAT) with medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD) to people with opioid use disorder (OUD).

That’s our New Year’s Resolution: to continue offering the latest and best evidence-based addiction treatment available.

The post Research Report: New Data on Alcohol and Substance Use Disorder (AUD/SUD) appeared first on Pinnacle Treatment Centers.

As we head into the December holidays and start thinking about the New Year ahead, millions of people in the U.S. engage in the time-honored tradition of making New Year’s Resolutions. At Pinnacle Treatment Centers, our primary goal as an organization – and as individuals – is to offer the best possible professional support for people with substance use disorder, alcohol use disorder, and co-occurring disorders. We can consider that goal our yearly resolution: in 2024 we resolve to redouble our efforts to support people in need with lifesaving, life-changing addiction and mental health treatment.

We’ll prioritize efforts to expand access to medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD) for people with opioid use disorder (OUD), and advocate for compassionate, comprehensive care for all, including new approaches supported by the federal government, such as harm reduction and initiatives that address the social determinants of health (SDOH).

Those are our plans for the year to come. If you make New Year’s resolutions, or something similar, you’re not alone: surveys show that around three out of every four adults in the U.S. make resolutions every year.

We’ll share the results of a new survey on the most popular resolutions for 2024 below. First, let’s review the top five resolutions for the past two years, according to surveys conducted by Forbes and Statista.

First up, 2023:

2023: Top Five Resolutions

1. 52% resolved to exercise more
2. 50% resolved to eat healthier
3. 40% resolved to lose weight
4. 39% resolved to save more money
5. 37% resolved to save spend more time with family and friends

Next, 2022:

2022: Top Five Resolutions

1. 48% resolved to exercise more
2. 44% resolved to eat healthier
3. 41% resolved to lose weight
4. 34% resolved to spend more time with friends and family
5. 24% resolved to save or be more careful with their money

Now we’ll take a look at how things went for people in 2023, how they feel about their plans for 2024, and how they plan to stick to their resolutions in 2024.

New Year’s Resolutions: Results From 2023

This year, Forbes partnered with polling professionals One Poll to learn about last year’s resolutions and collect details on resolutions for 2024. One funny thing about resolutions: many people have high hopes going in, but most people don’t keep their resolutions the entire year. Here’s the data on that particular aspect of New Year’s resolutions.

In 2023, 87 percent of people thought they had a good chance of keeping their resolutions the entire year. Here’s how that worked out.

New Year’s Resolutions 2023: Success Rates

• 23% kept their resolutions for three months
• 22% kept their resolutions for two months
• 13% kept them for four months
• 9% kept them for 5 months
• 8% kept them for one month

At this point in 2023, 6 percent of people report they’ve kept their resolutions all year long. That’s a long way from the 87 percent who thought they had a good shot at keeping them. The polls don’t cite reasons people gave for giving up on their resolutions, but we can help you make resolutions that have a good chance of lasting. To learn how to increase your chances of making a robust, durable resolution, please navigate to the blog section of our website and read this article:

If You’re in Recovery, Can You Make New Year’s Resolutions That Stick?

That article is specifically for people in recovery, and the tips are tailored to support the overall recovery process. In addition to the helpful pointers in that article, a study conducted in 2020 shows there are two primary types of resolutions – and one has more chance of success than the other.

1. Approach-oriented resolutions: I will…

• • 58.99% of people in the survey who made approach-oriented resolutions kept them for a year or more

2. Avoidance-oriented resolutions: I won’t…

• • 47.1% of people in the survey who made avoidance-related kept them for a year or more

That doesn’t surprise us: when we frame thing positively and affirmatively, it increases our likelihood of engagement. Why? Perhaps it’s because “I will” statements imply hope and optimism, while “I won’t” statements imply limits or restrictions.

How People Feel About Resolutions Going Into 2024

Now let’s take a look at some of the details about how people feel about and plan to keep their resolutions in 2024, based on the Forbes/One Poll survey we link to above.

New Year’s Resolutions 2024: Feelings and Plans

• 62% felt pressured to make resolutions
  • Women: 64%
  • Men: 60%
• 55% say physical and mental health are equally important for 2024
• Women and men prioritized mental health equally for 2024
• Women are more likely than men to prioritize fitness in 2024
• 20% plan to keep themselves accountable
  • That’s a huge drop: in 2023, 77% planned to keep themselves accountable.
• 80% think they can keep their resolutions all year
  • 82% of men
  • 79% of women
• 49% plan to use an app to stay accountable. Popular app types include:
  • Diet: 46%
  • Gym membership app: 43%
  • Habit trackers: 40%
  • Diet app: 33%
  • Meditation app: 33%
• 86% think their resolution will improve their lives past 2024
• 29% think they’ll improve life for 1-2 years
• 57% think they’ll improve life for 3 or more years

This data encourages us. Despite the low overall success rate of keeping resolutions, historically speaking, people are still confident about their ability to keep their resolutions, generally speaking. This confidence is admirable in the face of cynicism and skepticism about resolutions. There are actually two unofficial dates related to abandoned resolutions: one places “Ditch Your Resolution Day” on January 17^th, while another places “Quitter’s Day” on the second Friday of January.

If you’re an optimist, then congratulations: that’s what it takes to make and stick to plans for positive future change.

2024: What’s on Deck?

Now, the moment we’ve all been waiting for: the top resolutions for 2024. Here’s what the Forbes/One Poll survey reports.

Drumroll please…

2024: Top Five Resolutions

1. 48% resolved to exercise more
2. 38% resolved to improve finances
3. 36% resolved to improve their mental health
4. 34% resolved to lose weight
5. 32% resolved to eat healthier

Compared to the past two years, this list is remarkably consistent. The resolution to improve finances made a comeback, jumping up two spots from #4 to #2. Losing weight dropped one spot, from #3 to #4. Spending more time with family and friends dropped out of the top five, supplanted by the upward movement of the financial resolution and the appearance of the improve mental health resolution in the top five.

When we look over this list, we’re encouraged. When people resolve to exercise more, they can expect more than physical benefits. More exercise means improved sleep, reduced symptoms of anxiety and depression, and improved overall wellbeing. The same goes for losing weight and eating healthier. When approach correctly, losing weight and eating healthier lead to overall improvements in wellness. In addition, making more money has an impact, too: while money can’t buy happiness, improving finances can certainly reduce anxiety.

Finally, what we see here is that all five of these resolutions are friendly for people in addiction treatment: improvements in any of these areas can bolster overall health and wellbeing, which support and increase the likelihood of sustainable, lifelong recovery.

If you’re still on the fence about resolutions, then we suggest choosing one of the above, and reading our article on how to make resolutions that stick.

Good luck – and Happy New Year!

The post The Most Popular New Year’s Resolutions for 2024 appeared first on Pinnacle Treatment Centers.

We have news: you can do it!

Millions of people around the world are in recovery, and every year they make it through New Year’s Eve with their recovery and sobriety as strong as ever. If you’re new to recovery, you may wonder what NYE is like without alcohol or drugs.

We can tell you: it’s fun.

You don’t have to go to a huge, wild party that revolves around intoxicants to ring in the new year. You can do it any way you choose, with anyone you choose, in a manner that supports and promotes both your recovery and sobriety.

We’ll share our top five tips for managing New Year’s Eve with your sobriety intact below, but first, just to give you an idea of the types of activities or events that have nothing to do with alcohol or drugs, consider these:

• Get a Group and Do an Escape Room
• Throw a Theme Party with Recovery Peers
• Have a Game Night
• Throw a Craft Mocktail Party – click for our list of awesome mocktails
• Have a Recovery Movie Night – click for our list of recovery-themed movies

You get the idea. With the right group, you can turn anything you like into an excellent, sober-friendly, NYE activity. But if this is your first New Year’s Eve in recovery, we can offer you more than that. The list that follows can guide your NYE celebration plans – and help you keep it sober – no matter where you are or what you like to do.

Five Tips to Celebrate New Year’s Eve and Stay Sober

1. Plan Ahead

If you’re reading this article, you’re already there. Making plans, thinking about how you can celebrate New Year’s Ever with your sobriety intact. After articles like this one, we suggest talking to your counselor or therapist. They know you, they know your sobriety, and they’re likely to know what will work for you and what won’t. If you come up with a plan you think is solid, run it by them for feedback. They may notice things you miss, or they may praise you for including things they didn’t think of. Either way, they can help.

If you can’t check in with a counselor or therapist, we suggest consulting recovery peers from community support groups like Narcotics Anonymous (NA) or Alcoholics Anonymous (AA). If you have a sponsor, even better: run your plans by them and see what they think.

2. Family Friendly is Good

Some people in recovery aren’t connected to their families, for good reason: their family dynamic may threaten their sobriety. If that’s you, don’t worry – you can still take this family friendly tip to heart. If you have friends who have kids, then the New Year’s Eve parties they throw are probably less rambunctious, less centered around alcohol, and less centered around excess, party-animal type activities than people who don’t have kids.

That’s not set in stone, so you need to check in first, but in general, a family-oriented party will be a safer bet than your average NYE shindig. You’ll probably get to watch Ryan Seacrest host the big party on TV, listen to Mariah Carey belt out her classics, see some front-yard fireworks, and watch the ball drop in Times Square. Added bonus? They’ll have plenty of sparkling apple juice on hand, as opposed to – or in addition to – the traditional NYE champagne.

3. Avoid the Old Haunts.

This is important for people early in recovery. If you went to certain parties or places regularly before you entered recovery, we suggest not going back to those places this year. Old friends will be there – true. You know the parties are fun – true. You used to love them – true. However, it’s also true that those friends and those parties will be filled with triggers that threaten your sobriety. As tempting as it might be to test your new skills, we suggest avoiding those old parties at all costs, especially if you’re new in recovery. This is your chance to create new traditions with new people who are on the same page as you: in recovery and committed to making it through the evening without relapsing to alcohol or drug use. When you create new, recovery friendly traditions, you also prove to yourself that you can have fun and celebrate without alcohol and drugs. When you succeed – because you stay smart and have a plan – you create a template for future recovery-friendly celebrations, and renew your belief that taking the path you’re on is the right one, and will keep you healthy, happy – and sober – for years to come.

4. Sober/Recovery Peers

You’re the expert on your recovery, so your take on this whole enterprise is very important. And since you’re reading this article, we applaud your instinct to look for tips and advice. After your instinct, and after the advice of your therapist or counselor, your community of sober/recovery peers is an invaluable resource. The main reason? If they have years of recovery under their belt, that means that, in terms of a sober New Year’s Eve, they’ve been there and done that – and survived with their sobriety intact. That’s why they’re an excellent resource: experiential knowledge trumps theoretical knowledge all day.

Also, the thing about people in 12-step meetings is they’re not afraid of being blunt and telling you what they really think. Especially the old-timers: they don’t hold back. If you float a plan at a meeting, they’ll tell you straight up at the coffee table afterward “Terrible plan, you’re setting yourself up to fail,” or “Sounds good – that might just work.” It’s also likely someone in the community can tell you what it’s like to relapse on NYE, because it happens. That’s why people rely on organizations like AA and NA: community members have literally seen it all, and, in most cases, are willing to share their unvarnished take on any recovery-related topic, including how to have a sober New Year’s Eve.

5. It’s About the People, Not the Party

There’s an old saying: beginnings are important. Many people believe that the way you start something influences how that something plays out in the long run. That’s why getting treatment is a great way to begin your recovery journey. You spend time focusing on yourself and learning the skills that help you achieve your recovery and/or sobriety goals. You build up good momentum by making a good start. We can apply that to your year, too. If you decide to spend your New Year’s Eve in a recovery-friendly manner, surrounded by people who support your recovery and believe in you, then you lay the groundwork for a year of success. You can take that amazing feeling of success you have about making it through NYE fully sober, hold on to it, and use it as a beacon to get you through the year.

Sober New Year’s Eve: Resources and Activity Suggestions

Organizations like Narcotics Anonymous (NA), Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), and SMART Recovery all host or sponsor sober New Year’s Eve events.

Check these links to find an organized sober NYE event near you:

• Narcotics Anonymous Event (NA) Page
• Alcoholics Anonymous (AA)
  • Check your local chapter for local events
• SMART Recovery
  • Look for upcoming announcements for SMART Recovery New Year’s Eve Around the World

We know you can have a healthy, happy, fun – and sober – New Year’s Eve. You have the resources at your fingertips. Now it’s up to you!

Happy New Year!

The post How to Celebrate New Year’s Eve in Recovery and Stay Sober appeared first on Pinnacle Treatment Centers.

We’re proud of you – recovery is not easy.

If you’re heading into your first holiday season and new year in recovery, we have another message for you:

You can do it – and it can help make your recovery even stronger.z

We’re thinking of this in terms of New Year’s Resolutions, really. That’s what this article is about: using resolutions as a way to reaffirm your commitment to the recovery process and affirm your confidence in your ability to achieve sustainable, lifelong recovery.

You can read about New Year’s resolution statistics in this informative article here.

While many people think New Year’s resolutions are a waste of time, we disagree. Well, they can be, sure, if you don’t make the right ones. But if you make the right resolutions, and have a plan to make them stick – like the one we’ll outline below – then they can work in your favor.

Why?

Because resolutions include an important recovery priniciple:

You can’t think your way to recovery, you have to act – or behave – your way to recovery.

Resolutions, by their very nature, are about changing actions and behavior. You desire a specific outcome, so you resolve to change the things you do to bring about the outcome you want. Sounds like a template for recovery, doesn’t it?

And like your recovery, you’re more likely to succeed at your resolutions if you have a realistic plan in place, ahead of time, to accomplish them. Before we share our three tips for making resolutions that stick, we want to remind you of something very important. When you make your resolutions, and work on keeping them in the new year, prioritize being kind to yourself. Sure, you may default to being your own worst critic, but this year, we want you to work in something else, in addition: being your own best support system.

Please keep that in mind as you make – and pursue – your resolutions for the new year.

The Resolutions You Make in Recovery Can Last

This is our best advice on how to make resolutions that support three criteria: they don’t threaten your recovery, they allow you to be kind to yourself, and they increase your overall recovery skills. We think those criteria are important to keep in mind, because, after all, the most important resolution is the one we assume you already made: stay in recovery and stay on your program, one day at a time, in 2024.

How to Make Your Resolutions Stick When You’re in Recovery

1. Make resolutions flexible.

Flexibility and recovery go hand in hand. Some days things don’t go the way you want, and you have to adjust. You might not be able to get to a morning meeting, so you change plans and go to an afternoon meeting. It may be a little bit of a hassle, but no problem, you can handle it. The same is true for resolutions. You need to be flexible, and they need to be flexible, or they’ll probably cause more stress than they’re worth.

For instance, if you resolve to exercise every morning before work, and one day you oversleep and can’t make that happen, you have options. Work out at lunch, work out in the afternoon, or work out after dinner. You still get your workout in, and you prove to yourself that if things don’t go exactly as planned every day, you can still meet your goals and keep your resolutions.

2. Make resolutions realistic.

This is crucial. If you put resolutions beyond your reach, then you set yourself up for frustration and potential failure. However, if you make them practical, realistic, and achievable, you increase your chance of success. Not too easy though: you want goals or resolutions to be just beyond where you are now, but within reach with some work. You want to set yourself up for success, but at the same time, a challenge with a managed or manageable risk of failure is a safe way to raise the stakes and motivate you to make change.

With that said, every day in recovery is a victory, and yes, this is one instance where if you show up and do the work, the participation trophy you get – your ongoing recovery – has real value.

3. Make resolutions simple.

If you can clarify your goals and distill what you want something simple, then that makes the entire goal setting and goal achieving process possible. Life can get complicated all by itself. A simple resolution requires focused action, which can help bring a sense of purpose to your days, or bring meaning to your daily activities.

For example, if your resolution revolves around saving more money next year, clarify and simplify that: set a realistic amount to set aside each week or each month. And if things don’t go exactly as planned – unexpected expenses, unpaid sick days, other unknowns – see tips #1 and #2 above: you stay flexible, and adjust your plans given the circumstances, and keep things realistic, which means missing one day or covering one unexpected expense might not have a significant impact on your goal in the first place.

What Matter Most in 2024: Your Recovery

We all know how it feels when we keep a promise we make to ourselves: it increases our self-esteem, increases belief we can do it again, and proves to us that we can do the things we set out to do. One thing that can happen is that your good days can become reinforcing, meaning that the more good days you have, the better you feel, and the more motivated you become to do the things that make the days good. In terms of resolutions during recovery – meaning the promises you make to yourself – that means the longer you stick with the resolutions you make during recovery, the more likely it becomes that you’ll keep them throughout the year.

That’s why you make them simple, achievable, and flexible. That’s why you break them down into concrete actions you can complete every day, or every week. You create a scenario wherein the promises you make are promises you can keep, and can gain momentum until the associated actions feel like a regular part of your daily life.

And if you get off track, you lead with kindness – to yourself – then recalibrate and restart. Do that one day at a time, one concrete action at a time, one goal at a time, and one resolution at a time, and by this time next year, you’ll be amazed at what you’ve achieved.

The post If You’re in Recovery, Can You Make New Year’s Resolutions That Stick? appeared first on Pinnacle Treatment Centers.

You may be worried, overwhelmed, and a little bit intimidated – and that’s okay.

We get it: the time between Thanksgiving and New Year’s ever can be filled with triggers that increase your risk of relapse. Your triggers might be people or places. They could be holiday music, or simply the sight of holiday decorations in stores, in front yards, or on the houses in your neighborhood.

In a word, the holidays are challenging. If you feel that way, you’re not alone. We can think of at least reasons the holidays create a special set of obstacles to overcome. The good thing? You can prepare ahead for success. And if you are successful, it will build your confidence for the seasons to come.

Staying on Your Program During the Holidays

Here are the three main reasons we want you to be prepared to face the challenges ahead.

Holiday Season: Three Big Obstacles

1. Family

There’s an old saying in recovery: your family knows how to push your buttons because they’re the ones who installed them. For most people, the most powerful, persistent, and emotional memories are directly related to our families or our childhood. In addition, many of these emotional memories form during the holidays. We remember the good and the not-so-good. Dinners filled with cheer, and dinners filled with awkward silences. We remember the sacred and secular rituals we participated in – some with negative emotions, some with positive emotions. It’s typically a mixed bag, and almost never simple. For most people in recovery, family dynamics are complex. That’s why they can challenge recovery and increase risk of relapse, and that’s why family is at the top of this list: be prepared to manage your emotions and deploy your most robust emotional regulation skills.

2. Goals, Aspirations, and Expectations

As you enter the holiday season and approach the New Year, you may be filled with anticipation and excitement about all the good things the season and the next year may bring. Perhaps you’ve been in recovery for 6-8 months or longer, and you’re feeling yourself: you have your recovery plan, you go to meetings, you take care of your body, you eat right, everything is working and on track. There are two possible problems you may face, though: just because you’re learning, growing, and changing, the people around you may not be. Meaning while you move forward, others are stuck: they may be friends, coworkers or family members.

Remember this: you do you, let them do them.

The second challenge: you may have bad days, brought on by the outright emotionality of the season. You may get overwhelmed and feel like all your work is about to slip through your fingers. That’s okay, too. When that happens, slow down, take a breath, check your recovery plan, call your sponsor, and go to a meeting. You have the tools, and you can do it: we believe in your strength, resiliency, and ability to get through the holidays with your recovery intact. Just because things don’t go exactly the way you want them to, it isn’t the end of the world. You adapt, overcome, and move forward with grace and gratitude.

3. The Parties and the Alcohol

Our holiday celebrations often revolve around getting together with family and friends and eating big, delicious meals. We have appetizers, we have multiple courses, we linger over dessert, and we sit and talk over coffee afterwards. The thing for people in recovery is this: at almost every step of the way, someone may offer you a drink, and it’s virtually guaranteed that the people around you will consume alcohol. That’s tough, and it increases your risk of relapse. The best way to do this – assuming you can’t skip every party or family get together you’re invited to – is to have a plan before going in. If you feel triggers, deploy the relapse prevention strategies you developed during treatment. Again: you can do it, and we believe you can make it through family get togethers – and the ubiquitous office parties – with your recovery fully intact.

Holidays and Recovery: Keeping Perspective

Here’s a good reality check: if this is your first December in recovery, it’s unrealistic to think every moment of every day will be perfect. That’s an unrealistic life expectation anyway, and even more important to remember as you enter this month of potential challenges. Expect some challenges, and they won’t surprise you.

We’re too optimistic to say prepare for the worst so you won’t be disappointed.

We prefer to say this instead:

Expect the challenges so you’re ready to meet them.

Here’s another dose of perspective, or our reality check number two: if you’re in recovery, that’s an amazing accomplishment to be proud of. You made a proactive choice to improve your life, and you take steps every day to make your vision of a better future a reality, rather than a dream. The holidays – as challenging as they can be – can get you one step closer to that vision.

How?

Every day you face and manage a trigger without relapse is a success. Each time a family member says something that elicits a powerful emotion – and you process that emotion without the help of alcohol or drugs – is a victory. Every time you go to a holiday party and navigate the minefield of egg nogg, fancy holiday beverages, and intoxicated coworkers and make it to the end feeling strong, solid, and confident in your recovery, it’s a sign you’re making progress in the right direction.

It means you’re doing your work, your recovery plan is a good one, and you can be confident that in 2024, you’ll keep going it up. And when you get to New Year’s Eve, one option re. resolutions? Just make one: stay on your program.

The post Why Are the Holidays Challenging for People in Recovery? appeared first on Pinnacle Treatment Centers.

It’s an important question for a variety of reasons.

From a patient perspective, knowing how long drugs stay in their body helps them understand more about the drug they’re taking and why they’re on the dosage schedule they’re on. It also helps them avoid any dangerous interactions with other medications and prevents unwanted side-effects related to missed or incorrect dosages.

Knowing how long drugs stay in the body helps clinicians for the same basic reasons. They need to know how a potential medication might interact with other medications a patient takes and affect other medical conditions the patient might have. For clinicians with patients in treatment for alcohol or substance use disorder (SUD), the information is essential for understanding when withdrawal starts and ends, which has a direct impact on when a patient can participate in various treatment activities.

In addition, for clinicians with patients with opioid use disorder (OUD) or SUD, the length of time an opioid – or alcohol – stays in their system determines when that person can initiate medication-assisted treatment (MAT) with certain medications for opioid use disorder or medications for alcohol use disorder.

What Happens to a Drug Inside Your Body?

When you ingest a drug, your body breaks it down into its constituent parts. Some of those parts serve a purpose, like relieving pain, reducing swelling, or decreasing anxiety, for example. The remaining parts of the drug are treated by the body as waste. These extra waste products are processed through the kidneys, lymphatic system, or liver, and subsequently eliminated through various means. The time it takes for the body to completely eliminate a substance depends on a variety of factors, including:

• The drug itself
• Dosage of the drug
• Presence of other drugs
• Age
• Weight
• Gender
• Liver/kidney function

When discussing how long a drug stays in the body, one term clinicians and scientists use frequently is half-life. The half-life of a drug is the length of time it takes for the concentration of a drug in the body to drop by fifty percent of its original dosage/concentration. Half-life does not refer to how long a drug stays in your body overall: that’s determined by the factors we list above.

While the half-life of a drug doesn’t define its onset of action – i.e., how long it takes to start working – it does help prescribers determine how frequently a medication should be taken to maintain a consistent therapeutic effect.

Medication and Addiction

In addiction treatment, understanding the half-life of a drug is essential in determining several important things:

• When withdrawal – the reaction of the body to the absence of a drug – will begin and end
• Whether specific physical, psychological, and emotional symptoms are a result of withdrawal, a co-occurring disorder, or something else
• Patients with opioid use disorder (OUD) who want to engage in medication-assisted treatment (MAT) with Vivitrol must completely detoxify from opioids before taking their first dose of medication
• Patients with alcohol use disorder (AUD) who wants to engage in medication-assisted treatment (MAT) with Vivitrol must completely detoxify from alcohol before taking their first dose of medication

Here are the lengths of time the most common substances of misuse stay in your body. We know this information based on how long these drugs are detectable by typical drug tests or screens. Below, we’ll share three things:

1. How long a drug is detectable in urine
2. How long a drug is detectable in blood
3. The basic timeline withdrawal for each drug

Let’s take a look at the facts.

How Long Common Drugs of Misuse Stay in Your Body

(And Withdrawal/Detox Timeline)

• Opioids: For most opioids, withdrawal begins 6-12 hours after the last dose and lasts 4-10 days. Longer acting opioids like methadone may involve withdrawal periods of up to 3 weeks.
  • Codeine: 1 day in urine and up to 12 hours in blood
  • Heroin: 3-4 days in urine and up to 12 hours in blood
  • Methadone: 3-4 days in urine and 24-36 hours in blood
  • Morphine: 2-3 days in urine and 6-8 hours in blood
  • Fentanyl: 2-3 days in urine and 5-48 hours in blood
  • Oxycodone/oxycontin: 4 days in urine and 24 hours in blood
• Cocaine: 3-4 days in urine and 1-2 days in blood. Withdrawal begins quickly and lasts 7-10 days.
• Amphetamine: 1-3 days in urine and around 12 hours in blood. Withdrawal begins 6-12 hours after the last dose and lasts about 7 days.
• Methamphetamine: 3-6 days in urine and 24 – 72 hours in blood. Withdrawal begins 6-12 hours after the last dose and may last as long as a month.
• Marijuana: 7-30 days in urine and up to 2 weeks in blood. Withdrawal from marijuana is nearly as intense as other drugs, but mild psychological and physical discomfort may last for about a week.
• Alcohol: 3-5 days in urine, 10-12 hours in blood. Withdrawal begins about 8 hours after the last drink and lasts 7-10 days.
• Benzodiazepines (Xanax): 3-6 weeks in urine and 2-3 days in blood. Withdrawal typically begins with 1-2 days and may last as long as 6 months to a year.
• MDMA (ecstasy): 3-4 days in urine and 1-2 days in blood. Withdrawal from MDMA has not been studied extensively, but generally follows a timeline similar to amphetamines. Symptoms can begin within 6-12 hours and may last for 3-5 days.
• LSD: 1-3 days in urine and up to 2-3 hours in blood. LSD does not have a withdrawal syndrome like most drugs of misuse. A person who stops taking LSD will lose any tolerance for the drug within 3 days.
• Barbiturates (Seconal, Phenobarbital): 2-4 days in urine and 1-2 days in blood. Withdrawal begins within 24 hours, the most severe symptoms occur within 72 hours, and may last for up to three weeks.

Some drugs – primarily benzodiazepines – cause a withdrawal phenomenon called post-acute withdrawal syndrome (PAWS). PAWS occurs when symptoms of withdrawal may last for several months. In some cases, the symptoms may persist for years. The most common PAWS symptom is insomnia. However, symptoms such as irritability, fatigue, depression, cravings, anhedonia (inability to feel pleasure), decreased libido, impulse control, and problems with memory and/or concentration can persist for months. Or, as mentioned, some of these symptoms may persist for a year or more, in rare cases.

Medication: Use Only as Directed

There are many reasons to use medication only as directed, and no real good reason to use a medication in a way other than directed by a physician. The most important reason to follow directions is your health. The people who research, design, manufacture, and sell medications can’t do any of the above if the medication creates a health or safety risk.

That’s why every medication – especially prescription medication – comes with that extra piece of paper that includes basic dosage guidance, abundant warnings about drug interactions, and an extensive list of dos and don’ts: do take this medication with food, don’t take double if you miss a does, don’t take this medication before driving or operating heavy machinery, do call your doctor if you experience these side effects – all that information is there for one reason: your health and safety.

We provide the information above for the same reason. It’s for the health and safety of our patients, who need to know how long drugs stay in their body in order to understand the potential risks and benefits of any medication they take during recovery, which includes how long a drug might stay in their system.

The post How Long Do Drugs Stay in Your Body? appeared first on Pinnacle Treatment Centers.

“A stimulus that elicits a reaction. For example, an event could be a trigger for a memory of a past experience and an accompanying state of emotional arousal.”

For people in recovery, the accompanying state may refer to an emotional state or a pattern of behavior that leads to relapse to alcohol or drug use. However, we read an article recently called “What is the Trigger of Addiction?” that suggests we revisit our concept of what a trigger is, which can inform how we respond to them.

The current thinking on triggers is that they’re external stimuli, or external problems/situations/events, which, when experienced, increase risk of relapse. Therefore, the approach in addiction treatment is threefold:

1. Avoid them.
2. Create coping skills to mitigate their effect.
3. Learn to apply coping skills in real time to prevent relapse.

What the new article we mention above points out is that our current view of trigger may place too much emphasis on the external, and not enough emphasis on the internal. In other words, the way we talk about triggers now gives us wiggle room to blame something outside of ourselves for something that only we can control, which is whether we relapse to alcohol or drug use.

Instead, the authors of the article suggest a two-step approach to managing triggers. The first is traditional: avoid and learn to manage them. The second is to work on the unresolved internal emotional state or states uncovered by the trigger. When we address those issues and develop internal emotional resiliency, the external triggers will have less power. Therefore, they’ll have less of a chance of leading to relapse, because we’ve done the internal work necessary to resolve them.

Family Time During the Holidays While in Recovery: Managing Triggers

We can use this idea to think of triggers in a new way. Rather than external forces to blame for leading us to unresolved internal spaces, we can think of them as reminders of the work we still need to do, and that, indeed recovery is a lifelong journey and process. They’re gifts that reiterate that one important point: the work of recovery is never finished.

And believe us: when you spend time with your family over the holidays, the gifts abound, and the opportunities to work on your coping skills – both internal and external – are likely to appear early and often during the time between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day.

That’s why we created this gift for you. It’s our list of tried-and-true, time-tested tactics for thriving – not just surviving – during the holidays this year.

Top Five Tips for Managing Holiday Triggers

1. Reality Check.

If you didn’t realize it before, we’re certain you do now: during the holidays, triggers can come from everywhere. Your reality check means understanding all that beforehand and being honest about the fact that during the holidays, your chance of relapse increases. When you have your most robust relapse prevention and coping skills ready and waiting – on standby, as it were – you can decrease that risk of relapse.

Another thing to consider if you’re heading home for the holidays: people and places from your past have a way of showing up at just the right time to test your resolve. They may be people you used to drink or use drugs with in the past, or they may be places you’ve totally forgotten about that bring back a flood of memories – and may trigger old urges. Believe us: not five minutes after one of your family members pushes one of those buttons they installed, you’ll get a text from an old friend asking you to come join a holiday party you know you shouldn’t attend.

Instead of letting that stress you out, this year, look at that as an opportunity to stick to your plan, stick to your recovery, and reply to that text with an alternate plan to meet and reconnect – on that doesn’t threaten your hard-earned sobriety.

2. Be Prepared.

This is part of your reality check. We recommend you view the holidays with an appropriate combination of optimism, caution, and pragmatism. When you plan for the two big weeks – Thanksgiving and Christmas – map out the times when you think triggers are most likely to appear. For example, if you know your outspoken uncle is going to be at dinner one night – the one who thinks recovery is for wimps and disagrees with you vehemently on every possible social and political issue – then you should prepare yourself for that dinner ahead of time.

Make sure you work out in the morning, if working out is your thing, make sure you get a good you’re well rested, you don’t show up hungry – hunger turns to hanger quick when you’re waiting on those appetizers – and keep your phone at your side, ready to call or message a recovery peer if things get overwhelming.

Be prepared – like a boy scout – and plan ahead. And when you plan ahead, really think it through: who are you going to be with, when are you going to be with them, and do they a) support your recovery or b) threaten your recovery. Answer those questions, come up with a plan to handle the emotions your family members elicit, and you’ll dramatically increase your likelihood of surviving the holidays with your sobriety safe, and your recovery stronger than ever.

3. Community Support Meetings.

Whether you’re traveling to a different city for Thanksgiving or Christmas or staying home, meetings might be a lifesaver during the November-December holidays. That’s no exaggeration: we all know the potential long-term consequences of a real, extended relapse – and none of us want that for ourselves or our recovery peers. Therefore, plan your meetings ahead of time. Most big and medium sized cities have more than enough meetings to meet your needs: early morning, mid-morning, lunch, afternoon, evening – you name the time, and there’s a meeting.

You can plan meetings on Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and any time leading up to and after those days. And here’s the amazing thing: literally everyone there is in the same boat, trying to make it through the holidays in as safe and sane a manner as possible. Click here for the Alcoholics Anonymous meeting finder, click here for the Narcotics Anonymous meeting finder, and click here for the SMART Recovery meeting finder. Finally, if you’re in immediate crisis, dial the 988 National Crisis Line or click here to learn about the ways you can find help immediately.

4. Make Your Own Holiday Rituals.

There’s something we haven’t mentioned yet that’s very important: for some people in recovery, family is neither helpful nor what they need. In fact, for some people, family members can impair or impede the recovery process, and create so much emotional turmoil that it’s best to avoid them altogether. Usually it’s a mixed bag: some family members support you completely, others seem determined to upset your peace and create as many challenges to your recovery as possible. Ultimately, the decision is yours: do you risk a toxic environment – with some good parts – or avoid it altogether? We suggest talking this over with your counselor, therapist, sponsor, or recovery peers.

If you decide against going home or being with family for the holidays, we have an excellent alternative suggestion: invite a chosen family of recovery peers and others show support your recovery and start your own holiday traditions. Host a sober Thanksgiving dinner, plan a week full of recovery-friendly Christmas outings, or simply have a small get-together with trusted friends or loved ones and eat too much delicious food. Believe us on this one. There are people near you, or people you already know, who are wondering how they’re going to make the most of the holidays while staying on their program. If you invite them to recovery-friendly holiday outings, we guarantee they’ll be on board, be thankful, and help you make the most out of the holidays this season. And if everything goes well, they can help you plan for the years to come.

5. Gratitude is the Attitude.

You’re here, you’re alive, you’re in recovery: for some of us, those three things themselves are amazing accomplishments – and worth celebrating. They may be more than we expected of ourselves just months ago. If you have a loving and supportive family, we suggest you be grateful for them. Every last cousin, nephew, inappropriate uncle, and aunt-who-knows-best: hug them, tell them you love them, and soak in what the holidays are all about.

In case you forgot, the holidays are all about gratitude.

Giving thanks for your family, for the food at the table, for the time you spend together. And if the family you spend time with this holiday season is your chosen family, rather than your biological family, nothing changes: you can recognize and express your gratitude for their presence in your lives. Our families – biological or chosen – reflect back the best of us, remind us of who we are, why we keep doing the hard work every day, and why we’re grateful: we’re here, we’re alive, and we’re in recovery. That’s cause for celebration, in the true spirit of the holidays.

Your Life, Your Recovery, Your Holidays

One thing you learn in addiction recovery is how relationships affect the experience of your alcohol or substance use disorder (AUD/SUD). You may learn that dysfunctional family relationships or early trauma contributed to your AUD or SUD. Or, you may have learned that you developed an AUD/SUD for entirely different reasons, but your addiction, in turn, had a negative effect on your relationships. In either case, addiction and interpersonal relationships – family or otherwise – are connected.

That’s an important lesson to learn during recovery.

Another important relationship lesson you learn during recovery is about how to set and maintain healthy relationship boundaries. The holidays are perfect for practicing your boundary setting and maintenance skills. For instance, if you really want to travel to see your family for the holidays but only for a little while, you can make that happen. Tell them you’ll come for 2-3 days, then you need to get back to your life.

Alternatively, if you live in the same city or town as your family, you can decide which family events to attend and which to skip. That uncle who thinks recovery is dumb, treatment is a waste of money, and judges you for your chronic medical condition?

Here’s something you really need to know:

You do not have to sit down to dinner with that guy. And if you end up at dinner with that guy, you can get up at any time, go outside, take a walk, call your sponsor, or leave entirely and go to the nearest AA or NA meeting: you’re in control, and you have the power.

And you don’t have to explain yourself, either. You can if you like. Some of your family members may deserve an explanation, and others might not. The point here is that you get to decide. That’s one thing setting boundaries means. You create the lines in your life you will and will not cross. You also create the lines you will and will not allow other people to cross.

With regards to treatment, the lines – or boundaries – you need to create are simple. If something threatens your recovery, don’t let it cross the line, and don’t cross the line towards it. And if something supports your recovery, then by all means, let that something cross that line, and cross the line towards it and embrace it.

The same goes for people: if they support your recovery, then there’s no need to set up a firm boundary. If they threaten your recovery, however, then you absolutely should create a firm, clear boundary, and stick to it.

That’s the best way to ensure that you survive, thrive, and enjoy the holidays this year. Take that advice, combine in with our five-point list above, and we promise: you got this.

The post How to Handle Holiday Triggers During Recovery appeared first on Pinnacle Treatment Centers.

The most wonderful time of the year.

From November through New Year’s Day, people around the U.S. go all -in, and celebrate the holiday season. There are plenty of holidays for everyone to celebrate:

Diwali

• This holiday kicks everything off with a festival of light – and fireworks – early in the month of November. Diwali is a five-day event, and the most important holiday for people of the Hindu faith.

Thanksgiving

• Thanksgiving occurs on the third Thursday in November. This is our best excuse all year to eat way too much good food, spend quality time with friends and family, and take stock of all the things for which we feel grateful.

Hannukah

• Hannukah is between December 7^th and December 15^th this year. Hanukkah is an eight-day festival for people of the Jewish faith to celebrate the historic victory of the Maccabees over their Seleucidian occupiers in the year 139, BC.

Christmas

• Christmas is on December 25^th. People of the Christian faith celebrate the birth of their prophet, Jesus Christ, on Christmas Day.

Kwanzaa

• Kwanzaa is from December 26^th 2023 to January 1^st, 2024. Kwanzaa is an Afrocentric (focused on African history, culture, and traditions) celebration of family values. The word means “first” and the holiday is based on South African traditions called first-fruits celebrations. Click here to learn about the Seven Principles of Kwanzaa.

New Year’s Day

• The first holiday of the year, on the first day of the year. Make your resolutions, eat black-eyed peas, and watch the good fortune come your way.

Whatever your cultural background is, and whatever you celebrate, there’s no escaping it. During December in the U.S., the holidays take over everything. School close for two weeks. People get time off work. People travel near and far to see family or get away from it all. In New York City, Rockefeller Center fills with the lights of an enormous Christmas trees and people ice-skating between sips of hot cocoa. In Chicago, the downtown loop transforms into a beautiful pageant of lights and decorations for blocks and blocks on end. And around the country, from small towns to subdivisions to neighborhoods everywhere, people put up lights, decorations, and celebrate the season.

Make Your List, Check it Twice

If it doesn’t drive you up a wall, it really is the most wonderful time of the year. But if you’re in recovery from addiction – a diagnosed alcohol and/or substance use disorder (AUD/SUD) – and you plan to travel to see friends, there are some important things for you to remember. You can have a great holiday and keep your recovery alive, but it may be challenging.

That’s why we created this list.

Checklist: Things to Remember if You’re in Recovery and Traveling Over the Holidays

1. If you have opioid use disorder (OUD) and you participate in a medication-assisted treatment program (MAT) with medication for opioid use disorder (MOUD), traveling can be extremely complicated. To learn how to ensure you have the proper medication at the proper time and proper dosage, please navigate to the blog section of our website and read this article:

How To Vacation While on Medication-Assisted Treatment

2. Make a plan to handle any triggers you might experience. Read these two articles for ideas:

Managing Holiday Triggers to Keep Your Recovery Intact

How to Handle Holiday Triggers

3. Make a list of AA or NA meetings in your destination:

• • Meeting are literally everywhere. No matter where you go, you can find a meeting. And since the pandemic, virtual meetings are easy to find. No excuses: keep up with your meetings while you travel over the holidays.

4. Maintain the good habits you know promote your recovery:

• • If exercise is what keeps you on your program, then look for places to work out in your destination city: you can guest at the YMCA, do a free one-day trial at gyms like LA Fitness, or simply plan to keep working out on your own.
  • If yoga or meditation is what works for you, we have the same advice. Plan ahead, find a yoga studio or meditation center in your destination, have a look at the schedule, and go take a class.

5. Arrange for counseling or therapy via telehealth:

• • If your destination lacks resources, you can keep your recovery on track by scheduling virtual therapy or counseling sessions with your addiction counselor, therapist, or psychiatrist.

6. Call you support system:

• • If everything on the list above fails to give you the support you need, then pick up your phone and call your sponsor or a recovery peer: remember, it’s the holidays for them, too, so they know exactly what you’re going through.

Traveling during recovery can be tough.

We get it.

You work hard to create a healthy routine, and then the holidays come along, and travel comes along, and throws a ginormous monkey wrench in the works – but the holidays don’t have to be disruptive. Use our list above, be proactive, plan ahead, and you can make it through the rest of November, all of December, and arrive at New Year’s Day with your recovery fully intact.

The post Holiday Checklist for Traveling During Recovery appeared first on Pinnacle Treatment Centers.

Yes – we do say.

Does such a thing exist?

Yes. It – well actually, they – do, indeed, exist. (Scroll to the end of this article for our list.)

Why?

Because chronic substance use – and long-term alcohol and/or substance use disorder (AUD/SUD) – can have a negative impact on nutrition. Here are the big-picture problems related to poor nutrition that impact people diagnosed with and alcohol or substance use disorder (AUD/SUD):

Decreased Appetite

• Some substances suppress appetite, while intoxication may cause people to forget/skip meals. Eating three healthy meals a day is important in maintaining overall physical health. Overall physical health increases likelihood of successful recovery.

Unhealthy Eating Habits

• Intoxication, hangovers, and other factors can lead to a diet high in sugar, processed/packaged foods, and fast food. For anyone with questions about the impact of long-term consumption of fast food on physical health, please watch the 2003 documentary Super-Size Me.

Stomach/Digestive Problems

• Opioids, amphetamines, and alcohol can compromise gastrointestinal health, and prevent the stomach and GI tract from efficiently absorbing essential nutrients. Without the ability to extract nutrients from food, physical health suffers.

Major Organs

• Chronic consumption of substances of misuse can damage organs vital to overall health, as well as those crucial in breaking down and processing the vitamins, nutrients, and other ingredients in food essential to our health and survival. As we observe in the bullet point above, when the body can’t efficiently process healthy vitamins, minerals, and nutrients, physical health suffers.

Now let’s take a look at the nutritional problems associated with different substance of misuse and disordered use.

The Impact of Alcohol and Substances on Nutrition

The negative effects of addiction on nutrition and health vary by the substances used or misused. We list the general problems caused by the disordered use of substances on physical health above. We’ll share the specific nutritional problems associated with alcohol, opioids, and stimulants below.

Alcohol

• Chronic alcohol consumption can impair and damage the liver and the pancreas. Both organs generate enzymes, hormones, and other chemicals that facilitate digestion. When alcohol impairs the production of these important digestive chemicals, overall physical health can deteriorate due to malnutrition.
• Chronic alcohol misuse can lead to deficiency in folic acid, vitamin B6, and vitamin B1 (thiamine)

Opioids

• Chronic opioid misuse often causes people skip meals, forget to eat due to intoxication, and decrease consumption of fruits and vegetables.
• Opioids can cause constipation. Severe and chronic constipation can suppress appetite and make eating undesirable, or even painful.

Stimulants

• Stimulants suppress appetite, which can lead to dangerous weight loss and malnutrition
• Chronic stimulant use and intoxication can cause stimulant users to go days, weeks, or months without adequate nutrition, or with barely adequate nutrition. True malnutrition – which is a real consequence of stimulant use – can cause problems with every important system in the body.

Let’s pause on that last bullet point, and talk about malnutrition. Severe, long-term, chronic substance use can lead to undernutrition and micronutrient undernutrition. The World Health Organization (WHO) identifies the following types of malnutrition:

• Undernutrition: wasting, stunting, and low weight-to-height increases risk of frequent illness and death from communicable/infectious disease
• Micronutrient undernutrition: micronutrients help the body produce hormones, enzymes, and other chemicals essential for development, growth, and smooth physical function.

In summary, malnutrition/poor nutrition caused by alcohol or substance use disorder can lead to problems with:

• Nervous system, including the brain
• Digestive system
• Cardiovascular/circulatory system
• Immune system
• Musculoskeletal system
• Endocrine system

The information makes it clear: addiction can lead to poor nutrition and poor nutrition can lead to a wide range of serious health problems resulting in poor physical health. Here’s the last connection to make: poor physical health can have a negative impact on recovery, while good physical health – supported by proper nutrition – can have a positive impact on recovery.

Nutrition in Addiction Treatment

That’s why almost every residential addiction treatment program prioritizes healthy food: it lays the groundwork for a healthy body, which is literally the foundation of a successful recovery. As part of an intake assessment, clinicians at most highly regarded treatment centers ask new patients some variation the following questions:

How many meals a day do you eat?

What do you typically eat at each meal?

Do you eat plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables?

Do you eat at home most days/nights or eat out at a restaurant?

Has your substance use had any kind of impact – positive or negative – on your eating habits?

Has your substance use caused any significant weight gain or loss?

Do you know how to shop for food and cook for yourself?

Depending on their answers, the clinician may set up an extra appointment/assessment with either the staff physician or the staff dietician/nutritionist. A patient who shows signs of malnutrition will need to consult a doctor to identify any specific vitamin or mineral deficiencies that can be remedied with food or supplements, whereas a person with poor eating habits will likely only need to consult with a dietician to create a healthy meal plan for their time in treatment.

The Best Foods for Addiction Recovery

This is very simple: the best simple foods for recovery are whole foods. Whole foods are foods that have not been processed, and contain all the vitamins, minerals, and dietary fiber that processing food often removes.

Whole foods that contain vitamins and mineral essential include those rich in the following chemicals:

• Tyrosine, an amino acid associated with dopamine production. Find tyrosine in soybeans, lean beef, lamb, pork, whole grains, cheese, sunflower seeds, and bananas.
• L-glutamine, an amino acid associated with the efficient immune function and reduction of sugar cravings. Find L-glutamine in leafy green vegetables, beets, carrots, legumes, and lean protein like chicken, fish, beef, dairy, and eggs.
• Antioxidants, which are associated with enhanced immune function. Find antioxidants in fresh fruits, especially blueberries.
• GABA, a neurotransmitter associated with feelings of calm and satisfaction. Find GABA in foods like shrimp, yogurt, and cherries.
• Tryptophan, an amino acid involved in the production of serotonin, a neurotransmitter associated with positive, happy emotions. Find tryptophan in cheese, turkey, tuna, oat bran, and legumes.

We need to reiterate that a diet that promotes recovery is really a diet that promotes overall health. While deficits in the chemicals above are associated with chronic substance misuse, the fact is that a healthy diet – like those recommended by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and he American Heart Association (AHA) – includes ample amounts of the recovery-friendly chemicals listed above.

Here’s what the experts say about a healthy diet. Any addiction recovery recipes or addiction recovery cookbook should follow the guidelines below for a diet that promotes total, holistic health:

Fresh Vegetables

To support addiction recovery, eat 5 servings of fresh vegetables every day. One serving of fresh vegetables:

• 1 cup of raw leafy greens
• ½ cup of canned, frozen, or fresh vegetables
• ½ cup of vegetable juice

It’s important to check the label on frozen or canned vegetables: skip the ones with added sugar or preservatives.

Whole Grains

To support addiction recovery, make whole grains at least 51 percent of your grain intake. Whole grains are unprocessed grains, and contain the iron, fiber, and B-vitamins necessary for optimal health. The CDC The best whole grains are whole wheat, wild rice, unprocessed oatmeal, brown rice, and – special bonus – popcorn.

Fresh Fruit

To support recovery, eat at least 2-3 servings of fresh fruit every day. One portion of fruit:

• An apple, orange, or banana
• ½ cup of frozen or canned fruit
• ¼ cup of dried fruit
• ¼ cup of fruit juice

When buying canned or frozen fruit, read the labels: skip the products with added sugar and/or preservatives. Also, it’s important to know that fruit juice often contains high fructose corn syrup, which is not recovery friendly. Read the labels, and default to products with a simple list of ingredients, like this: oranges, water.

Healthy Protein

Lean protein is healthy protein. Beans, nuts, lean meats, and low- or no-fat dairy products all contain lean, health protein. To support addiction recovery, eat at least 5 ½ ounces of health protein every day. One ounce of protein is equivalent to:

• ¼ cup of beans
• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon of peanut butter

Note: 1 cup of ground beef contains about 8 ounces of protein. When choosing chicken, beef, or pork, always try to choose the leanest, least processed option.

Fats and Oils

To support recovery, consume no more than 3 tablespoons of health fat and oil every day. Healthy fats and oils include:

• Soy
• Olive
• Safflower
• Corn
• Canola

Experts advise avoiding fats such as butter, lard, and partially hydrogenated fats. For optimal health, the experts advise consuming no more than 3 tablespoons (9 teaspoons) of oil or fat per day.

Cut Back on Processed Foods

Rule of thumb: processed foods always come in some sort of packaging, and in most cases, have a long list of additives and preservatives. When shopping, try to choose foods that come in their own wrappers (corn, potatoes, fruits, etc.) and avoid products with long lists of words that look like they’re from a chemistry textbook.

Decrease Sugar and Salt Consumption

We know, we know. Sugar and salt improve the flavor of just about everything. We don’t say you need to cut sugar and salt completely, but we guarantee your health will improve if you reduce your intake of white, processed sugar and regular table salt.

Those recommendations come from people who know, and we should pay attention to them, and although it may be hard to follow the science-based dietary guidelines to a “t,” what matter is that we do our best. If we can follow those rules more days than not, we’re heading in the right direction.

Addiction Recovery Cookbooks: Self-Care for a Happy Belly

If you’ve ever been in treatment, you probably took classes on basic life skills. Cooking is an essential life skill it’s important to develop as an independent and responsible adult. Few of us can afford to eat our every single meal, and it’s very rewarding to plan a meal, purchase the ingredients, and make it yourself from scratch.

From soup to nuts, as it were.

Cooking is indeed an outstanding recovery activity: it’s simple, it’s healthy, it takes time and patience, and at the end, you get to sit down to a satisfying meal.

What could be better than that?

To make this happen in your own life, we suggest using the following cookbooks. They’re all filled with great recipes, and they’re all focused on one thing: recovery.

Pinnacle Treatment Centers: The Four Best Recovery Cookbooks

1. Sober Kitchen: Recipes and Advice for a Lifetime of Sobriety by Liz Scott. Every word in this outstanding book is recovery friendly. It helps you handle cravings, gives you recipes and ideas for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and includes excellent dessert and beverage recipes, too. This book is a go-to recovery cooking resource, from soup to salad to full meals for the whole family or a dinner party of recovery peers.
2. Eating for Recovery: The Essential Nutrition Plan to Reverse the Physical Damage of Alcoholism by Molly Siple. This book is both practical and comprehensive. If you’re new to cooking and the kitchen, it can function as a how-to book. If you’re an experienced cook, you’ll love the creative simplicity of the recipes. The book contains a 12-day start up plan, as well as helpful shopping lists, tips on which foods to eat to improve your mood, and helpful advice for finding recovery friendly meal when you’re eating out at restaurant.
3. Absolutely Abstinent by Kay Sheppard. This addiction recovery cookbook contains recipes with no sugar, flour, or wheat: food allergies beware – this book will keep you happy and full no matter what your dietary challenges are. Best of all, the recipes are fast, inexpensive, and easy. No excuses: you can eat healthy, recovery friendly food on a tight budget. It’s designed for people with food addiction and/or eating disorders, but the recipes are helpful for people with substance addictions because they speak the language of compassionate recovery throughout the book and related materials.
4. The Malibu Beach Recovery Diet by Joan Borsten. This is a cookbook by someone who knows what she’s talking about. Joan Borsten founded and operated an addiction treatment center herself. Although she has since sold the center and now acts as a consultant, the recipes in this book are a result of that hands-on experience. They’re collaboration between the author, her husband, and the on-site chef at her recovery center. In fact, we’ll close this article by giving you three recipes straight out of this book.

Bonus: Three Delicious and Nutritious Recipes

Click the links, cook the food, and enjoy!

Shepherd’s Pie

Grilled Sea Bass with Tapenade

Eggs Cocotte

The post What’s for Dinner? Best Addiction Recovery Cookbooks appeared first on Pinnacle Treatment Centers.

Okay, maybe we should define that word:

                                                             Mocktails are cocktails without alcohol.

Not everyone in recovery from alcohol use disorder (AUD) likes mocktails, for the same reason they don’t like non-alcoholic beer. It’s just all too familiar. Everything about non-alcoholic beer or mocktails reminds them of drinking. The act of making the drink, holding the drink, and consuming it in what might be an alcohol-friendly environment all conspire to form the ultimate trigger and increase risk of relapse to alcohol use.

On the other hand, some people in recovery aren’t bothered by any of that: it’s not the smell, sight, or feel of the drinks that triggers them, it’s other things, like life stress, challenging relationships, or various emotional states that put them at risk. For them, mocktails and/or non-alcoholic beer are no problem.

If you’re in the former camp, though, skip the mocktails – but we do encourage you to recognize the utility of holding a beverage in your hand while you’re at a social event.

It keeps people from offering you a drink, and keeps you from having to explain why you decline. Which is something almost everyone in recovery understands: sometimes people are rather insistent you have a drink, and handling that kind of pressure is no fun, no matter how many years you’ve been in recovery.

If mocktails and non-alcoholic beer aren’t for you, then navigate to the blog section of our website and read this article:

Summer Recovery Tips: The Red Cup Trick

That’s advice we originally wrote – clearly – for use during the summertime, but anyone can modify the red cup trick to any situation where others and drinking they don’t want to, nor do they want to explain why they’re not drinking: they just want to be social and not talk about the issue.

However, if you’re good with mocktails, they don’t trigger you, and they don’t threaten your recovery, read on: we have some excellent mocktail recipes for you to try.

Mocktails: Impress Your Friends and Enjoy the Party

Reminder: this article – and these recipes – are for people who know mocktails do not threaten their recovery. If you’re early in recovery, or if holding a drink in your hand that resembles a cocktail elicits powerful cravings for alcohol, then – at risk of giving advice without having met you – avoid this while mocktail thing.

But if you know you’re solid – give these a try.

1. Negroni

• • About: If you really want to go for it, start here. This one takes about 20 minutes to get ready, start to finish. Makes one cocktail.
  • Ingredients: ½ grapefruit 1 orange slice, sugar, crushed cardamon, coriander seeds, red food coloring, white grape juice, ice.
  • How to Make It: Chop up the grapefruit and combine with orange slice, sugar, water, and spices. Bring to a simmer and cook for five minutes: that’s your syrup. Next, strain the syrup, add to a tumbler filled with ice and equal parts water and grape juice. Garnish to taste. Enjoy!

2. Rhubarb Cordial

• • About: A great way to use up the leftover rhubarb from making deserts. This takes about ten minutes, start to finish. This recipe makes about 4 cocktails.
  • Ingredients: ½ pound sugar, zest and juice of one orange, zest and juice of one lemon, 1 pound rhubarb, one section of fresh peeled ginger root
  • How to Make It: Put sugar, water, orange/lemon ingredients, and rhubarb in saucepan and cook on medium heat until rhubarb falls apart. Strain through muslin, allow to cool, and store in fridge until needed. This will keep for a month.

3. Hot Tea Not Toddy

• • About: This is an alcohol-free version of the classic winter beverage. Often used as a cold remedy, this combination is soothing on the throat, and great when you feel a little under the weather. This recipe takes about five minutes and serves two.
  • Ingredients: 20 oz water, 1 large tea bag, 3 tsp honey, 1 cinnamon stick, 1 lemon, 2 cloves.
  • How to Make It: Cut the lemon in half, split the juice of one half between two coffee/tea cups/mugs, add honey. Make tea as usual, pour into cups with honey and lemon juice. Add cinnamon stick and cloves, serve immediately. This is a perfect cold-weather comfort mocktail.

4. Summer Berry Mix

• • About: This is a refreshing mix that’s like fruit punch, but with no alcohol of course. This recipe makes one cocktail.
  • Ingredients: Slice of cucumber, sprig of mint, frozen berries of your choice, clear sparkling lemonade, water.
  • How to Make It: Bring about 16oz water to boil, add mint and cucumber, let sit. Add berries, crush, mix, and strain. Store in fridge. When ready, combine syrup with lemonade, and fresh berries as desired. Add mint for garnish. Enjoy!

5. Clementine Mojito

• • About: A fun take on an old classic, this is a delicious and refreshing drink. This recipe is for one mocktail.
  • Ingredients: 1 clementine (a little seedless orange), 1/ tsp sugar, 1 chopped lemon wedge, ice, little bit of mint, orange blossom water, sparkling water.
  • How to Make It: Juice half the clementine and chop the other half into fine bits. Pour juice in glass, add sugar, add chopped fruit, crush it all up. Add ice, mint, orange blossom water, then finish with sparkling water to taste.

6. Irish Cream

• • About: This is a great new take on the Irish classic. This recipe makes enough for 4-6 people.
  • Ingredients: 5 oz double cream, 1 oz evaporated milk, 2 tbsp maple syrup, 1 oz espresso, pinch of cinnamon, 1 tsp vanilla, pinch of orange zest, ice.
  • How to Make It: Combine all ingredients in a jug with plenty of ice. Shake it up baby! Strain, serve over ice, or add to coffee.

7. New York Sour

• • About: In a New York State of mind? We got you covered. This is a non-alcohol take on the classic Big Apple cocktail. This recipe takes about 10 minutes and makes enough for one cocktail.
  • Ingredients: 1 tsp assam tea leaves, dash of vanilla extract, 1 ounce lemon juice, 3 tsp maple syrup, 1 tbsp egg white, ice, ½ ounce pomegranate juice.
  • How to Make It: Boil water, pour over tea leaves, strain immediately, do not steep. Add vanilla, allow to cool. Add lemon juice, maple syrup, and a shot of tea. Add egg white. Shake well, add ice, strain again, add pomegranate juice and water to taste. Serve over ice – egg white will float to top to form the iconic look.

8. Virgin Pina Colada

• • About: Do you like pina coladas and getting caught in the rain? Whether you do or not, a virgin pina colada is a fun drink for any occasion, made even better when it’s alcohol free. This recipe takes 10 minutes and makes one mocktail.
  • Ingredients: 5 oz pineapple juice, 2 oz coconut milk, 1 oz lime juice, ice, cherry, 20 tsp sugar, 1 pineapple, 5 black peppercorns, 5 cloves, 1 stick of cinnamon.
  • How to Make It: Add sugar and 8 oz water to saucepan and heat until sugar dissolves. Add small amount of pineapple skin, pepper, cloves, cinnamon, bring to boil. Turn of heat, let sit until cold. That’s the syrup. Then add pineapple juice, coconut mill, and lime juice to tall glass of ice. Add syrup, let it sink to bottom. Top it off with a cherry!

9. Cranberry Gin Fizz

• • About: This delicious recipe takes about half an hour to prepare and makes enough to serve 8 mocktails.
  • Ingredients: ¾ cup of sugar, 1 ½ cups of cranberries, 12-16 oz non-alcoholic gin (it exists), 1 liter soda water, 1 orange cut in slices, ice
  • How to Make It: Put sugar and water in saucepan and heat until sugar dissolves. Turn up heat a little, add cranberries, cook until cranberries start to fall apart. Set aside, leave to cool, puree in food processor. Serve: add 1 tbsp of the cranberry puree to a glass, stir in non-alcohol gin as desired, finish with soda water to taste. Garnish with orange and add ice. Or, shake it all up in a jug and serve as desired.

10. Classic Lemonade

• • About: As you probably know, scores of alcoholic beverages include lemonade. To help your lemonade reach mocktail status, use this recipe. It takes about ten minutes and makes about a liter of delicious, refreshing lemonade. Serve it in a tumbler with a garnish, and everyone will think you have a fancy cocktail, when you really have a humble lemonade mocktail.
  • Ingredients: Three peeled and chopped lemons, 2/3^rd cup sugar, 1 liter water.
  • How to Make It: Puree lemons and half the water in a food processor. Add the other half of the water and sugar to saucepan and heat until sugar dissolves. Strain processed liquid, add to rest of water. Serve cold, over ice, garnish to taste.

11. Pineapple Ginger Punch

• • About: If you’ve never had the pineapple/ginger combo, you’re in for a treat. Sweet with a little spicy bite: yummy. This easy recipe takes about five minutes to prepare, and makes enough punch for 6-8 thirsty humans.
  • Ingredients: About 1 liter pineapple juice, juice of 1 lime, chopped mint, ice, 1 liter ginger beer, 1 cup apple juice. Mint sprigs and star anise for garnish.
  • How to Make It: Put pineapple juice, lime, apple juice, ice, and mint in blender. Blend it! Serve in tumbler over ice, topped off with ginger beer. Garnish with mint and anise, and enjoy.

12. Pomegranate Mojito

• • About: This is another fun take on the classic mojito. This recipe takes about 10 minutes and makes about a liter and a half of mocktail.
  • Ingredients: 3 tbsp pomegranate seeds, bunch of mint, 2 limes cut in quarters, 1 liter pomegranate juice, 16 oz lemonade.
  • How to Make It: One before serving, separate pomegranate seeds evenly in the spaces in an ice cube tray, add water, put in freezer. Set half the mint aside for later. Take the rest of the mint and lime and smash it all together with a rolling pin. Add pomegranate juice and lemonade. Place prepared ice cubes in glass, strain juice/lemonade over ice to serve. Garnish with mint and lime as desired.

13. Halloween Mocktail: The Eyeball Snot Tail

• • About: The name is too good to leave off this list. Designed for kids, this would also be very fun for a recovery-friendly Halloween party. This recipe takes about an hour including chilling, and serves 10-15 scary humans.
  • Ingredients: 1 pack lime jello, 16-20 oz apple or pear & pear juice, 12 oz lemonade, can of lychee fruit in syrup, dozen cocktail cherries, dozen raisins, cocktail sticks/stirrers.
  • How to Make It: Make and set aside the jello. Combine juices and store in fridge. Eyeballs: pole a hole in a lychee fruit. Put a cherry in the lychee, put a raisin in the cherry – repeat until finished. Put the fruit eyeballs on the end of a cocktail stirrer. Whisk the set, cooled jello into little chunks (that’s the snot). Add juice and jello to glass, place eyeball in glass or keep on end of stirrer. Now enjoy that creepy, gross, spooky mocktail.

14. Shirley Temple

• • About: The original mocktail named after the legendary star who was far too young to drink alcohol
  • Ingredients: 8-10 oz ginger ale, 1-2 oz grenadine, 1 maraschino cherry, lime slice.
  • How to Make It: In a tall cocktail glass, our ginger ale and grenadine over ice, add cherry, and garnish with a slice of lime – or as desired. Serve cold, serve with confidence: this is the original!

15. Roy Rogers

• • About: This is an easy, classic cocktail to make. Think of it is the male companion to the Shirley Temple.
  • Ingredients: Your choice of soda – most often dark soda, not clear or lemon/lime. Grenadine, maraschino cherries.
  • How to Make It: Pour 11 oz soda over ice, add 1-2 oz grenadine, garnish with maraschino cherry. Enjoy!

16. Arnold Palmer

• • About: After the Shirley Temple and the Roy Rogers, this is probably the best-known mocktail out there. It’s yummy, easy to make, and perfect on any occasion, but especially great during the warmer months.
  • Ingredients: Iced tea, lemonade, lemon slices.
  • How to Make It: Easy! This drink is half lemonade and half iced tea, served with any garnish you wish, but typically with lemon slices. If you’re from the Southern United States, serve with sweetened iced tea. If you’re anywhere else, unsweetened tea is fine – but word to the wise: never serve a southerner unsweetened iced tea – they’ll think you’re trying to poison them.

17. Easy Margarita

• • About: We hate to break it to you, but a margarita is really just a lime Slushie with triple sec and tequila. This recipe is easy, and makes enough for one mocktail.
  • Ingredients: 1 lime, 16-18 oz lemonade, pinch of orange zest, ice.
  • How to Make It: Peel lime, cut into sections. Put in blender with ice, lemonade, orange zest, ice. Blend until the consistency of a frozen 7-11 slushie. Serve in a tall, cold glass with a slice of lime as garnish.

18. Chai Blossom

• • About: This is a delicious, creative recipe that makes a nice change from the typical fruity mocktails. It’s got fruit, but it’s different. This recipe takes about an hour to make, including cooling, and serves 4 people.
  • Ingredients: 4 cups water, ½ cup sugar, ½ cup lime juice, 4 star anise, 12 crushed cardamon pods, 8 whole black peppercorns, 8 cloves, 2-3 inch piece of fresh sliced ginger, 4 sticks cinnamon, 1 vanilla bean, 1/8 tsp nutmeg. lemon twists, 2 bags chai tea, ½ cup orange juice, 12 oz carbonated water.
  • How to Make It: To make the chai syrup, mix everything but the tea, lemon twists, and carbonated water in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Add tea bags and let steep for five minutes. Pour through strainer, throw away spices, store liquid in a tightly sealed container in fridge. When cool, combine chai syrup with carbonated water and orange juice and serve over ice, with garnishes as desired.

19. Turmeric Tonic

• • About: This is another fun, healthy mocktail to make that’s rumored to have medicinal properties. When you want to change things up – and explore healthy alternatives – this is a great choice. This quick recipe makes enough for 1-2 people.
  • Ingredients: 1 tsp honey, I tsp fresh lemon juice, 1 tsp turmeric, ¼ tsp cayenne pepper, 1 bag black tea, 10-12 oz water.
  • How to Make It: Add honey to bottom of coffee or teacup. Mix in lemon juice, turmeric, and pepper. Make hot tea as usual, add to mixture at bottom of cup(s). Enjoy!

20. PG Singapore Sling

• • About: This is a fancy mocktail for fancy people. Don’t worry: you can totally be fancy and be in recovery at the same time. This recipe takes about 5 minutes and makes enough mocktail for one fancy person in recovery.
  • Ingredients: 1 oz non-alcoholic gin, 1 oz non-alcohol cherry brandy or cherry juice, 1 oz lime juice, sparkling water, pineapple garnish, ice.
  • How to Make It: Granted, the original version of this contains liqueurs with distinctive flavors that are hard to replace, but this recipe works. Put everything except the pineapple juice, lime juice, and sparkling water in a mixing glass. Mix well and pour over ice. Add pineapple juice, lime juice, and sparkling water to taste. Garnish as desired.

21. Sweet Adeline

• • About: During the winter months, you can take your tea to the next level with this recipe. It’s yummy and comforting: just what the doctor ordered for the holidays. This recipe takes about 10 minutes and makes enough for 1 person.
  • Ingredients: ¼ cup pomegranate juice, 1 tbsp cinnamon syrup, 1 bag black tea, ½ cup or ¾ cup of water, depending on how much you want, cinnamon stick.
  • How to Make It: Pour pomegranate juice and cinnamon syrup into a coffee or tea mug, add tea bag, fill with hot water, steep 3-5 mins, remove tea bag, serve immediately.

22. Amaretto Sour

• • About: This classic taste is almost always associated with alcohol, but we found a non-alcoholic version that works perfectly, and lets you mocktail in style. This recipe takes about 5 minutes and makes enough for 1 person.
  • Ingredients: 1 cup almond milk, ½ cup fresh lemon juice, ¼ cup sugar, ½ cup orange juice, ¼ tsp almond extract, ice.
  • How to Make It: Put everything in a mocktail shaker. Shake it up baby! Really: shake vigorously for about 30 seconds. Serve over ice, garnish with cherry, orange/lemon slice, or mint.

23. Virgin Mary

• • About: This is a non-alcoholic version of the well-known drink, the Blood Mary. This recipe takes about 10 minutes and makes enough to serve 1 person.
  • Ingredients: 8 oz tomato passata (fresh tomato juice), 2 chopped scallions, juice of one lemon, ½ tsp Tobasco, ½ tsp Worstershire sauce, 2 big ice cubes, celery stick.
  • How to Make It: This is very easy. Put it all in a blender, blend until smooth, serve in tall glass, garnish with celery stick.

24. Virgin Cucumber Gimlet

• • About: Without alcohol, you may think a gimlet is nothing but lime juice. Think again: we have a good recipe here, where refreshing cucumber steps in to save the day. This recipe takes about five minutes and makes enough mocktail for 1 person.
  • Ingredients: Juice of two limes, 5 oz simple syrup or lime syrup, 4-5 thin cucumber slices, 5 oz club soda.
  • How to Make It: Put cucumber and simple syrup in a mocktail mixer. Mash them up. Add lime juice, and shake vigorously. Serve over ice, top off with club soda, and enjoy!

25. Citrus Peach Cooler

• • About: Instead of sangria or another fruit punch, this peach cooler is a tasty, non-alcoholic version derived from the wine cooler craze of the 1980s. This recipe take about 10 minutes, and makes enough cooler for 4-5 people.
  • Ingredients: Juice of two lemons, juice of two limes, 1 thin sliced lemon, 1 thin sliced lime, 10-12 oz peach nectar, 10-12 oz lemonade (with pulp), three sliced strawberries, sparkling water, several sprigs of mint.
  • How to Make It: Add lemon juice and lime juice to large household pitcher. Add lemon and lime slices and ice cubes. Add peach nectar, then top off with lemonade and sparkling water to taste. Garnish with mint. Or, add everything but the sparkling water to a blender, blend well, then serve over ice.

That’s it!

That’s our list.

We understand navigating the upcoming holiday cocktail party scene might be tough – but with these mocktail ideas, you can take care of yourself and make it through the season. And remember: that red cup trick works perfectly well when you have a tumbler, coffee cup, or tall iced-tea type glass in your hand.

Take care of yourself, stay on your program, and if you feel your recovery is in jeopardy, call your sponsor – or call us here at Pinnacle Treatment Centers.

The post The Best Mocktail Recipes to Make appeared first on Pinnacle Treatment Centers.

The crisis: the opioid overdose epidemic.

In recent years, media attention to the opioid crisis faded because of another public health crisis: the COVID-19 pandemic.

Now that we’ve discovered a new normal with regards to the COVID-19 pandemic, with boosters addressing new variants and an increasing understanding of long COVID, we can return our attention to the opioid crisis. It’s critical that we return our attention to this public health crisis, because during the pandemic, it didn’t go away.

It got worse.

In 2022, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) reported an increase in overdose deaths over 2021. In fact, the last time drug overdose deaths decreased in the U.S. was between 2018 and 2019. Since then, despite our best efforts, rates have increased each year. That means we need to redouble our efforts to help people with opioid use disorder in all areas of our society, including among individuals incarcerated in prisons and jails. That population is particularly vulnerable, because data shows high rates of opioid use disorder (OUD), and limited access to the gold-standard treatment for OUD, in the form of medication-assisted treatment (MAT) with medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD).

Trends in Overdose Death, 2001-2022

2001-2006:

• 2001: 19,394
• 2006: 34,425 drug overdose deaths
• 5-year increase: 77%

2006-2011:

• 2006: 34,415
• 2011: 41,340
• 10-year increase: 113%

2011-2016:

• • 2011: 41,340
  • 2016: 63,632
  • 15-year increase: 228% increase

2016-2021:

• • 2016: 63,632
  • 2021: 106,699
  • 20-year increase: 450%

2022:

• • Overdose deaths: 108,388
  • Total increase, 2001-2022: 458%

That’s the big-picture situation in the U.S. right now. The crisis is real, it’s reached every corner of our society. Both the Trump and Biden presidential administrations allocated billions of dollars of federal funding to mitigate the harm caused by the opioid crisis. To learn about those efforts, please navigate to the blog section of our website and read these articles:

Trump Administration Response: The Politics of Addiction: How a Group of Cities and Counties Shaped the Federal Response to the Opioid Crisis

Biden Administration Response: The Opioid Crisis: A New National Strategy

Both aid packages included comprehensive, all-of-the-above, all-hands-on-deck approach to the opioid crisis, including provisions to enhance law enforcement prevention, increase access to treatment and support, monitor opioid prescriptions, reduce regulations around MAT with MOUD for OUD, and expand harm reduction programs nationwide.

In addition, both plans included funding for OUD treatment in prisons and jails. But in 2019, between the first and second responses, harm reduction advocates made arguments before the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) that changed the ways we approach SUD treatment – particularly OUD treatment – in prisons and jails.

MAT in Prisons and Jails: The Department of Justice Position

The advocates cited SCOTUS precedent in a simple and effective manner. In 1976, they argued, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) issued a decision in a case called Estelle v. Gamble that addressed medical care for incarcerated individuals. The decision stated:

“Deliberate indifference by prison personnel to a prisoner’s serious illness or injury constitutes cruel and unusual punishment contravening the Eighth Amendment.”

They argued this decision implies, therefore, that adequate medical care – which, for people with OUD, includes MAT with MOUD – is a constitutionally protected right. Then, in 2022, the Department of Justice (DOJ) issued further guidance, indication incarcerated individuals have protections provided by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

Here’s the text of the DOJ guidance:

“People who have stopped illegally using drugs should not face discrimination when accessing evidence-based treatment or continuing on their path of recovery. The Justice Department is committed to using federal civil rights laws such as the ADA to safeguard people with opioid use disorder from facing discriminatory barriers as they move forward with their lives.”

– Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke, Civil Rights Division, U.S. DOJ

What that means is that people in recovery should not only have access to the gold-standard care for their medical condition, but that care is protected by law. This presents an immediate quandary in our prisons and jails, because the latest data indicates that a very small percentage of incarcerated individuals with OUD receive support in the form of MAT with MOUDs. With that in mind, let’s take a look at a recent study published by Johns Hopkins University called “How the Drug Enforcement Administration Can Improve Access to Methadone in Correctional Facilities and Save Lives.”

MAT and Methadone in Prisons and Jails

Before we go any further, we should encourage anyone unfamiliar with MAT or MOUD to learn the basic facts on our treatment pages:

Medication-Assisted Treatment

Office-Based Opioid Treatment

Also, please read this article by our Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Chris Johnston, published in the online magazine Medium in 2021:

The Case for Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT) in Prisons and Jails

Now, back to the topic at hand, which is how to improve our support for incarcerated individuals with OUD. The Johns Hopkins publication lays out a blueprint for change in four areas:

1. Regulations regarding medications for opioid use disorder (OUD)
2. The threshold for initiating treatment for OUD
3. Collaboration between corrections officers and medical staff
4. How to support incarcerated individuals upon release

We’ll review their recommendations in all four of these areas below. First, however, we’ll provide information about the use of MAT in prisons and jails for people with OUD.

Facts to Know, Ideas to Understand: MAT in Prisons and Jails

Prison, Jail, and OUD

• It’s common for people with opioid use disorder (OUD) to experience incarceration.
• Over 40% of people who use heroin report recent contact with the criminal justice system
• Almost 20% of people with a prescription opioid use disorder (OUD) report recent contact with the criminal legal system.
• 20% of people in jails and prisons reported regular heroin or opioid use before incarceration
• Current data estimates show there are roughly 2 million people in prisons and jails at any given time in the U.S.
• Fewer than 1% of jails and prisons in the U.S. offer MAT with MOUD for OUD

The next to last figure means that at any given time, there’s an opportunity to help close to half a million people (400,000) initiate MAT with MOUD, and that last figure shows that we’re falling woefully short, with lifesaving treatment absent in 99% of prisons and jails in the U.S.

Increased Overdose Risk

• Evidence shows incarceration significantly increases risk of fatal overdose
• From 2013-2014, 40% of deaths among people released from incarceration were caused by overdose
• Within 2 weeks of release:
  • People with OUD are 40 times more likely to die of an overdose than people in the general population
• Within 3 months of release:
  • 75% of people with OUD relapsed
• Within 1 year of release:
  • 45% of people with OUD are arrested for a new offense

This data shows us that initiating MAT during incarceration could reduce relapse, save lives, and prevent new offenses.

Decreased Recidivism (Repeat Offending/Reoffending)

• Treating people for addiction in jails reduces recidivism.
• For example, a study in Rhode Island showed a 60% decrease in overdose deaths, upon release, after participating in MAT in jail
• Experts estimate that initiating MAT in prisons and jails could prevent 2,000 overdose deaths per year

This data shows that MAT in prisons and jails has a dual effect: it reduces repeat offenses and decrease overdose deaths upon release.

Comprehensive Access to MOUD Recommended

• Major stakeholders endorse all three medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD), including:
  • National Commission on Correctional Health Care
  • National Governors Association
  • American Society for Addiction Medicine
  • National Academy of Medicine
• Availability of methadone in prisons and jails is inadequate, compared to buprenorphine
• Naltrexone is the most common MOUD used in prisons and jails, but it’s the least favored among people with OUD, and associated with shorter duration of treatment adherence

This information shows us that important stakeholders support MAT in prisons and jails, including those typically cautious and averse to change, such as National Commission on Correctional Health Care.

Next, let’s look at the recommendations they make in each of these four areas.

How to Expand Access to MAT in Prisons and Jails

We’ll review these Johns Hopkins recommendations one item at a time, beginning with their position on current rules and regulations. The details on these recommendations appear in the publication “Medications for Opioid Use Disorder in Jails and Prisons: Moving Toward Universal Access.”

Toward Universal Access for MAT

Changing Rules and Regulations

• The problem(s):
  • Under current regulations, patients can only receive methadone through licensed opioid treatment programs (OTPs), and must visit their provider daily to receive medication. For an incarcerated person, this is impossible.
  • Before the pandemic, patients could only initiate buprenorphine treatment with a provider with an X-waiver. The X-waiver is no longer necessary, but rules prevent providers from dispensing buprenorphine to more than 30 patients, which creates problems for patients in prisons and jails.
• The possible solutions:
  • Reduce barriers to methadone access in prisons and jail by increasing allowable take-home doses
  • Expand regulations to allow mobile methadone units to support patients in prisons and jails
  • Expand regulations to allow medical personnel to prescribe buprenorphine to more than 30 patients per provider
  • Expand the existing 72-hour rule to allow prison and jail medical personnel to distribute MOUDs to patients past the existing 72 hour maximum
  • Lobby the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), and the National Commission on Correctional Health Care (NCCHC) to publish a set of best practices for MAT in prisons and jails

Lower the Threshold for OUD Diagnosis and Treatment.

• The problem(s):
  • Jails and prisons have stringent criteria for diagnosis and treatment of OUD
  • They place arbitrary limits on dosage and treatment duration
  • They make participation in peer support groups mandatory for receiving medication
  • When incarcerated individuals break rules, consequences are punitive, and may include withholding medication
• The possible solutions:
  • Lower the threshold for diagnosis and treatment. The idea is that it should not be hard for a person to get an accurate diagnosis and appropriate medication for a well-known, well-established, well-defined medical condition
  • Facilitate “warm-handoff” programs for patients both entering and exiting incarceration
  • Allow patients access to medication, even when they don’t participate in peer support groups or counseling
  • Institute non-punitive practices for breaking program rules: denying lifesaving medication should never be a consequence
  • Create appropriate dosage regimens for methadone and buprenorphine for patients in prisons and jails

Collaboration Between Corrections Officers and Medical Staff

• The problem(s):
  • Stigma from prison and jail personnel prevent adequate access to evidence-based treatment with MOUD
  • Officers and medical staff may think they have conflicting goals: one the one hand, officers want to ensure safety and security, while on the other hand, medical staff want to provide evidence-based treatment
  • Officers are more accustomed to confiscating methadone and buprenorphine than assisting in distributing methadone and buprenorphine as medication
• The possible solutions:
  • Educate corrections officers on the science of addiction
  • Education corrections on the science of addiction treatment
  • Teach prison staff about the benefits of MAT with MOUD for people with OUD
  • Communicate with other facilities, in other locations – different counties or states – to learn about the benefits of MAT programs
  • Enlist an advocate in a position of leadership who understands the pressing need for MAT in prisons and jails

Supporting Patients Upon Release

• The problem(s):
  • Currently, federal law terminates Medicaid for incarcerated individuals
  • Infrastructure for reenrolling incarcerated individuals upon release is inconsistent and prevents many incarcerated individuals from accessing medical care upon release from incarceration
  • Rules vary state to state, county to county, jail to jail, and prison to prison, which creates confusion for everyone involved, and often results in treatment gaps for incarcerated individuals upon release
  • Significant barriers to accessing social support exist for formerly incarcerated individuals, including access to support for housing, food, employment, and medical care
• The solutions:
  • Expand Medicaid coverage for low-income adults upon release from prisons or jails
  • Create technology infrastructure for automatic enrollment in Medicaid upon release from incarceration
  • Create programs to establish continuity of care between incarceration and release
  • Distribute Naloxone to patients with OUD upon release
  • Invest in specific reentry clinics for patients with OUD upon release
  • Eliminate the Medicaid inmate exclusion policy
  • Pass the Medicaid Reentry Act, which allows Medicaid services for patients to begin 30 days before release

If we can implement those recommendations, then we’d make considerable progress in addressing the gap between the number of incarcerated people with OUD who need treatment with MAT and the number of incarcerated people with OUD who receive MAT.

MAT in Prisons and Jails: Underlying Priorities

The first priority is, of course, the health and safety of our population as a whole. It’s important for people out in the world to understand that helping people with OUD heal and grow not only helps them, it helps everyone. Individuals benefit, families benefit, and communities benefit. To learn more about MAT in prisons and jails, please refer to these resources, which explain both where we are and where we want to go:

Current Policies on MAT in Prisons and Jails

1. SAMHSA: Use of Medication-Assisted Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder (OUD) in Criminal Justice Settings
2. Model Access to Medication for Addiction Treatment in Correctional Settings Act
3. Expanding Access To Medications For Opioid Use Disorder In Corrections And Community Settings
4. Medication-Assisted Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder in Jails and Prisons: A Planning and Implementation Toolkit

We’ll end this article with a list of core values, as determined by the study team at Johns Hopkins University, for implementing future MAT programs in prisons and jails.

Core Values: Priorities for MAT in Incarcerated Populations

Patient-Driven Support

The foundation of effective treatment for substance use disorder is personal agency. This is as true for people in prisons and jails as it is for people in the general public. People should have the right to choose treatment, and have both voice and choice in what treatment they receive and how they receive it.

Racial Equality:

Rates of incarceration among Black, Latinx, and American Indian/Alaska Native/Native Hawaiian people are higher than for people in non-minority demographic groups. This impacts access to evidence-based treatment and support. It’s essential to create programs for OUD treatment that eliminate the potential for institutional racism, systemic bias, or discrimination of any sort.

Follow the Evidence

The evidence speaks: the gold-standard treatment for opioid use disorder is medication-assisted treatment (MAT) with medication for opioid use disorder (MOUD). That’s true wherever a person is: incarcerated or not incarcerated. Therefore, it’s time to recognize this fact, and scale up our MAT program in prisons and jails, in order to follow the evidence, and give everyone with OUD a chance at making a full recovery – whether they’re incarcerated or not.

Holistic, Integrated Treatment

Health is when a person thrives on all levels: physical, emotional, psychological, and relational. SUD treatment in prisons and jails needs to address the complete person in order to keep them healthy. Granted, the fact of incarceration creates challenges. However, we have a duty to provide incarcerated individuals with complete care that maximizes total health, and create systems that allow a person to engage in continuous, uninterrupted care before, during, and after incarceration.

Moving Forward: Treatment Improves Lives

When we implement these policies and practices in places where patients need them the most, we know we can improve lives. As a society, this is an achievable goal: we can help incarcerated people turn their lives around, and prepare them to live, thrive, and grow in recovery upon release. It’s not only achievable, it’s the right thing to do, and will help improve our world, one person at a time.

The post Methadone and MAT in Prisons and Jails appeared first on Pinnacle Treatment Centers.

If you or a loved one is in recovery, these games are a great way to:

• Have fun without drugs or alcohol
• Learn more about the recovery process – for both people in recovery and family/friends
• Develop recovery strategies and relapse prevention techniques in a way that doesn’t feel like sitting in group therapy or a support meeting
• Get to know/bond with/learn from recovery peers.

Let’s take a look at some games that we think are fun, educational, and beneficial to anyone in recovery.

Top 10 Board Games to Play During Recovery

1. Head Rush

• • This game was initially designed to get teenagers talking about tough topics, such as mental health problems, social challenges, and how to navigate situations involving alcohol and drugs. The game gets players talking, and teaches skills that help communication, teach mindfulness, develop self-awareness, and enhance self-efficacy. Though not designed specifically for recovery, this game helps players develop skills necessary for recovery in a fun, easy, social context.
  • Appropriate for people ages 14 and up.

2. The Use, Abuse, and Recovery Game

• • This recovery board game is based on a therapeutic technique called rational-emotive behavior therapy (REBT), which helps people identify counterproductive patterns of thought and replace them with productive ones. Players move to spots on the boards that prompt them to talk about a recovery-related topic. Cards offer helpful advice and encourage discussion between players.
  • Appropriate for people ages 13 and up.

3. The Use, Relapse, and Recovery Journey Game

• • This recovery board game is a variation of Use, Abuse, and Recovery Game. It goes deeper into relapse prevention and gets into the real meat and potatoes of recovery.
  • Players choose cards from two decks: one with advice cards on Relapse, Reward, and Recovery, and the other with questions for players to answer. The first deck offers helpful hints, while the second encourages thought and discussion on topics like triggers, relapse, denial, and the negative consequences of relapse.
  • Appropriate for people ages 13 and up.

4. Blank Slate

• • This fun game is not designed specifically for recovery, but if you play this game in a room full of people in recovery, the chances near 100% that the game will quickly become all about recovery.
  • Players write a word that finished a phrase on a cue card, and get points for matching words with others.
  • Appropriate for ages 8 and up, but if you play with recovery peers, consider keeping it an all-adult thing.

5. Relapse Prevention Game

• • Berthold Berg, a skilled, experienced therapist specializing in cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for addiction treatment, created this recovery board game for people in addiction recovery. The goal: use a game to teach CBT-based relapse prevention techniques.
  • Players roll a die and choose a card based on the spot they land. Each card presents a situation that could lead to relapse, and players choose a coping strategy. Some spots on the board reward players, others create setbacks – like life in recovery. The game helps players solidify their relapse prevention plan with evidence-based techniques.
  • Recommended for ages 13 and up.

6. The New Beginning Recovery Game

• • Therapists who run group substance use sessions say this is the perfect game for new groups. Questions on cards help participants open up and talk about recovery topics. The game solicits input on all topics: the goal is to use a prompt to get members of the group sharing and talking. Although it’s designed for group therapy, and group of recovery peers could have a great time playing this game.
  • Therapists can also use this for one-on-one sessions.
  • Appropriate for ages 12 and up.

7. Recovery Bingo

• • This is a perfect game for any group of adults in recovery. It works in group therapy sessions, informal recovery-themed social events, 12-step group events, and in any recovery-friendly situation. The goal of the game is to have fun while building recovery skills, emotional coping skills, and relapse prevention skills.
  • Appropriate for ages 18 and up.

8. The Game of Real Life

• • This game is similar to the Use, Abuse, and Recovery Game and the Relapse Prevention game in that it’s based in an evidence-based clinical technique. This goal of this game is to develop mindfulness, awareness, and problem-solving/coping skills based in dialectical behavior therapy (DBT).
  • Cards present various conflicts or challenges, and players respond by playing a DBT skill card to resolve the conflict or manage the scenario in a healthy and productive manner. The player who resolves the most conflicts and manages the most situations in healthy way wins the game.
  • Includes helpful manual with information on key DBT skills.
  • Appropriate for ages 18 and up.

9. Downward Spiral

• • This is sole survivor style game: the last person alive wins. It’s designed like Monopoly, with each space on the board containing pitfalls and problems created by the disordered use of alcohol and/or substances. On each spot on the board, players can lose:
    • Money
    • Friends
    • Family
    • Self-esteem
  • The purpose is for the players to understand the consequences of relapse – and make it to the end alive.
  • Find the adult version here, for people 18 and up.
  • Find the adolescent version here, for people age 13-18.

10. Inspirado: The Recovery Board Game

• • In Spanish, the word inspirado means inspired. This game is designed to inspire people to live the life they choose, free from the use of alcohol or drugs. Based on the operant conditioning concepts of B.F. Skinner’s ABC and the Fogg Behavior Model (FBM), this game helps people in recovery make small behavioral changes that, cumulatively, lead to a complete lifestyle change.
  • The game focuses on developing skill related to:
    • Relapse prevention
    • Recovery-promoting habits
    • Recovery planning
    • Identifying and reinforcing inherent strengths
    • Building motivation to stay in recovery
  • Find the game here.
  • Learn to play online here.
  • Appropriate for ages 13 and up.

That’s our list. Remember: you can make any activity fun and recovery friendly. All you need to do is set the parameters, control the guests you invite, and make sure everyone knows the activity is designed for people in recovery. No drugs and no alcohol: the goal is to spend time with friends and remind yourself how to spend hours and hours laughing, talking, and connecting – all without alcohol or drugs.

Resources: Finding Help

If you or someone you love has a problem with alcohol or drug use, and you think you – or they – have an alcohol use disorder (AUD) or substance use disorder (SUD), then we encourage you – or them – to arrange a professional evaluation administered by a mental health professional sooner rather than later. Treatment works, and the earlier a person who needs treatment gets the treatment they need, the better the outcome.

Helpful links:

• The therapist locator maintained by the American Psychological Association (APA) can help you find support close to home.
• Use the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) website to learn more about treatment and find support.
• Use the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) to access online treatment locators 24/7/365.

The post Recovery Tips: 10 Board Games to Play During Recovery appeared first on Pinnacle Treatment Centers.

Our Locations: Georgia

To learn more about our newest location in Georgia offering effective, evidence-based treatment for opioid used disorder (OUD) and substance use disorder (SUD), please navigate to the blog section of our website and read this release:

Pinnacle Treatment Centers: HealthQwest Location in Canton, GA Now Open

We’re optimistic we can help individuals, communities, and families in Georgia meet the challenges presented by the overdose epidemic and overdose crisis. For people who aren’t familiar with the facts about the opioid crisis, we’ll offer a brief history, then report on how Georgia is addressing the crisis.

The Opioid Crisis in the United States: An Overview

Six years ago, the Trump Administration issued a White House proclamation declaring the increasing rates of opioid addiction and overdose a national public health emergency. That important announcement outlined plans to allocate over six billion dollars in support for program initiatives to increase prevention efforts, expand treatment infrastructure, reduce barriers to treatment, disrupt the pipeline of illicit opioids arriving from other countries, and enhance harm reduction initiatives in rural, suburban, and urban areas across the nation.

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) identifies three phases, also called waves, that we now call to the opioid epidemic or the opioid crisis. These waves – and the significant pain and suffering they’ve caused – are the reason the White House declared this situation a national emergency.

Wave One

This resulted from a significant increase in prescriptions for opioid analgesics, beginning in the early 1990s. By the end of the 1990s, the prescription increase resulted in a dramatic spike in fatal overdose nationwide. This trend persisted until around 2010.

Wave Two

By 2010, public officials adjusted regulations and placed serious restrictions on long-term opioid prescriptions. While this did reduce the number of opioid prescriptions, it had an unexpected negative consequence: a phenomenon now called the prescription to addiction pathway. Many people developed opioid use disorder (OUD) while using prescription medication. When the new rules decreased access to opioid medication, a significant number turned to illicit opioid use with street drugs like heroin. The result: a nationwide spike in fatal heroin overdose.

Third Wave

 Early in the 2010s – around 2012 – something happened: an influx of the illicit opioid fentanyl into the illegal drug supply in the U.S. Fentanyl is 50 times stronger than heroin and 100 times stronger than morphine. In 2016 CDC data showed that just over thirty percent of overdose fatalities involved synthetic opioids like fentanyl.

Fourth Wave

Although not officially labeled by the CDC, expert observers – see articles here and here – believe we’re now in the fourth wave of the crisis. This wave is characterized by polysubstance misuse, the presence of fentanyl in black market opioids and other prescription medications, an increase in co-occurring disorders – simultaneous mental health and substance use disorders – and a combination of factors related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Opioid Crisis: Impact on Georgia

In the State of Georgia, public officials applied funds to enlist hundreds of stakeholders statewide in a series of study groups to design a plan to mitigate the extensive damage caused by opioid overdose and substance addiction. This effort resulted in establishing The Opioid and Substance Misuse Response Program as a new, semi-permanent program in the Georgia Department of Public Health. Operating under the Division of Health Protection, the new approach included funding for:

• Prevention programs
• Education programs
• Enhanced collection of data
• Improved communication/reporting of data
• Programs to monitor prescription drugs
• Law enforcement efforts to control supply
• Expansion of programs for SUD treatment

The White House announcement – and the subsequent response in Georgia – came at a crucial time. The opioid crisis was almost two decades old, and despite serious efforts to reduce the increasing opioid overdose and addiction rates nationwide, we were not making adequate progress, as a nation. We’ll talk about the steps Georgia took to use this federal money below, which is an important topic now, because the state just received the first 13-million-dollar payment of 636 million dollars allocated to the state in settlements with opioid manufacturers and distributors, including McKesson, Cardinal Health, AmerisourceBergen, Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc., and Johnson & Johnson.

First, though, we’ll share the most recent information on the opioid crisis in Georgia, which will foreground the importance of allocating these funds where they can help the most people as quickly as possible. We collected this data from the Georgia Department of Public Health Opioid and Substance Misuse Response publication, “The Georgia Opioid Strategic Planning, Multi-Cultural Needs Assessment.”

 Overdose Crisis in Georgia: Essential Facts

• 2010 to 2020:
  • Opioid overdose fatalities rose by 207%
• 2019 to 2021:
  • Opioid overdose fatalities rose by 101%
  • 2019: 853 deaths
  • 2021: 1,718 deaths
• 2019 to 2021:
  • Fentanyl-involved overdose fatalities rose by 124%
  • 2019: 614 deaths
  • 2021: 1379 deaths
• 2021:
  • Total overdose fatalities: 2,390
  • Opioids: 71%
  • Fentanyl-involved: 57%

Finally, data shows that between 2019 and 2021:

• Non-fatal drug overdose rates spiked
• Hospitalizations and emergency room visits for overdose increased by 10%
• Authorities reported a spike in fentanyl in illicit drug confiscated by law enforcement

All this information points to one thing: the opioid crisis has caused significant harm in Georgia. We know that evidence-based treatment is the most effective solution to the opioid epidemic, and our message for people in Georgia is simple: we’re ready to help.

Plans for the Future: How Georgia Will Allocate Federal and Settlement Funding

The opioid response program created by the state included two parts: first, an extensive survey and interview effort to gauge the need of the people at immediate risk. Second, they commissioned a study by a private firm to assess the overall readiness of the state behavioral health infrastructure, managed by the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities (DBHDD). We’ll share the results of the survey and interview process, then the result of the independent behavioral health audit/assessment.

Opioid Crisis Surveys and Interviews: What Officials Leaned

During this process, a majority of participants noted:

• Judgment, stigma, and prejudice while seeking support or seeking treatment and prevention resources
• A lack of empathy and compassion on the part of counselors/therapists – even those working in SUD and addiction
• An absence of culturally informed care that’s responsive to the various needs of the diverse cultures represented in Georgia.
  • Note: for those unaware, the small town of Clarkston, in the Metro Atlanta area, is the “most diverse square mile in America”
• Emotional pain is one of the main reasons people develop addiction issues
• Spirituality is an essential part of the treatment and healing process.

Based on these interviews, the planning teams recommended structural, relational, and transformational changes:

Structural Needs:

• Include programs for people who misuse more than one substance, called polysubstance misuse
• Implement safe needle exchange programs
• Increase basic medical support for underserved communities
• Reduce barriers to support and care for OUD, SUD, and mental health disorders
• Increase access to Narcan for first responders, people at risk, and the general public
• Increase housing support, vocational, support, and food support for at-risk populations

Relational Needs:

• Implement culturally appropriate support programs
• Work to create treatment programs matched to individual need
• Increase awareness about the need for expanded SUD support
• Expand programs non-English speakers
• Expand peer support among immigrant groups, and smaller cultural and demographic groups

Transformational Needs:

• Reduce and/or eliminate stigma around SUD, SUD treatment, opioid use disorder (OUD), and OUD treatment
• Address the problem of overprescribing medication to older adults
• Implement an integrated, holistic approach to SUD treatment and support
• Expand harm reduction programs
• Expand training for all physicians in identifying the signs and symptoms of substance use disorder, especially opioid use disorder.

Now let’s look at the results of the independent assessment for the DBHDD. This assessment will help the state government allocate funds over the next ten years.

• The Georgia behavioral health system has serious staffing shortages
• Georgia will need at least five new behavioral health crisis centers by 2025, and a total of eight more by 2032
• Facilities must include:
  • 24 crisis stabilization beds
  • 16 temporary observation chairs
• Need is greatest in three areas:
  • Northwest Georgia
  • Athens area
  • Metro Atlanta area

Authorities estimate they can meet these needs with the funding from the federal government and the substantial settlement agreements with opioid manufacturers/distributors we mention above.

Managing the Fourth Wave: Help for Co-Occurring Disorders and Polysubstance Use

The fourth wave of the opioid crisis presents a new set of challenges. Fentanyl creates a serious complication both because of its potency and the fact that drug traffickers combine it with non-opioid medications. In addition, the increase in rates of co-occurring disorders complicates matters. A person with a substance use disorder and a mental health disorder receives a dual diagnosis for co-occurring disorders.

For people with OUD and a mental health disorder – i.e. co-occurring disorders – the best available treatment is a combination of:

• Medication-assisted treatment (MAT)
  • Includes medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD): buprenorphine, methadone, or naltrexone
• Individual and group therapy
• Individual and groups counseling
• Social support
• Peer support
• Lifestyle changes

Treatment with MAT at Pinnacle includes all of the above. Treatment at Pinnacle is about more than the medication: it’s about treating the entire person. Our skilled and experienced team of treatment professionals give people the tools they need to grow and thrive in recovery.

Studies show that holistic, integrated MAT programs benefit patients in the following ways:

• Decreased use of opioids
• Reduced likelihood of relapse
• Decreased interaction with criminal justice system
• Improve function in family, work, school, and social life
• Reduced overall opioid-related death

To learn more about medication-assisted treatment at Pinnacle Treatment Centers, we encourage you to spend time reading these articles:

Medication-Assisted Treatment for Opioid Addiction

Suboxone Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder

Medication-Assisted Treatment: Methadone Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder (OUD)

If you – or a friend or family member – need treatment and support for opioid use disorder (OUD) or another substance problem, please contact us today. Remember: the earlier a person who needs OUD treatment gets treatment, the better their chances of attaining long-term recovery.

The post The Opioid Crisis in Georgia  appeared first on Pinnacle Treatment Centers.

Here on our blog, we’ve recently published two posts containing helpful lists:

44 Books to Read During Recovery

Recovery Apps: The 12 Best Apps to Use While in Recovery

This post contains two more lists. The first is a short one with four famous historical figures known for their alcohol and drug use, and the second one is a longer list, including 36 contemporary celebrities who are currently in recovery or have been in recovery. Our second list also includes two beloved figures – Carrie Fisher and Amy Winehouse – who are no longer with us.

The first list is to show people in recovery that their challenges are not new, and that people have been facing addiction for ages. The second list is to show people in recovery that they’re not alone, and that some of their heroes are in the same boat as them. They put their pants on one leg at a time, their shoes on one day at a time, and manage their recovery one day at a time.

Historical Figures and Alcohol/Drug Use

Vincent Van Gogh

This famous artist met an untimely demise as the result of suicide in 1890 at the age of 37. While it’s impossible to diagnose someone over a hundred years after the fact, biographers assert Van Gogh likely had depression or manic depression. This may have caused his well-documented excess use of absinthe, which means he likely had co-occurring disorders. Together, his depression and drinking may have contributed to his death by suicide.

Thomas Edison

While we’ll never know if Edison entered recovery, but resources confirm his love of, and regular consumption of Vin Mariani, which is wine infused with cocaine. In addition, biographers now believe Edison had attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and was dyslexic.

Charles Dickens

Records show that the famous author of “Oliver Twist” experienced depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. Both these conditions likely contributed to his documented excess use of opium, both in the form of laudanum, an oral tincture, and by smoking in opium dens in London. Like Van Gogh, it’s likely Dickens had co-occurring disorders. He died of a stroke in 1870, during a time he regularly used opium.

Sigmund Freud

The father of psychoanalysis is famous for his cocaine use. He praised the drug for the mental clarity he says it induced, and wrote a paper in 1884 called “On Coca.” However, after seeing the problems it caused in himself and others, Freud reduced his use, and ceased altogether by the 1890s. In retrospect, we could say Freud – since he ceased cocaine use – is one of the only historical figures we know of who may have actually been in recovery.

That’s our historical list. Next up, our list of current/recent celebrities in recovery.

36 Contemporary Celebrities in Recovery

Robert Downey Jr.

RDJ’s drug and alcohol exploits are well-known and began when his father gave him marijuana at age 6. During his early career, Downey bounced from film set to rehab and back countless times. He finally hit an extended bottom, spending the years between 1999 and 2003 in and out of jail and prison. Downey has been in recovery since 2003, twenty years now. Does his later success in the Marvel Comic Universe have anything to with his recovery? He says, yes, absolutely.

Katy Perry

In an interview in 2020, the pop star discusses her issues with alcohol use disorder (AUD). During the interview, she said she’d been in regular therapy and in recovery for five years. Perry now prioritizes self-care and mental health above all other things.

Macklemore

The music star first entered recovery in 2008, at the urging of his father. He says, “getting that help saved my life.” Macklemore is a good reality check for the rest of us. He relapsed in 2020, went public, took ownership, and got back on his program. “I stopped doing the work,” he said. Again, a lesson for us all: keep doing the work. That’s what all celebrities in recovery advise, as well.

Daniel Radcliffe

The famous Harry Potter star openly discusses his co-occurring disorders, which are obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and alcohol use disorder (AUD). Radcliffe began drinking to handle the stress of stardom and the intrusive thoughts associated with OCD. However, he’s been in recovery since 2010, and is one of the most well-known celebrities in recovery for co-occurring disorders.

Dax Shepard

The famous actor and sobriety podcaster describes his ups and downs with recovery in an interview in 2020. Although he’d been in recovery from alcohol use disorder (AUD) and cocaine use disorder (CUD) for years, he relapsed on pain pills, and was embarrassed to admit he was using when he told his addiction story at an AA meeting celebrating his 16 years sober. He soon stopped taking pills and has redoubled his commitment to recovery.

Demi Lovato

She began her career as a child star with Disney. She’s had problems with alcohol and drugs since early in her career, and was in and out of treatment between 2010 and 2012. She relapsed on fentanyl-laced heroin after six years of recovery in 2018, which caused three strokes and a heart attack. Lovato is now back in recovery, and committed to the process.

Drew Barrymore

This famous child star developed problems alcohol and drugs, attempted entered rehab, and started her recovery journey – all by age 14. Since then, she’s been open about her addictions and her recovery. In 2021, she told reporters she’d completely given up alcohol, finally, in addition to drugs.

Elton John

The pop music icon and legend is also a hero in the recovery community. In his early career, he used cocaine, marijuana, and alcohol to manage the complex emotions associated with being simultaneously intensely shy and a music superstar. A pivotal meeting with a fan changed his trajectory in 1990, and the star has been in recovery since – over 30 years. As we mention, among celebrities in recovery, Sir Elton is an elder statesman and hero.

Eminem

Rapper Marshall Mathers openly rapped about vodka, Vicodin, marijuana, and other drugs on his early hits. However, after some close calls and a possible overdose in 2007, Eminem entered recovery, and is proud to be past his days of drinking and “taking 75-80 valium a night.” While he eschews most contact with celebrities, Eminem is one of the most well-known musical celebrities in recovery.

Eric Clapton

The legendary blues guitar hero experience heavy alcohol and heroin addiction early in his career, during the 1960s and 1970s. Clapton entered recovery in 1983, relapsed in 1985, then entered rehab in 1987, and reports he has not relapsed since.

Gerard Butler

The famous actor, and star of movies like 300 and Chasing Mavericks, entered rehab for painkillers in 2012. Before that, he reports that he “had not had a drink in 15 years.” Does this mean he’s in recovery? We can report that his time in rehab at the Betty Ford Clinic helped him stop taking painkillers, for which we applaud him: it’s not easy to ask for help.

Michael Phelps

The most decorated Olympian in history, gold medal swimmer Michael Phelps admits to experimenting with marijuana as a teenager. He was famously caught on camera using marijuana. Phelps was also arrested twice for DUI, and spent six weeks in an Arizona treatment center in 2014, then joined Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) to help him stay on track.

Nicole Richie

We’re seeing a theme here: children who grow up around fame often fall into early drug use. Nicole Richie, adopted daughter of music superstar Lionel Richie, hit bottom after a DUI and a short time in jail in 2008. She entered rehab, and has been in recovery since then.

Paula Abdul

Known as the “nice judge” on American Idol, and before that as a pop star and influential choreographer, Paula Abdul developed an addiction to opioid pain relievers as a result of a back injury and several surgeries. She entered treatment for opioid use around 2008, and has been in recovery since.

Rob Lowe

An integral member of the second “Brat Pack,” Rob Lowe became famous at an early age as a star in the movie “The Outsiders” in 1983. After years of Hollywood excess, Lowe hit a low point in 1989 when a sex tape surfaced in 1989. In the legal aftermath, and with the help of his mother, Lowe entered a treatment program on May 10^th, 1990, and has been in recovery since.

Russell Brand

The controversial comedian and actor has been public about his experience with alcohol use disorder (AUD) and heroin/opioid use disorder (OUD). Brand has been in recovery since 2002, and since the overdose death of Amy Winehouse, has been and activist for both mental health and addiction treatment.

Stephen King

The most famous and successful horror author in history has been in recovery for 33 years. King, whose books and movies have scared the pants off of audiences for decades, reports heavy drug and alcohol use in the 1970s. His family staged an intervention, and he’s been in recovery since. According to King, recovery “has become part of my life.”

Steven Tyler

Frontman for the influential hard rock band Aerosmith, Tyler enthusiastically engaged in the culture of excess that characterized 70s rock and roll. However, his bandmates staged an intervention in the 80s, and he has been in recovery since. Tyler has relapsed more than once, but is still working hard on his program, and after a relapse in 2022, reports he attends AA meetings regularly.

Tim McGraw

The Grammy-winning country artist credits his wife Faith Hill for helping him stay in recovery. He developed an alcohol use disorder (AUD) while a young musician, but decide he’d had enough in 2008. He’s been in recovery since then, and again, credits his wife for her support on his journey.

Zac Efron

The teen star of “High School Musical” developed an alcohol use disorder (AUD) after becoming a Hollywood mainstay in the mid-2000s. His use escalated until he started attending AA meetings in 2013, then entered a treatment program in 2014. He’s been in recovery since, and credits his treatment experience, and his ongoing attendance in AA, with saving his life.

Jada Pinkett-Smith

Superstar actor Pinkett-Smith says, “My sort of addictions jump, they jump around.” She began combining alcohol, marijuana, and ecstasy as a teenager, but considered herself a “binger” rather than a regular user. “It’s a miracle I’m alive,” she says now. After a scare in 1996 which almost derailed her career, she found treatment, and has been in recovery since.

Jamie Lee Curtis

Jamie Lee Curtis has been a cultural icon since her role in “Halloween” in 1978. The star says “My sobriety has been the key to my freedom,” and has been in recovery from alcohol and drug use for over 20 years. She’s an outspoken advocate for treatment, and wants anyone who needs to know that help is available, but understands the courage it takes to stand up, admit you have a problem, and ask for help.

Anthony Hopkins

Another icon of film and stage, Sir Anthony Hopkins is most famous for his role as Hannibal Lector in “The Silence of the Lambs.” The 85-year-old actor developed an alcohol use disorder (AUD) early in his career. Now, with close to 50 years of recovery under his belt, he’s an advocate for both mental health and addiction treatment.

Billy Joel

It’s hard to believe, but the song “Piano Man” was released in 1973, fifty years ago. According to Joel, for the first half of his career, if he had a problem, “I’d just drown it with booze.” He first entered treatment in 2002, but it didn’t stick until his time at the Betty Ford Clinic in 2005. He’s relapsed several times, and at last report in early 2023, he’d been sober for two years.

Brad Pitt

The Hollywood heartthrob admits to excessive alcohol use during his early career, which escalated to problem use during his divorce from Angelina Jolie. He started attending AA meetings, and credits fellow actor Bradley Cooper with helping him take his first steps on the recovery journey.

Kat Von D

The famous model, tattoo artist, and star of the reality show Miami Ink was known for hanging with the Jackass crew and hard-partying co-star Bam Magera. She entered rehab in 2007, when she realized her drinking had a negative impact on her career as an artist. She celebrated twelve years of sobriety with an Instagram post in 2019.

Kristin Davis

Star of the hit TV show “Sex and the City,” Davis said in an interview in 2008, “I’m a recovering alcoholic. I’ve never hid it, but I’ve been sober the whole time I’ve been famous.” Davis has been in recovery for a whopping 36 years – proof that it’s possible to navigate the ups and downs of stardom and stay in recovery the entire time.

Lady Gaga

The pop star, born Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, admits that before entering recovery, she would smoke 18-20 marijuana cigarettes a day in order to help her creative process. Although she has never had formal treatment, Gaga says she is in recovery now, and uses her art as therapy. She recognizes recovery is an ongoing process, and reports her challenges began as a teenager, when she engaged in self-harm behaviors such as cutting.

Lindsay Lohan

The famous actor and singer had very public run of legal issues related to alcohol and drug use between 2007 and 2014, when she spent over 250 days in court-mandated drug and alcohol treatment programs. The last public reports about her sobriety – on Oprah in 2013 – indicated she was committed to recovery. She’s now married, living in Dubai, and has a slate of Netflix films ready to release.

Bradley Cooper

Hollywood megastar Bradley Cooper may be a posterchild for what a successful recovery looks like in Hollywood. In an interview in 2023, he said, “I was lucky. I got sober at 29 years old, and I’ve been sober for 19 years. I’ve been very lucky.” He credits fellow actor Will Arnett for having a hard conversation with him in 2004, when Cooper was using cocaine regularly. That conversation woke him up, and he’s been in recovery since. Among celebrities in recovery, Cooper is known for his openness, honesty, and willingness to help others.

Carrie Fisher

Everyone loves Princess Leia, and perhaps that was part of the problem: a star from a young age, Carrie Fisher also had bipolar disorder. This means she had co-occurring disorders – a diagnosis of a substance use disorder and mental health disorder at the same time. She most likely used drugs to manage the uncomfortable emotions associated with her mental health disorder. Fisher died of a heart attack at age 60, after years in recovery. Toxicology reports indicate she had both heroin and cocaine in her system at the time of her death. We’ll miss you, Carrie, and admire your courageous advocacy efforts over the past decades.

Charlie Sheen

Just over ten years ago, celebrity actor Charlie Sheen – son of famous actor Martin Sheen, brother of actor Emilio Esteves – went through what amounts to a public breakdown, characterized by his repetition of the catchphrase “winning.” To everyone watching, Sheen was clearly not winning – and appeared to be lost in substance use. He reported two years of sustained recovery in 2019. At last report – in an interview with his father in 2021 – Sheen was in recovery and thriving. “His recovery and his life is a miracle,” the elder Sheen said.

Colin Farrell

This Irish superstar got lost in the Hollywood party lifestyle early in his career. However, he woke up in 2008 and went to rehab. “After 20 years of drinking the way I drank, the sober world is pretty scary,” he said in an interview in 2021. By all accounts, Farrell is thriving in recovery to this day.

Josh Brolin

Famous before taking the role of the number one bad guy in history, Thanos, Brolin began his recovery journey in 2013. In an Instagram post celebrating five years of recovery in 2021, Brolin wrote, “Sobriety is when your children look at you and trust what they see.” For millions of people in recovery worldwide, this has a significant impact: one thing recovery can heal is family relationships.

Matthew Perry

The “Friends” star went to rehab 15 times and had 14 surgeries related to his alcohol and drug use. He says he doesn’t remember acting in seasons 3-6, because his alcohol and drug use was so severe. In 2001, his drug use became so extreme he quit. He told the New York Times “I didn’t get sober because I felt like it. I got sober because I was worried I was going to die the next day.”  He spent another month in treatment in 2011. In 2015, he received the 2015 Phoenix Rising Award for helping other celebrities and people on the road to recovery.

Amy Winehouse

Winehouse, a well-respected singer, musician, and performer, died of alcohol poisoning in 2011 at age 27. She’s another celebrity with co-occurring disorders: in addition to alcohol and drug use problems, she had an eating disorder, clinical depression, and engaged in self-harm. She entered treatment in 2007, after an overdose involving heroin, ecstasy, alcohol, and ketamine. Sadly, she never fully embraced recovery after treatment, which led to her untimely death 4 years later. Celebrities in recovery worldwide hold her up as a cautionary tale for up-and-coming stars.

Finding Help: Pinnacle Treatment Centers

If you or someone you love has a problem with alcohol or drug use, and you think you – or they – have an alcohol use disorder (AUD) or substance use disorder (SUD), then we encourage you – or them – to arrange a professional evaluation administered by a mental health professional sooner rather than later. Treatment works – as many celebrities on the list above can attest – and the earlier a person who needs treatment gets the treatment they need, the better the outcome.

The post The List: 36 Celebrities in Recovery + 4 Historical Figures appeared first on Pinnacle Treatment Centers.