Addiction

In February 2024, former NBA star Rex Chapman went on a publicity tour to promote It’s Hard for Me to Live with Me, an autobiography some book critics describe as a hard-hitting addiction memoir. Chapman started his career with the Charlotte Hornets, and he spent the 1990s as an explosive shooting guard with three other teams. His final seasons with the Phoenix Suns were underscored

In November 2023, two developments in the world of Hollywood celebrities dealing with the stigma of alcoholism made news headlines. Actress Jessica Simpson celebrated six years of sobriety with an Instagram post that discussed how she felt labeled and stigmatized by many people, from fans to business associates and relatives.  During the same week, mental health researchers published articles praising the work of the late Friends

Neurochemistry is a scientific field often compared to quantum physics in the sense that both generate prodigious quantities of research, but the steady flow of findings often raises more questions instead of providing absolute answers. Both fields focus on mysterious particles we can barely measure in the nanometer range. While quantum researchers scratch their heads at the complexity of the Higgs boson that somehow creates

In August 2023, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published the results of a longitudinal survey on alcohol use disorder (AUD) statistics compiled from 1999 to 2020. By evaluating information managed within the Wide-Ranging Online Data for Epidemiologic Research (WONDER) database, CDC researchers noticed the AUD gender gap is narrowing, but males still account for 58% of individuals who went through recovery, and

In the 2018 film Beautiful Boy, which is based on two poignant memoirs written by a methamphetamine addict and his father, actor Timothée Chalamet plays the role of Nic Sheff, a best-selling writer whose life now revolves around promoting mental health awareness among young people. Beautiful Boy is a heartbreaking film that ends with an uplifting title card featuring a message Sheff always mentions when

When evaluating the various therapeutic strategies for the treatment of substance abuse disorders, there’s a strong need to shift the outdated narratives of addiction as a choice or character flaw. These incorrect perceptions only succeed in creating harmful stereotypes that ignore human nature, particularly in the context of neurochemistry. Early Neurochemical Processes of Addiction Learned experiences, cultural factors, and behavioral patterns aren’t the sole foundations of addiction.

In the world of celebrities, a few couples stand out as examples of why recovering from addiction is wonderful. Hollywood actor Rob Lowe, a notorious playboy in his younger years, recently celebrated 32 years of marriage with Sheryl Berkoff, a jewelry designer whom Lowe adores for having returned to his life after his many years of alcoholism and substance abuse. Heavy metal legend Ozzy Osbourne

In 2018, an acclaimed scientific journalist and a renowned physician teamed up to publish The Addiction Spectrum: A Compassionate, Holistic Approach to Recovery, a book that was mostly written as a guide for people seeking to recover from chemical dependence. Interestingly, this book has been embraced by readers whose lives intersect with those of addicts. We’re talking about loved ones, community leaders, and concerned individuals

During a court hearing in July 2023, the son of United States President Joe Biden took the witness stand in a criminal case underscored by his struggles with substance use disorder. As part of an effort to avoid a prison sentence for lying on his tax returns and during a background check to purchase a firearm, Hunter Biden explained that his criminal behavior was underscored

In the June 2023 issue of the Journal of Addiction Medicine, researchers from the University of Washington conducted a review of studies related to managing the recovery of opioid addicts, and they concluded that the FDA guidelines for attenuating withdrawal symptoms through methadone therapy are wrong. One of the most aggravating factors in the American opioid crisis is the high level of fatal relapse, which