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La Paloma Article Archives

Archive for the ‘Emotional Health’ Category

HRT and Addiction

Monday, November 15th, 2010

HRT and Addiction Hormone Replacement Therapy’s benefits have long been touted for regulating imbalances, but do they also help women avoid addictive urges?

When women reach “a certain age,” there can be a lot of talk about Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT). Female hormones are potent modulators of brain chemicals, neurotransmitters like serotonin and dopamine. When these hormones and brain chemicals are imbalanced, in addition to causing depression, anxiety and insomnia, the imbalance can also cause drug and alcohol cravings. (more…)


Bipolar’s Addiction Risk

Monday, November 8th, 2010

Bipolar’s Addiction Risk Bipolar sufferers are aware of the emotional issues it causes, but they also need to know it puts them at higher risk of substance abuse.

Bipolar disorder can bring on mood swings, mania, panic and a deep depression. Add to that the results of a 1990 study that showed 56 percent of bipolar patients also have a substance abuse problem, and the situation just gets worse.

Co-occurring Disorders

Treatment for co-occurring disorders in drug and alcohol treatment programs is becoming more common as the experts understand that often mental disorders like bipolar, depression, anxiety and PTSD go hand-in-hand with addiction. Often, it stems from individuals trying to self-medicate their mental health issues using substances like cocaine, methamphetamines, marijuana or opioids. In the case of bipolar this can be particularly dangerous as it makes the symptoms worse, not better. (more…)


Mindfulness In DBT

Monday, October 25th, 2010

Mindfulness in DBTMindfulness is a major component of the Dialectical Behavior Therapy process. How does it work and why is it essential to DBT?

Mindfulness can work in any area of life, enhancing our experiences and helping us to remain in the moment, but it’s particularly powerful in DBT, which relies heavily on the Eastern-based tradition. Mindfulness starts with what are referred to as the “what” skills. This process has three components:

Observe – This is used to non-judgmentally observe one’s environment within or outside oneself. It is helpful in understanding what is going on in any given situation. (more…)


Mental Illness In Sports

Monday, September 27th, 2010

Mental Illness In Sports In the wake of a pro athlete’s recent suicide, Sports Illustrated looks at the issue of mental illness and the stigma that it still carries for many athletes.

The stigma of depression is isolating, which can be dangerous, especially since individuals suffering from depression are prone to abusing alcohol or drugs to cope with their unwanted feelings or to other methods of self-harm, including suicide. In fact more than 90 percent of people who commit suicide have risk factors including depression, other mental disorders or a substance abuse problem. (more…)


Combat Drug Abuse

Wednesday, September 1st, 2010

Combat Drug AbuseMore military personnel, particularly those who have served in Iraq or Afghanistan, are turning to drugs to cope.

Even as our troops are leaving Iraq, there are still many military personnel serving overseas in dangerous situations. So it’s timely that a new study on combat related substance use and abuse will be undertaken to look at what’s become a growing problem. The new study, funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), marks an innovative federal partnership that will look at returning military personnel. (more…)


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