Los Gatos Drug and Alcohol Recovery Center

WHY YOU SHOULD SET BOUNDARIES WITH FAMILY DURING THE HOLIDAYS The picturesque version of the holiday season often entails warmth, peace, and reconnection. In reality, however, holiday events can involve pangs of stress, accommodations of many people, and much production just to celebrate one day. For those overpowered by addiction, substances often are utilized to cope with the madness derived from celebrating the winter holidays. For those in recovery especially in early r...Continue reading

FAMILIES AND ADDICTIONSURVIVING THE SEASON OF STRESS Families of active substance abusers and people in recovery may need extra support managing festive but stressful holiday celebrations. Read some sound advice on helping families handle the potential problems. The holidays usually evoke images of family bliss: Uncle Joe carving up a big turkey for a traditional family dinner, Aunt Mary bestowing her wonderful gifts, Grandma sharing cherished stories with the children. Th...Continue reading

5 WAYS TO SUCCESSFULLY DEAL WITH THE URGE TO DRINK DURING THE HOLIDAYS Family gatherings, year-end celebrations, seasonal stressthere are lots of opportunities and reasons to drink, and drink heavily over the holidays. Yet, with a little planning, you can deal with these triggers and urges from a place of personal power. Consider these helpful tips to successfully deal with urges and stay sober this holiday season. 1) IDENTIFY YOUR TRIGGERS -- Triggers can be both internal...Continue reading

HOW TO MANAGE SOBER LIVING DURING THE HOLIDAYS: NEW TRADITIONS, TIPS & WISDOM The holidays are all about family and traditions and now that you’re living sober it’s the perfect time to create new and improved sober traditions. Avoiding old bad habits and traditions from addiction days can be difficult for recovering addicts who don’t have specific plans in place to stay sober. So, work with a counselor, sponsor, trusted friends and/or mentors who can provide words of wisdom ...Continue reading

Six Ways to Maintain Your Sobriety at Thanksgiving I first tried to quit drinking on November 11, 1995. By Thanksgiving of that year, I was clean, but I was scared to death of facing a holiday dinner without a drink. I remember standing by the bar in my grandmother’s house, downing Diet Coke in long gulps. I drank an entire case of Diet Coke during the evening, but I stayed sober. Now, I have more tools to maintain my recovery during the holidays. Here are some helpful tips f...or having a happy Thanksgiving celebration while remaining drug/alcohol free. Don’t do all the cooking. Cooking dinner for a dozen or so people isn’t the best way to have a low-stress holiday. Starting cooking at 3 a.m. is too much to ask of anyone, let alone someone in the early stages of addiction recovery. If you are the person on whom the pulling together of the holiday dinner rests, ask for help. Maybe you order a turkey from the grocery and ask everyone coming to bring a side dish. Maybe you go out to eat instead of having everyone over. Maybe you take a year off from being the hostess and go to someone else’s house. Set clear boundaries and know your limits. Write a GRATITUDE list. Thanksgiving is about what we’re thankful for, not seeing who can overstuff their belly and reach food-coma first. If you’re feeling stressed or losing sight of what the holiday is about, write a gratitude list to bring your attention back to what is most important to you. VOLUNTEER. The quickest way to feel better about your life is to help someone else. There are food pantries and kitchens all over the nation that need volunteer help. You might consider visiting a relative in a nursing home or planning to assist at a VA dinner for elderly veterans (but don’t just show up unannounced). If you give of yourself, the family griping and slights may not feel so pronounced. GO TO A 12 STEP MEETING. If you’re in a 12-step program, it’s always a good idea to go to a meeting where you can be of service and share about your concerns. HAVE DINNER WITH A FRIEND. Especially if you are going to a family gathering where things might be tense or difficult, having a friend with you who will support you can make things a whole lot better. In some cases, family will be on better behavior if a non-family-member is around. In other cases, your friend can help you keep things in perspective and keep you from escalating a situation if unkind words are said. If all else fails, don’t go. If you are new in recovery, or even if you’re not, and going to a family or work function is just too much of a trigger for you, don’t go. Your health and life come first. Take care of yourself. Constance Scharff, PhD November 24, 2015 https://www.psychologytoday.com//six-ways-maintain-your-so

What is Mindfulness? Mindfulness: State of being present in the here and now; being in the moment, being in your body; not being on ‘autopilot.’ Mindfulness means owning each moment- good, bad, or ugly. Being grounded is a basic step in the state of being mindful.... Mindfulness contributes to a richer, fuller life because you are noticing all the things around you (e.g., not eating an entire meal without tasting it.) Mindfulness can help us be calmer, but not necessarily. To be mindful you must put aside your worries about the future and regrets about the past (at least temporarily). This can be really liberating since much of what upsets us is in other time periods than the present. Being mindful contributes to greater effectiveness in the here and now. If you get all the worries and regrets out of your mind, it is easier to focus on the things you want to do in the present. What things are important in mindfulness? Observe with all senses Notice without getting caught up in the activity Participate fully without getting pulled back into worrying One-mindfully (do one thing at a time) Be non-reactive notice where your mind goes, then pull it back- don’t be upset if your attempts at mindfulness aren’t perfect Non-judging notice your experiences without judging them as positive or negative Describe put verbal labels on your experience Parts of your mind: Emotional mind, Rational mind, Wise mind. Mindfulness allows you to harness the power of both emotional and rational parts together (Wise mind) Wise mind = not being blinded by emotionality and not being so rational that you ignore your feelings! https://www.smartrecovery.org/smart-articles/mindfulness/

Relapse Triggers: What You Need to Avoid ---Drinking to Celebrate or Drinking to Forget? What Do Being on Your A Game and Feeling Like Crap Have in Common? Traditional gender stereotypes can influence the drinking patterns and relapse behaviors of men and women. One commercial for beer encourages potential consumers, Tonight is kind of special, so choose their brand to mark a celebration. Men tend to drink to build up their courage, to celebrate when it’s 5 o’clock som...Continue reading

Break Out from the Vicious Circle of Anxiety I have worked as a counseling psychologist for over 10 years. One of the most common problems that people consult me on is anxiety when the source of that anxiety is unclear to them. When people are anxious about specific things in the world, like dogs, spiders or other people’s negative reactions, then at least the person knows what he or she is anxious about. However, a lot of people are anxious about being anxious and this is so...Continue reading

CLARE’S STORY I had a tumultuous upbringing, difficult childhood and teenage years. However, I was a happy kid and teenager despite troubles in my home life. I was completely immersed in sports and clubs through school, so I had a sense of family and involvement through my teammates and coaches. I was shy since birth, I think, but I was a natural at soccer and basketball, so I found my element there and a way to make friends and be part of something. I did well in high sch...Continue reading

FROM IMPAIRED TO INSPIRED: ONE NURSE’S STORY OF ADDICTION AND RECOVERY I had a wonderful childhood with a hard-working father and a loving and attentive mother. I have one brother two years my junior and we were very close growing up. We were a middle-class family in a beautiful neighborhood; the picture-perfect normal family. I met and fell in love with a fella when I was 18. We married at 22 and started our family at 27. We had three beautiful boys. I began my nursing car...Continue reading

What Makes Opiates So Addictive? Ever wonder about the science behind opiate addiction? For those who’ve experienced the legendary tow of opiates, a deepening cycle of despair and deliverance is commonplace. For the rest of us it is hard to imagine what motivates such futile and self-destructive behavior. Through a neuroscientific lens, opiate addiction is as predictable as the cycle of day and night: euphoria leads to longing; relief predicts torture. This ping-pong living...Continue reading

Animals Need Exercise Too!

Move the Body, Lift the Mind-The Depression-Exercise Link There’s an all-natural treatment for depression that’s proven to be as powerful as drugs or therapyand it’s as close as your local gym. Researchers have been exploring the connection between exercise and mood state since the early 20th century, and many studies have described positive effects on mental health associated with physical activity. Wide-Ranging Research...Continue reading