Here are resources and information about addiction and addiction treatment that can aide in your recovery journey.
Sober companions are called recovery companions, sober friends, or sober accountability partners. These are people who have specialized training to help people coming out of residential rehab or shifting from partial hospitalization to outpatient treatment. They help those in recovery maintain their sobriety and become healthy, positive contributors within their families, jobs, and society as…
As a new year dawns, feelings of possibility and hope abound. People often view a new year as a new chapter—an opportunity to rewrite the parts of the story that were not working before and reaffirm aspirations and dreams. For those in recovery, whether just beginning the journey or staying the course, every new year…
What is an opioid? Opioid is a term that is used to refer to opiates, which are drugs derived from the opium poppy, and opioids, synthetic drugs that emulate opiates in their effects. Using this umbrella definition for opioid, numerous drugs can be called opioids. All of them are addictive and can be highly dangerous.…
The opioid crisis is alive and well. Whether prescription painkillers, heroin, fentanyl, or other opioids, these drugs are dangerous and cost lives. Fentanyl is one of the most potent opioids. 50 to 100 times more powerful than morphine, fentanyl is synthetic, meaning it is created in a lab. In addition, drug manufacturers often lace other…
Crystal meth is a purified form of the stimulant methamphetamine. The dangers of crystal meth are largely related to how easy it is to manufacture, combined with its extremely addictive qualities. It is so addictive that anyone abusing crystal meth is best served by enrolling in a meth addiction treatment program quickly, without waiting for…
Cocaine — or at least the coca leaves from which this drug is derived — has been in use since 3,000 BCE in Central and South America when the stimulant and euphoric qualities were valued, often in ceremonial uses. Eventually, cocaine’s effectiveness was discovered — as a topical anesthetic and also as a vasoconstrictor during…
There are moments in life that we don’t really notice when they happen. For example, when drinking stops being an occasional indulgence and becomes a problem. It’s often not until much later, when the problem has become a life-altering disease known as addiction, that we realize what has happened. At Pennsylvania Adult & Teen Challenge…
Addiction does not always fit into neat categories. In fact, most people who suffer from a substance use disorder regularly take more than one substance. Polysubstance abuse refers to the misuse of two or more substances taken in combination. There are several underlying risk factors for polysubstance abuse, but one of them is the presence…
There are countless addictive substances out there. If someone you know is suffering from drug abuse and addiction, there are resources available. One potentially serious drug on which someone can get hooked is called PCP. PCP stands for phencyclidine, and this addiction is dangerous. There are plenty of PCP street names as well, including angel…
Fentanyl was first created by scientists in a medical lab for use in pain relief. In the approximately seven decades since, fentanyl has played a major role in the opioid epidemic. Like so many drugs originally intended for legitimate use, fentanyl is now available on the street, and its recreational use is illegal and dangerous.…