When we talk about different ways to manage stress more effectively, easy go-tos are exercising, eating whole foods, and improving sleep hygiene. But other stressors contribute to our overall wellness—and our 24-hour news cycle is a primary culprit. In today’s digital age, we’re constantly bombarded with information from all directions: news websites, social media platforms,...
Here’s a fact that might surprise you: not all stress is bad. Eustress is defined as a feeling of excitement, focus, and improved performance. It’s a short-term burst that motivates and energizes us, and we don’t feel it taxes our abilities. But what we’re most familiar with is distress, which is often associated with anxiety,...
It’s no surprise that some people with trauma often turn to drugs or alcohol to cope. To treat addiction effectively, it’s critical to acknowledge traumatic incidents in a way that’s affirming, supportive, and healing—instead of letting them fester and cause more harm. The Dangers of Hidden Trauma The Trauma-Informed Care Implementation Resource Center provides this...
A life rich with experiences will involve many different people. There’s an old adage: “People enter our lives for a reason, a season, or a lifetime.” This is an essential saying to remember if you’re struggling to move forward with healthy choices and toxic relationships are weighing you down. According to PsychAlive, toxic characteristics usually...
Willingway works with families who are in a codependent relationship related to drug or alcohol addiction. If you or a loved one are in need of help for an addiction, please call 912-207-7227. For a very long time, I could not decipher between codependency and love. I thought that if we love someone, we put...
The term “emotional regulation” refers to your ability to, according to scientists, “modify the duration or intensity of emotions to best respond to environmental challenges.” As you’ve moved through different stages of addiction treatment and recovery, you might have touched on this concept while exploring the root causes of substance use disorder (SUD) and alcohol...
There’s no reason to doubt that therapy will help in your addiction rehabilitation and recovery goals. However, finding the best approach impacts the success of your progress—and if you’ve tried one method and it wasn’t a good fit, it might be necessary to consider other options. Would motivational interviewing be more effective? Or cognitive behavioral...
Even the most confident person has experienced feelings of guilt at some point. While researchers indicate that, in the right context, guilt can help you take proper action, learning how to forgive yourself, especially while navigating a healthy recovery from drug and alcohol addiction, is often a work in progress. How can you get better...
Why is asking for help so hard? There are numerous reasons, but to continue to thrive in recovery and in life overall, it’s essential to recognize when to seek out the support you need. This is a learned skill that not only gives you vital reinforcement during critical times, but also strengthens relationship bonds—especially when...
When people struggle with trauma, they often strive to project an aspect of normalcy. If they haven’t sought professional treatment to remedy the effects of trauma, or a therapeutic approach wasn’t successful, or they have addiction in the family, they frequently default to coping mechanisms as a shield. The connection between trauma and substance use...
