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We hear this term “self-care” a lot in recovery from both mental health disorders and substance use disorders. We have to learn how to participate in self-care. Self-care is important. Having a healthy self-care practice means we are able to self-soothe and make time for taking care of ourselves. Self-care also means that we have learned about our personal wants and needs. We can overexert ourselves sometimes. Forgetfully, we take our new found strengths and run with them. Our disabilities are no longer debilitating and we are liberated to live life more fully again. We can do too much. Self-care is a nonjudgmental, and proactively not self centered way to make time for taking care of ourselves in exactly the way we need to. Self-care can be hard to do. Shame, guilt, and self-loathing make a pretty decent argument in our minds when we think about doing something for self-care. We might tell ourselves we don’t deserve it, we aren’t worth it, we haven’t earned it, or we’re pathetic for needing it. Ouch! Such moments more than others require a little extra self-love and self-compassion. Each person’s self-care regimen will be different. Finding and developing your unique methods for self-care is part of the journey of recovery. Try these suggestions for guiding your way to being a self-care specialist. First, remind yourself it's OK to practice self-care and that it’s good for you. Second, ask yourself what it would take for you to completely enjoy time you spend with yourself. Do you need pampering? Would you like to work on a relationship or part of your relationship with yourself? Would self-care involve spending time on a favorite hobbies, activity, or exercise? Spend self-care time with yourself. Try to put down your phone, stay off of social media, and even out of contact with people for even just one hour. You aren’t isolating, but taking necessary time to reboot. Validate yourself. It would be nice if we could get a gold star for every difficult thing we did in recovery from mental health and substance use disorders. Buy your own sticker set and pat yourself on the back. This journey is completely yours. Own it and be proud! Avalon By The Sea offers premier primary diagnosis treatment for psychiatric disorders as well as dual diagnosis and co-occurring issues. For a confidential assessment and more information on our programs of treatment call 1-855-464-8492.

Should I Drug Test My Loved One When They Come Home From Treatment? Addiction is a family disease. As family members of a loved one suffering from addiction, we witness the extreme ups and downs. From relapse to recovery and back again, we’ve had to witness the destruction faced in our loved one’s lives due to their inability to stop using harmful substances in abusive ways. We want them to succeed in sobriety. Our hope for treatment is that after 30 days to 6 months, they will have discovered they are capable of living sober, for a lifetime. Upon their return home after months at sober living, we want to support them in every way we can. Admittedly, we have some fears. We are afraid when we notice an old behavior return or catch note of an attitude that once troubled us. When our loved ones return home and call up old friends, we stay up worrying at night, praying that they don’t come home intoxicated. Though we are confident in our loved one’s new tools and their commitment to sobriety, we know the depths of addiction are deep. We’ve seen it fall apart before and would be heartbroken to see it happen again. Simultaneously, we don’t want to police our loved ones and make them feel like they can’t be trusted; yet, we feel we must keep an air of accountability not only for their sake, but for our own. Testing a loved one when they are home is a perfectly acceptable practice if it is done with dignity and respect. There are different ways to check for intoxication in your loved one. Some methods are more expensive and complicated than others, but can provide quicker and more accurate results. Breathalyzer Breathalyzing machines are not always cheap or effective. Though a breathalyzer is not quick to fail, it will not indicate the use of substances other than alcohol. For a loved one with alcoholism, a breathalyzer is a quick way to check blood alcohol count. Urinary Analysis Urinary analysis can be performed through a stick in test or an in cup test. Giving a loved one a urinary sample can cause problems in the result. They might predict the test ahead of time and ask someone for a urine sample to use. If necessary or called for, you can supervise their sampling. When a test comes out blurred or positive, a urinary analysis can be sent to a lab for intensive analysis. Pharmacy Grade Drug Test Drug tests can be purchased in the pharmacy to detect what, if any, kinds of substance your loved one may have been using. However, pharmacy grade drug tests are not always reliable. Avalon By The Sea is southern California’s premiere treatment center for substance use disorders and dual diagnosis mental health issues. One of the state’s only facilities licensed to treat mental health as a primary diagnosis, Avalon offers unparalleled care. For a confidential assessment or more information on our program, call 1 (888) 958-7511.

70% of adults will experience a traumatic event in their life- over 220 million people. Of those 220 million, PTSDunited.org reports, 20% of them will develop PTSD as a result. PTSD, post-traumatic stress disorder, affects 8% of Americans at any given time, according to the website. That percentage of people, they compare, is equal to the population of Texas. Post-traumatic stress disorder is a rare development in response to trauma. Mistakenly, people assume that trauma is followed by the development of PTSD. While people can have aggravated emotional responses to trauma that may look similar to PTSD, it isn’t PTSD itself. Symptoms of PTSD include

You’ve heard it described in different ways. There’s a statistical chance you’ve experienced it. Some say they can hear their brains powering off and witness their bodies dying. Others say they float in the corner of the room, watching their bodies from afar as their souls have left. According to the CDC, the Center for Disease Control, “Since 2000, the rate of deaths from drug overdoses has increased 137%.” Not every overdose results in death. Many come back for a second, third, fourth, or multiple times chance at life. Experiencing temporary death or a close interaction with it can leave a permanent mark. Near death experiences have been studied within a range of scientific disciplines. From psychology to neurology, scientists are fascinated by the before, during, and after effects of a near death experience. A universal experience of near death involves two scenarios: the floating in the corner of the room or seeing the body from above scenario and witnessing the ubiquitous “light at the end of the tunnel” scenario. Science has an answer for both. Seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, writes NDE survivor JR Thorpe, “appears to be a product of restricted oxygen flow to the eye.” As a whole, out of body experiences “seem to involve confusion in the right temporoparietal junction in the brain; stress hormones released in a traumatic moment may stimulate emotional memories…” Many feel that these near death experiences have a spiritual component and end up in spiritual transformation. One bad overdose that results in one good spiritual experience is not always enough to convince someone to get sober. There are after effects of a near death experience through overdose that can last. Recovering addicts and alcoholics have recalled waking up from an overdose and wondering why they were still alive. Referred to as “survivor’s guilt”, some feel burdened by what they have woken up to when they rise from their overdose. Still addicted, still in pain, still lost, they are left to reconcile with the life they left for a period of time. An idea of deservedness makes survivor’s guilt conflicting for alcoholics and addicts. Believing they deserved to die, it is hard for them to understand why they didn’t. The shame and stigma that surrounds the illnesses of alcoholism and addiction contribute to this negative effect of an overdose. Avalon By The Sea provides detox and treatment for addicts and alcoholics seeking recovery. Certified for dual diagnosis treatment, Avalon is able to provide comprehensive treatment by concurrently treating co-occurring mental health disorders. For a confidential assessment and more information about our programs, call 1-855-464-8492.

Should I Be Fighting Mental Health Stigma? NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness created a list of nine suggestions for fighting mental health stigma. Here we will discuss 7 of the ways you can fight mental health stigma every day. There are no requirements or certifications for being an advocate to someone with a mental health issue. Mental illness does not make someone different or less deserving of a quality life, fair treatment, or respect. Stand up for your loved one today, and people all over the world living through mental illness.

Recovery is a beautiful and miraculous process. Over the course of just a few months, family members can watch their loved one transform from the picture of desperation to an example of hope. Through recovery, people learn how to change their lives, live differently, and find new meaning. Recovery is not easy in the beginning. Indeed, life is not always easy. Living without the proper coping mechanisms can make life feel like an endless struggle. For many, the ability to get through that struggle doesn’t seem to come. They don’t practice using the tools they’ve been given. Most problematically, they lose their sense of meaning in continuing to try. One of the gifts of recovery is gaining new friends. Growing up in a fellowship surrounded by peers who are in the same phase of recovery is an unparalleled experience. Tragically, one of the realities of recovery is this: not everyone makes it. Drug overdose and death related to alcoholism occurs every single day. A consideration portion of those lives lost are people who were recently in treatment or have been in recovery at some point in their lives. For a loved one in the treatment process or living a new life of recovery, losing close friends and acquaintances is an unfortunate part. What Comes Up Losing a friend to a shared illness is deeply unsettling. When your loved one’s friend passes from the disease of addiction, your loved one will be reminded of how serious recovery needs to be taken. What it is that causes one person to relapse but inspires another to stay sober is a mystery. Some call it luck while others call it willingness. Remind your loved one they are doing a magnificent job in their program. Tell them how inspired you are by their dedication to their sobriety and about your faith in their ability to maintain lifelong recovery. How to be supportive The truth is, unless you are in recovery from addiction as well, there is no way for you to know. Working through treatment to gain a better understanding of oneself so as not to relapse and potentially die and alcoholic or addicted death is a unique journey. Support your loved one by honestly telling them you can’t imagine what they’re going through. You have, likely, lost someone in your life before. Show sympathy and compassion to your loved one by letting them know the pain of grief is universal. Offer to take them to sober support meetings, accompany them to services, and be available to talk whenever they need. Avalon By The Sea offers aftercare and an alumni program to graduates as a way to keep in touch and stay supported. Ongoing accountability through program participation helps ensure long term sobriety. For more information on our long term methods of care, call 1 (888) 958-7511.

Should you stay in contact with an ex-partner when entering treatment for mental health or substance use disorder issues? For most the immediate answer is a resounding, “NO.” Many come to terms with their need for treatment on the tail ends of a recently ended or ending relationship. Different mental health disorders can treat relationships in different ways. From codependency, to dependency, to avoidance, to abuse, relationships can cause both positive and negative effects. Treatment is a time to focus on taking care of yourself and primarily your relationship with yourself. A relationship with a partner might be over for good. Treatment is the perfect time to work with individual and group therapists to process the breakup and relationship. Treatment is not the time to try and focus on getting back together with someone who is unhealthy, abusive, or encouraging of you to continue using drugs and alcohol. Once cell phone privileges are restored, it can be tempting to engage in “exting”. Exting is texting an ex-partner for a myriad of reasons. Before pressing send, try this mindfulness practice to check your motives. Pause. Close your eyes. Breathe. Before doing anything, take a moment to center and ground yourself in the present moment. It’s easy to get swept up in nostalgia for the past or desires for the future. Finding yourself in the present moment will help you better analyze what your true initiative is for reaching out to your ex-partner. Do A Self-Check. Ask yourself, am I feeling lonely? Am I uncomfortable because I am feeling lonely? What are my expectations for my ex-partner’s response? Am I expecting the to make me feel better? If you are in a new relationship, or even examining the status of your new relationship with yourself ask how that relationship is going. A struggle might indicate why you’d seek out something familiar. Evaluate Their Life. Have they moved on? If they are in a new relationship has it gotten serious? When your relationship ended, did they make it clear you weren’t to speak again? Have all your physical needs been settled (i.e. separating of stuff, paperwork, etc.)? Would it be disruptive to their lives to start communicating with them? Some relationships need mending. For relationships that haven’t ended, couples counseling and relationship counseling can be beneficial. When one partner enters treatment, the other often enters their own kind of recovery. Together, through emotional, spiritual, and therapeutic work, a whole new relationship can be born. Avalon By The Sea offers relationship and couples therapy as part of both our mental health and substance use disorder treatment programs. Getting over a relationship and getting through a relationship are both hard challenges to overcome alone. Our trained and qualified staff provide evidence based therapy methods for working with couples and helping you build a new relationship with You. Call us today for a confidential assessment and more information on our treatment programs, 1-855-464-8492.

Music is arguably one of the best non prescription medications in the world. We identify with the sounds, the words, the tempos. Music speaks a language that is recognized from the very cellular makeup of our being. We listen for what we like in music. Often, we escape. Music is listened to most often as a whole, rather than for its individual parts. The brain is relatively lazy, not paying attention to what it doesn’t have to. However, bringing mindfulness into music listening can create a whole new experience. Here are some tips for mindful music listening

How Do I Know If My Loved One Is Using Kratom? Kratom is not a new substance, but its mention in the treatment industry for substance use disorders is recently popular. What is Kratom? Kratom is a naturally occurring plant used as a remedy for pain. Similar to coffee, Kratom has properties similar to opioids and stimulants. Kratom can be taken in pill form. Popularly, kratom has been used in beverages meant for extra energy or for relaxation. Why is Kratom So Controversial? Making the adjustment to total abstinence in sobriety is hard for someone who has been chemically dependent on mind altering substances for many years. Dealing with cravings or symptoms of withdrawal in early recovery can lead many to finding a replacement or substitute substance. Though Kratom is currently being tested and advocated for in opioid treatment, many others are suggesting it acts the same and is harmful for sobriety. Does Using Kratom Count As A Relapse? Kratom has not yet been scheduled as an illegal substance in the United States. Typically, any Schedule I or II drugs are considered relapse drugs, or illicit drugs of choice which have the potential for abuse. Kratom is not considered a primary drug of choice, though it is being compared to medically assisted treatment drugs like suboxone. Due to the side effects of Kratom, which are similar to opioids, Kratom is being tested for in treatment facilities and frequently considered a relapse. What are the Signs of Kratom Use? Kratom can produce effects similar to stimulants and opioids. Kratom in occasional doses will not cause signs of use outside of stimulation and/or relaxation. If someone is abusing kratom frequently in high doses can cause rapid weight loss, tremors, and even psychosis. The most important and telling sign of Kratom use is symptoms of withdrawal. Withdrawal from Kratom can be indicated by:

Therapy doesn’t help everyone. For some, taking action is more effective than words. For others, “talking it out” is the most beneficial practice. Pharmaceutical treatments like anti anxiety medications can help in staving off symptoms; unfortunately, they are not preventative treatments. Therapeutic methods are evidence-based, meaning they have been found evident to effectively prevent the onset of anxiety. The work doesn’t end in the therapist’s office or when you leave the didactic lecture in treatment. Evidence based treatment methods require daily practice and committed work. Doing the work provided by therapeutic methods is more than emotional, it is neurobiological. Through incremental changes on a daily basis, you can actually reprogram the way your brain functions, including anxious reactions. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy CBT has been a highly acclaimed practice for mental health recovery treatment since its foundation in the 1980’s. How CBT works is explained in its name. Seeking transform cognitive activity and function, CBT is a process of noticing one’s thoughts and taking action to reframe them or repurpose them. For an anxious thinker who is usually in a doomsday cycle of thinking this can be incredibly beneficial. Watching your own cognitive behavior, you learn to notice the onset of anxiety, eventually being able to pinpoint the triggers which cause it. Anxiety is full of assumptions, usually assumptions indicating the worst. Through CBT you are able to change the directions of those thoughts from hopeless to hopeful. Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction Mindfulness and cognitive behavioral therapy are similar in that both include the noticing of thoughts in order to change them. While CBT takes a more proactive approach to evaluating and changing thought processes, MBSR is simply about noticing the thought. When anxiety gets going, it can feel like it’s running a thousand feet per second. Feeling and thinking so much at such a rapid pace can be overwhelming. Feeling out of control of one’s own thoughts only makes anxiety worse. Acknowledging each thought or even each stream of thought as just that- thought- helps create calm. Separating fact from fiction, perception from the possible, MBSR helps to see each thought as a passing experience rather than a defining realization. Anxiety disorders can feel like being on a train with no breaks. Learning to manage your emotions and thinking is just one part of recovery for mental health. Avalon By The Sea of Malibu is one of California’s premiere treatment centers offering mental health treatment for primary psychiatric diagnoses. Our comprehensive program combines therapeutic methods with mindfulness methods and more. For a confidential and professional assessment, call 1-855-464-8492.

Recovery is a lifelong process. Though some may consider themselves “recovered” recovery is a term that is fluid in time. Meaning, no matter how much sober time you have, you are always in recovery. Getting through the beginning phases of recovery, often called “early recovery”, is the most challenging part. Within just weeks of your last drink or drug, or mental health episode, the memories are still fresh. For addicts and alcoholics suffering from substance abuse, their bodies will still be chemically dependent upon drugs and alcohol. Going through withdrawals, surviving detox, and learning to manage the cravings all make for a vulnerable time. The first few weeks of recovery from drug and alcohol addiction are usually the highest risk for relapse. For those entering recovery for mental health and psychiatric issues, the early recovery stage is also high risk. Medication is just starting to help with stabilization and it can be hard to adjust to a new way of life. Recovery, for everyone involved is possible. However, it isn’t always easy. Recovery takes commitment, work, willingness and open-mindedness. Follow some of these suggestions as extra inspiration and guidance: Positive Affirmations Thinking positively has been scientifically proven to change the way we think. Brains are very sensitive and easily influenced. The brain is actually trained to notice and pay more attention to negativity than positivity. Pushing positive thinking isn’t always effective. Integrating daily positive practices is. Start each day with a positive affirmation and hold onto it throughout the day. By bedtime, reflect on how that positive affirmation came true or was present throughout the day. Set Realistic Goals In recovery, it is all about “progress not perfection”. Perfect is an illusion and an unobtainable goal. Rather than trying to do everything perfectly all at once, settle for small, tangible goals every day. Small goals equal small rewards. Overtime, they can become habits and positive parts of a routine. Try setting a goal to make the bed, practice good hygiene, and eating enough food. Be Graceful Graceful doesn’t mean swooshing through life like a ballerina. Living with grace means living without entitlement. Sometimes, recovery can evoke a sense of entitlement. Looking down upon the peers and staff members supporting a treatment program, it is easy to expect the work to be done by someone else. Rather than assign responsibility, take accountability on face forward. Nestled in the seaside cliffs of iconic Malibu, Avalon welcomes substance abuse and mental health patients to our two facilities. One of the only treatment centers to offer mental health and psychiatric issue treatment as a primary diagnosis, Avalon provides a luxury and private setting to addressing each individualized need. For more information on our programs of treatment for dual-diagnosis and co-occurring issues, call 1-888-958-7511.

Depression is a leading mental health condition globally. The World Health Organization estimates 350 million people are affected by depression. Depression is more than the average case of sadness or even grief. Enduring symptoms of low emotional states can lead to health problems, substance abuse, and in extreme cases, suicide. 800,000 people die from suicide worldwide each year. Depression is a leading cause. In some countries, WHO reports, less than 10% of those affected by Depression receive any treatment for it. Many cases of depression are treated with a combination of psychotherapy and pharmaceutical treatment. SSRIs and antidepressants are leading methods for pharmaceutical treatment of depression. However, each case of depression is incredibly unique. So far there is not one pill to cure all depression. Depression could be seen as a worldwide public mental health epidemic. For the hundreds of millions suffering around the world there are only few treatment methods available. In response, the scientific community is dedicated to finding new and effective methods for treating depression- some of which might seem out of the box. Recent years have seen claims for using psychoactive drugs to treat depression. MDMA, also known as ecstasy, is a club drug known for heightening sensations, creating a state of euphoria, and enhancing feelings of happiness as well as love. The FDA has hinted at a prescription grade MDMA to be available for public use in the near future, but developments have not been reported to have continued thus far. When psychedelic drugs were taking the world by storm in the 1960’s, doctors saw positive results in the use of psilocybin, also known as “magic mushrooms”. In controlled doses and under controlled conditions, doctors can use the “mind opening” drugs to help depressed patients experience the world in a different way. Most recently, doctors are claiming that Ketamine might be an effective treatment for depression. Popular in asian countries, especially in the nightclub scene, ketamine is a dissociative drug. Falling into the “k-hole”, recreational users of the drugs experience a detachment from their physical and psychological selves. Ketamine has “basically revolutionized how we think about depression,” claims Christine Denny, an assistant professor of psychiatry at Columbia University in an interview with Business Insider. Rather than using ketamine to directly treat depression, it is being used as a preventative treatment. States the article, “protecting against depression or potentially stopping other stress-related disorders in the first place is a whole new thing and could have profound, long-lasting effects.” Avalon By The Sea is one of California’s only treatment facilities licensed to treat psychiatric mental health disorders as a primary diagnosis. Providing exceptional quality care, Avalon provides comprehensive treatment in a luxury and relaxing environment. For a confidential and professional assessment and more information on our programs of treatment, please call 1-855-464-8492.