The first time I ever practiced yoga was 2000. I had just returned from a trip to Santa Cruz where a dude in flowing peach robes had handed me some literature on it, and it called to me like a long lost lover. I lived in Fresno and at the time,

September marks a special time in the recovery community. It’s National Recovery Month, and while we’re on the heels of International Overdose Awareness Day, Recovery Month gives us something to be grateful for. For years, people who struggle with addiction, as well as people who live in recovery, have spent

The statistics are staggering and the numbers continue to climb. According to the National Institute of Drug Abuse, 64,000 people in the U.S. died from opiate use and abuse in 2016. As reported by the Centers for Disease Control, 1,956 of those deaths occurred in N.C. Last year in Guilford

Early recovery is often described as an emotional roller coaster ride. Elation and relief can quickly turn into anger or shame as feelings come flooding back after being masked by substances for so long. Starting a recovery journal is a helpful way to make sense of these conflicting emotions. As the

Exercise plays a critical role in the health of both body and mind. As a society, we’re exercising less and the effects can be clearly seen in our collective physical state. However less noticed and understood is how exercise affects the brain. Exercising does not have to be an incredibly

Protecting your recovery at all costs must be emphasized at every stage of recovery.  Because relapse starts well before a person picks up a drink or a drug, it is essential to understand what your relapse triggers are. You may ask, “What the heck is a trigger?”  A trigger can

By David Sack, M.D. When a patient discovers that they have an illness, one of their first questions is, “How long until I get better?” In the field of addiction treatment, there is an ongoing debate about what the answer should be. Some feel the only way to instill hope for

People in recovery must be especially careful when taking any kind of over-the-counter (otc) or prescription medications. Many otc meds contain alcohol or other ingredients that could endanger their sobriety by triggering a relapse. Even physicians not familiar with addiction may prescribe meds that are not safe for the addict/alcoholic.

For preventing a relapse, it is important to recognize warning signs before the actual relapse happens. Here are five signs to look for that may help you prevent a relapse: You get complacent. Sometimes when recovery is going well, you may get too comfortable in your new state of being

HIV is a scary disease – despite the best efforts of the medical community, there is no cure, no effective vaccine and HIV therapies are expensive with significant side effects. And while we have a good understanding of the disease, it is estimated that 1 in 7 of the 1,000,000+