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Drug, Alcohol Addiction and Eating Disorders Overlap

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Tuesday, April 24th, 2012

It is common among drug and alcohol abusers to have eating disorders, especially among female addicts. Many addicts admit that their alcohol and drug addiction has fueled their eating disorder for years. For many the loss of appetite that goes with drugs is one of their top reasons for using. Many drug abusers admire the effects of staying slim through the use of cocaine and meth. For others binge eating is combined with their marijuana and alcohol binges.

Focusing individual care for each client and her needs is what distinguishes the Rose from other recovery programs. We have created our own support group for clients who are struggling with eating disorders. This group is led by Case Manager and Alumni Coordinator, Mary Lisa Patton, BA, CADAAC.

Mary Lisa Patton, BA, CAADAC

Mary joined the Rose team in 2007 as she was finishing her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology at Vanguard University of Southern California.  Mary Lisa just earned her degree as a certified, California Association of Alcohol and Drug Abuse Counselor with an emphasis in eating disorders.  Mary enjoys building relationships with the woman and encouraging spiritual growth as a necessary part of recovery.

The Rose is proud to offer eating disorder support in our facility. However, if a client shows signs that they are in need of more in depth eating disorder treatment, we refer them to our sister facility, The Victorian.

Categories : Addiction Treatment, Eating Disorders, co-occurring disorders
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Brains Wired for Addiction

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Thursday, March 1st, 2012

The role of genetics in addiction has been fairly well established over the years. In the early ‘80s, researcher Schuckit in San Diego, CA found that son’s of alcoholics (who are not yet drinkers themselves) have a different response to alcohol. Going a step further, there’s evidence from twin studies, from rodent studies, from molecular genetic studies all had different brain wiring. And today, the Chronicle of Higher education ran a review by Peter Monaghan, of Memoirs of an Addicted Brain: A Neuroscientist Examines His Former Life on Drugs by Marc Lewis, a neuroscientist who was himself a “practicing addict” for many years, before cleaning up and going to graduate school. Lewis describes what was going on in his brain subjectively (what he felt) when he was seeking, looking forward to, and consuming drugs, and then explains it from the perspective of a neuroscientist. It’s all about dopamine.

None of this is big news for addiction medicine specialists, nor for people in recovery from drug addictions –but it’s always a relief to see supportive results from labs, neuroscientists, and now from a neuroscientist who himself who is a recovering addict. Addiction, once it gets going, is a “chronic disease” as spelled out by the folk wisdom of 12-step self-help programs, and it doesn’t go away, it just goes in remission when the addict stops taking drugs entirely. The study in Science, and Lewis’ book are important, given the present influence of the harm reduction movement that is quietly at war with proponents of the disease model of addiction, that calls for abstinence.

Categories : Addiction Treatment
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Step 1 – Honesty

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Friday, January 28th, 2011

Image by: Horizontal Integration

Growing up my mom ran a non-profit that worked with parents who had their children taken away for abuse or neglect. All the parents were court mandated by the county to get parenting classes. The organization served these low income families with free counseling, child care, food boxes and pro-bono attorneys. The people who we served all had dramatic tales to tell full of alcoholism, drugs and physical abuse. I remember talking to them outside of the office we rented. They looked sleep deprived with blood shot eyes and the glazed over look of doing enough drugs to put a down payment on a townhouse; naturally I judged them. I judged the way they chain smoked and quoted the steps from the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous. I thought the meetings they attended were excuses to kill time and catch some tail. I thought the Big Book that they claimed was full of hope was actually full of crap. I was 12 years old.

Twelve years later I found myself in the room’s of several different anonymous meetings, purchasing a Big Book and sitting among others who just like me had blood shot eyes and a glazed over look that said, ‘How the hell did I get here?’ I remember working the very 1st Step with my very first sponsor:

Step 1 – We admitted we were powerless over alcohol—that our lives had become unmanageable.

I remember doing this step with her after a meeting in her car. Completely baffled I told her, “I can’t believe I’m doing this. I can’t believe I’m really an addict. I judged addicts for so long. I can’t believe I’m admitting that I actually am one of them.”

Admitting that truth to someone else and to a group of other addicts, multiple times a week has truly (as cliché as it might sound) “set me free” from my addiction. Taking that first step and admitting that “I am powerless over a substance” has completely humbled me as a human being. For better or for worse people with addictive personalities are people of action. We’re go getters, we’re accomplisher and we’re successful. However, being a go getter comes with it’s array of problems, the biggest one being we think we know it all and can do it all. As a 12 year old born with that disposition I thought I did know it all. I spent many years in my addiction because I was too proud to ask for help or humbly admit that I had a problem. The first step serves as the vehicle of humility. If we really want to over come our addiction we first and foremost have to admit that we (being the know it all’s that we think we are) actually DON’T. We need to admit that we do need help from other addicts who have been through the same experiences. If we refuse their help our lives will continue to be unmanageable.

Being years into recovery I can now laugh at how judgmental and pretentious I once was. In hindsight I really respect the people I worked with at my mom’s organization. I now remember them as people who were also addicts, who had their children taken away from them and are still showing up for parenting classes, counseling and admitting that they need help. All of them could have very well chosen to spend their time in their addictions, but instead they admitted to themselves and to others, “I don’t know how to be a parent. I need help. Please help me.” Now when I think back on these people I don’t see their blood shot eyes, I see people who are brave enough to be honest with themselves and accept help. Having done it myself I know that it is the most humbling, courageous act one could ever make. I respect all of those who have and who ever will take Step 1.

Categories : Addiction Treatment
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What the homeless teach me about addiction….

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Wednesday, January 5th, 2011

Photo by: Rose Palmisano, Orange County Register

 There is a park in my city where a group of homeless men, women and children hang out. It’s always interesting to hear friends of mine make tacky remarks about the homeless. They act noble calling them “bums” “addicts” “the problem for the decrease in our property value” and other  un-creative, stereo-typical, prejudice words people who are ignorant tend to use when they are uncomfortable. I feel sorry for my friends because

1.) Their comments make them look like ego-centric, poorly educated fools and

2.) They are.

At least 1/3 of the homeless have mental illnesses which do attribute to drug and alcohol addictions (source). So I think we could safely say that at least 1/3 of the homeless population is not just chillin’ in the park getting a tan. They truly don’t have the proper balance of brain matter, serotonin and neurotransmitters to make healthy decisions for themselves or those around them.

What I appreciate about the homeless is that they are a reminder to me that addictions are diseases that can lead us to losing everything we have; job, car, house and family.  They remind me that recovery is done one day at a time and one choice at a time. Whether our brain chemicals are hindered on the side of mental illness is not a choice that was made by any of us, but whether or not we use drugs and alcohol today is our choice and only ours.

I have a group of friends that visit the homeless in this park every Wednesday afternoon. They bring them food and friendship. If you are so inclined I suggest that you join them. Have a talk with a few of them. You just might find their stories quite fascinating and maybe even a little similar to your own.

Categories : Uncategorized
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Addiction Reservations

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Saturday, November 27th, 2010

 

To an addict the word “rehab” conjures up the same thoughts that the word “prison” conjures up to the free. The loss of control, choices and microscopic monitoring is not something anyone would want to sign up for, addict or not. Thankfully there is always the voice of God/Higher Power/Reason that helps the clients surrender their lives to the care of the rehab staff in the hopes of getting something better in the recovery process. But, then there are those that don’t surrender, those with reservations. 

Clients with reservations know they need rehab, they know their disease is killing them, they know that they are putting their family through pain and anguish, they know the havoc their addiction is doing to their body, yet they reserve their right to surrender their disease because their scared- and rightfully so. What some people don’t understand about addictions is, they are not like the chicken pox. It’s not something you just catch, see the doctor, take some milk baths for and then resume your life. An addiction is a way of life and for addicts, it’s the only way of life they have ever known. The idea of giving that life up is terrifying. Though they may be living in pain, the pain is comforting because it is familiar.

I often hear friends with babies talk about their child’s “lovey” a soft cloth with a stuffed animal head attached that is given to babies to confort them while they fall asleep. Many mothers have told me that their childs lovey is disgusting, torn and beaten down, they try to replace it with a replica lovey, but the child won’t take it, they want their smelly old lovey because it is FAMILIAR.

The only way you convince an addict (or a child) to give up their addiction (or their toy) is to give them images of something better. It can be a frustrating, heart wrenching process to watch someone you love know better and yet walk the wrong way. All you can do is let them keep walking on their own and hopefully they will turn around and find themselves in the place of surrender, a place where they can see the possibility of a different life and help remove their reservations.

Addictions are a battle with oneself; it is up to the addict to decide which will win. Will it be the True Self or the Addictive Self? The fear is great, the recovery is painful, but the reward is freedom.

*A special thanks to Anita Barry for bringing up the topic of Addictive Reservations. Your years of work in residential treatment and compassion for those suffering from addictions is inspiring. You are a beautiful specimen of human being!

Categories : Addiction Treatment
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Beach Walks – Help with depression

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Tuesday, November 16th, 2010

Sherri Conley

All of the women at The Rose Rehab participate daily in a morning beach walk in Newport Beach. Most think of a morning beach walk as simply a good source for self reflection and exercise. However, the beach walk also serves as a small dose of an anti-depressant. In a 2005 study done by Harvard Medical School on patients with depression, those who participated in a 30 minute walk 5 days out of the week were found to have less symptoms and long term recovery.

 Many clients who check into the Rose Rehab suffer from many mental disorders  due to their drug and alcohol abuse; depression being one. Years of drug and alcohol abuse coupled with mal-nutrition makes for a very weak and wounded brain unable to create enough serotonin for the body. Fortunately therapy, counseling, adequate nutrition and exercise can restore these women’s lives and bodies. The morning beach walks at the Rose Rehab are just one piece of the recovery pyramid. That piece being, self-care. The Rose Rehab seeks to show their woman what a life in recovery looks like and to give them the tools to care for themselves.

Categories : Addiction Treatment
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Hurt People, hurt people.

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Thursday, November 4th, 2010

Flowers of June - Etsy

There are wise saying within the Recovery Community that many learn to incorporate into their daily lives. A popular one being, “Hurt People, hurt people.” This saying is a popular saying that both addicts and family members alike can use. The saying is a powerful reminder that  “healthy people don’t hurt people.” It’s “hurt people who hurt people.”

Both client and family alike know that most people are capable of being good and honest. But, people who are hurt are incapable of being good and honest and instead they hurt others by lying, cheating and stealing. This saying sheds some light on the matter. Often times when we are hurt by someone we get angry, upset and judgmental. We know they are capable of being better people and we know they know it too, so why is it so difficult for them to do the right thing? Why do these people repeatedly hurt us time and time again even after we tell them how badly it hurts us?

There are as many reasons why people hurt others as there are the number people on this earth. This writer believes that a good portion of the pain we inflict on others comes from wounds we haven’t yet healed ourselves. In fact we have wounds that are so large, that they infect others who surround us.

Try and imagine stopping to help someone in a car accident on the freeway. The first thing to do would be to help the people inside, but they could be bleeding and have wounds you can’t mend on your own. The car maybe crushed, but you can’t pull it apart on your own. There maybe people in the back seat who also need your help just getting out of the car, nevertheless their injuries may be beyond your capability of handling. The more you try to help these “hurt people” the more likely you are to get blood on yourself, be hit by another car on the freeway or injure yourself while trying to help them. The people in this car probably don’t want to hurt anyone, the fact that they are in an accident, is simply an accident itself. But, they can’t help the fact that they are helpless and you are not. You though, can help and can call the fire department, paramedics and police.

This scenario is very similar to rehab. Families who try and help their loved ones in their addictions often times put themselves in harms way and could quite possibly make the scenario much worse. The thing families need to do, just like an accident witness would be to call the proper authorities. When it comes to addiction, that authority might be an interventionist or a rehab.

People in a traffic accident don’t intend to hurt anyone, just like an addict doesn’t intend to hurt anyone. The fact of the matter is that they can’t control themselves. But, we can help them. We can help the hurt stop by calling the right people, the right rehab and doing the right thing. Hurt people, do hurt people. Healthy people, help people. If you are healthy and know someone who is not, help them to help themselves and make the hurt stop.

Categories : Uncategorized
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Sex Addiction

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Friday, October 22nd, 2010

Thanks to television shows like, Intervention, Celebrity Rehab and personalities like Dr.Drew, Sex Addiction has come out of the closet. But, even though high profile celebrities like Tiger Woods are making Sex Addiction more well known, it is still rather taboo.  Unlike alcoholism which is widely known to be a disease, there is still a stigma around sex addicts that ostracized them.

Sex Addiction qualifies equally as any other addiction of alcohol, drugs, marijuana, eating disorders, gambling, shopping and kleptomania. Many consider Sex Addiction to be more serious an addiction because of the amount of pain and damage inflicted on others outside of the addict. It should be noted that the people affected by Alcoholism, Eating Disorders and Gambling cannot be quantified due to the number of people an addict comes into contact each day.

For any addict in recovery the largest amount of injury is done to oneself. Even though innocent bystanders can be victims of the addict’s actions, each act symbolized the amount of self-harm and self-hatred the addict holds toward himself or herself.

Sex addiction is treated at The Rose Rehab. Therapists, Counselors and Staff are equipped to support Sex Addicts in their recovery.

Categories : Addiction Treatment, Uncategorized
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The Addiction Conundrum

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Wednesday, October 13th, 2010

Kathleen Daun Hauer

“Are you hearing voices?” I rolled my eyes at my Psychiatrists.

“No, I’m not hearing voices.” I said.

“You know it’s routine to ask.” She said, as she moves her eyes away from me and marks her chart.

Of course I know, but I also know that  “Hearing voices” in our head is commonly associated with Schizophrenia. I know that I don’t have Schizophrenia. I know I have an addiction and that there is a big difference between “Hearing voices” and “ ruminating thoughts.” My issues lies in my thoughts.

The thoughts I have are:

“No one likes me.”

“No one understands me.”

“No one wants to be my friend.”

“No one is as stupid as I am.”

“It will always be this way.”

“There is no way out.”

“Life sucks.”

The thing I have been reminded of recently is that these thoughts are not simply mine, they aren’t even solely the thoughts of other addicts…. They are everyone’s thoughts from time to time.

Just this morning I came into a coffee shop to write this blog. I got my coffee and had a seat at the bar and found myself sitting next to a little old man named Bob, who is 84 years old. Bob asked me if I was studying… I said, “No I’m writing…” An hour later I haven’t even said a word…or typed a word…. he has simply been telling me about his experience working for the Marines in World War II. I know I have to get to work so I tell Bob, “I have had so much fun talking with you. But, I have to get writing.” I can see the deflated expression his body makes as his shoulders round and his smile droops. He says, “Sorry, most people like my boat stories.” It’s then that I realize that Bob is simply lonely which is profound to me…considering  he says he has 5 kids, a wife and yet he is in a coffee shop, reading the paper and sharing his pearls of wisdom and stories with me a complete stranger. If I didn’t see that expression on his face I would probably assume that his accomplishments in career, family and true love would be enough to fill him for the rest of his life…that’s not so. I wonder if after I told him I had to do my work his thoughts were the same ones I have from time to time?:

“No one likes me.”

“No one understands me.”

Last night I heard some music by the band, Bright Eyes. I looked up some of the lyrics. The lyrics were pretty stark, deep and painful. The writer of them was angry with women, angry with love and angry with life. In those lyrics I heard the rhythm of my own mind hit the same beat:

“No one wants to be my friend.”

“No one is as stupid as I am.”

Then there is the 12 step meeting I went to today. I heard a lot of  women talk about fear, insecurity and the craziness in their own minds. It was there that it hit me like a ton of bricks that our thoughts are the conditions of all of our human minds. The scariest thoughts being:

“It will always be this way.”

“There is no way out.”

“Life sucks.”

The comforting thing about all of the pain between Bob, Bright Eyes and the 12 Step Meeting is that “We are not alone.” Everyone from the accomplished Business man in a 3 piece suit to the addict shaking their left foot in a meeting because they are so bent out of shape from anxiety feels our pain. There is HOPE though…especially for us as addicts. As addicts who are apart of a 12 Step program we have a place to go every day of the week where people understand our pain, our turmoil and our anxiety. We have a place to go where people give us a spiritual solution to the ruminating thoughts in our head and remind us that, “Yes, life does suck …but not all the time…just sometimes….that there is a way out….and it won’t always be this way.”  The Addiction Conundrum is that it’s a Catch 22…we are all lonely…but if it wasn’t for our loneliness there would be no reason for us to come together, to support each other, to love each other and we would have nothing to fight for. Please remember that you are not alone…that there are people who feel your pain and have lived through it. There are people who love you and support you…. You are not alone….

Categories : Addiction Treatment
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What is a LADY in RECOVERY?

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Thursday, September 30th, 2010

There is a shell shock effect that happens for an addict the day she steps into recovery. Whether it’s a 12 Step meeting, a Process Group, Therapy or a Relapse Prevention Group there is one very uncomfortable element present in all of them: Feelings. The women are often overwhelmed by the amount of personal exposure other women in recovery are willing to process. In these meetings women share the anger, fear, resentment and pain that they drink and use over. It is in the process of exposing the feelings that one can get to the root of the issue and either solve it themselves, collaborate with others or give the problem over to God to solve.

Often times a woman new to recovery finds this vulnerability intimidating and will poke fun at it, avoiding it at all costs. Instead, she will resort to the mannerisms of her disease; cold, angry, distant and vacant. So how does The Rose teach these women how to relinquish the masculine tools she uses to protect her feeling? How do they teach the women how to trade their anger for being a lady who is vulnerable and present?

The first step is they redefine WHAT a lady is. A lady in recovery can be defined by 3 words, STRONG, WILLING and OPEN.

STRONG- Many women in addiction have been taken advantage of, abused and violated. Having experienced great trauma makes these women fearful to trust and let their guard down for anyone. The protection they harness over themselves gives them an element of power and strength. What the Rose teaches the women is that true strength comes from humility. Being able to say, “I have an addiction. I can’t do this on my own. Please guide me” are words that many are too prideful, scared and sick to say. It takes a great amount of strength to say them and follow threw with them. A lady seeking recovery is very, very STRONG.

WILLING – Addicts are great actors. They fool us all with their grandiose attitude of confidence, security and knowledge. When in fact if you were to sit down and really speak with them you would find someone, very fearful with feelings of great inadequacy. In the recovery process there are many times when one will relapse, get angry and make poor choices. It takes a woman WILLLING to wipe off her messy choices and start over. It is the more difficult and humbling thing to do, but also the one with the most integrity and grace.

OPEN – In the recovery community one must be authentic and open to the advice of others. As a community we rely on each other to help us through our recovery and also to call us out when we are slipping in our recovery. In recovery we meet people who don’t beat around the bush, they say what they mean and they mean what they say, they also expect that from us in return. Being OPEN doesn’t mean we let people walk all over us, it means we listen, we learn, we share even when it’s uncomfortable and we push ourselves to learn how to be a better woman in recovery.

The Rose is known in the Sober Living Community for running a tight ship. A great deal is expected from their women and likewise a great deal is expected of their staff. The entire staff at the rose stands firm for their women. They challenge them, they hold them accountable and they guide them to a closer connection God who ultimately will reveal to these women the strong people they were created to be.

Categories : Addiction Treatment
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