Sober but Miserable: When Quitting Isn’t Enough Articles>Early RecoveryBy The Ranch TNNovember 18, 2015Carl is a soft-spoken screenwriter who grew up in an impoverished, alcoholic home. For most of his adult life, Carl has turned to alcohol to cope with grinding depression and a gnawing sense of not being good enough. One night after a weekend of drinking, Carl had a blackout. He awoke in his car with…
For Lessons in Recovery, Take a Walk on the Wild Side Articles>Early RecoveryBy The Ranch TNOctober 13, 2015Therapists who treat addiction and co-occurring mental conditions have many weapons in their arsenal: psychotherapy, 12-step strategies, experiential exercises, education, medications and perhaps one more: Mother Nature. In a novel experiment, researchers at Stanford University in California randomly assigned 38 people to take a 90-minute walk in either a natural or urban setting, then assessed…
Three Ways to Love Yourself in Recovery Articles>Early RecoveryBy The Ranch TNOctober 10, 2015We’re told we need to love ourselves. We are told we need to have a healthy sense of self-esteem. But after years of addiction, rebelling against God and making havoc of our lives and relationships, it’s hard to feel anything other than a deep sense of self-hatred and shame. However, this kind of outlook doesn’t…
Need Help With a Loved One With a Drinking Problem? Look Online Articles>Alcohol Abuse and AlcoholismBy The Ranch TNSeptember 14, 2015When the love of your life has a drinking problem, it becomes your problem, too. Being the partner of a person addicted to alcohol increases your risk of experiencing stress, anxiety, depression, relationship turmoil and emotional and physical abuse. If you feel like you’re all alone with these concerns, it only compounds the risk.
Benefits of Couples Therapy After Infidelity Articles>Sex AddictionBy The Ranch TNAugust 29, 2015Although an affair is one of the most painful betrayals of trust that anyone can experience, it does not always mean the end of a relationship. Frequently, both partners hope to save the relationship and stay together despite the loss of trust and underlying problems that may have contributed to the affair.
Mindfulness: Why Every Addict Needs It Articles>Mental HealthBy The Ranch TNAugust 28, 2015The addict has a restless brain, and substances or compulsive behaviors are used to self-regulate the overworked brain. That process eventually leads to a trail of destruction: lost jobs, failed marriages, neglected children, plundered fortunes.
Eating Disorders “on the Wire”: An Interview with Jenn Friedman Articles>Eating DisordersBy The Ranch TNJanuary 24, 2015Food fuels the body and can nourish the soul. But what happens when it seduces and torments? According to information from the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders:
Triggers: A Fact of Recovery Articles>Early RecoveryBy The Ranch TNJanuary 22, 2015One of the most challenging aspects of recovery is how to handle triggers. No matter what the source addiction is—whether it’s alcohol and substance addictions, sexual addictions, addictive co-dependencies or something else—we all have to deal with things that make us want to re-engage in the self-destructive patterns that brought us into recovery in the…
Six Essential Rules of Addiction Recovery Articles>Early RecoveryBy The Ranch TNJanuary 15, 2015What does it really take to get sober and stay sober? If you talk to several people in recovery, you may get several opinions. Some will emphasize the importance of a sponsor or attending a lot of meetings. Others will insist that they couldn’t have gotten sober without the religious undertones of Alcoholics Anonymous.
Trusting Your Gut: Developing Intuition in Recovery Articles>Early RecoveryBy The Ranch TNJanuary 6, 2015One of the trickier skills to develop in early recovery is that of decision-making. While you were using, making decisions may have been a relatively simple affair—more often than not, you chose the path that protected your ability to continue to drink or use drugs. But now, in recovery, learning to trust yourself and make…
