Tag Archives: Behavioral addiction

Behavioral Addiction and Brain Function

Gambling addiction treatment restores sanity

February 19, 2016

Gambling addiction treatment eliminates the silent killer: Is it the greatest behavioral addiction?

Gambling addiction

Gambling addiction treatment is proving lasting solutions to all gambling addiction related problems. Therefore move fast and take action now

The availability of gambling addiction treatment is to primarily assist members of the society who are suffer from a gambling problem also known as compulsive gambling. Even though some may overlook at this problem, it has been established that the support, care and resources provided during and after treatment help direct victims to overcome and get their lives back on track. This is what experts at AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center under the able leadership of doctor Dalal Akoury does best. In fact for more than two decades of professionalism in delivering quality and real time addiction treatment, millions across the globe have registered positive testimonies and feed backs that can only act as a motivation to the team of experts under doctor Akoury’s care to continue in delivering health back to those who desperately needs it. You can also become part of the beneficiaries of this noble course by scheduling for an appointment with her (doctor Akoury) today. In the meantime let continue informing you about the gambling addiction treatment and how this single act can eliminate one of the silent killers of our time behavioral addiction.

Like we have mentioned, gambling is commonly referred to as the “silent addiction” or the “silent killer”. This baptism is given because the addiction in many instances goes unnoticed for a long period of time thereby causing great financial and emotional harm before anyone including the victims themselves realizes that it’s a problem to be addressed. Because of the individual uniqueness in this addiction, when it comes to treatment and recovery from gambling addiction so many different means and methods of care are administered to assist and correct those unique needs and to eliminate the suffering and tremendous burden that are associated with gambling addiction off the shoulders of direct victims. Doctor Akoury is registering that once one is addicted to gambling, great denial sets foot in making it very difficult for gamblers to gain courage of seeking for help. It therefore means that where we can prevent we should by all means however if you or any of your loved ones are already struggling with gambling, help is just a phone call (843 213 1480) away.

Gambling addiction treatment eliminates the silent killer: Appreciating the need for gambling addiction treatment

Gamblers are very secretive and sometimes it becomes very difficult to know in the first place if truly they are struggling with this addiction. Because there is a lot of masking and downplaying the whole situation we have to live with this problem for quite sometimes before it is clearly revealed to us. However according to the US National Library OF Medicine a few signs have been established that can indicate the need for gambling addiction treatment. Those signs may include the following:

  • If the individual is defensive about his or her gambling activities
  • If the individual runs out of money or is secretive about money
  • Borrowing to gamble
  • Taking drastic measures in order to fund gambling
  • Depression or altered mood when not gambling
  • Increased happiness when gambling
  • Suicidal thoughts

Gambling addiction treatment eliminates the silent killer: Abstinence from gambling

One of the best ways of stopping gambling addiction is abstinence. This would have been the best if victims would be faithful to keep the promise but it is not a popular one because keeping the promise has been a serious hurdle. Because of this challenge it has become necessary that proper treatment be administered to overcoming gambling addiction for the following reasons:

  • Overtime the gambler will develop cravings or urges to gamble and will often resort to gambling to control these feelings. Treatment will address this.
  • The gambling will then lead to feelings of depression because the individual feels as if they have been defeated and this may result in relapsing against their own promise to themselves not to gamble.
  • These feelings, of depression and defeat, will usually lead to increased gambling and the cycle continues.

Gambling addiction treatment eliminates the silent killer: Types of Gambling Addiction Treatment

Ideally when it comes to gambling addiction treatment, in most cases treatment will consist of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) in most of the health facilities whether inpatient or outpatient. These treatment methods focus on the total transformation of the patient from the unhealthy gambling thoughts and behaviors into rational, healthy thought processes and behaviors. With this the gamblers are able to learn new and effective strategies of defeating the urge to gamble, how to control all the triggers that motivates them into gambling and finding solutions to the problems caused by their gambling addiction. The following are therefore some of the types of treatment common for those who suffer from gambling addiction:

Finally even as you consider taking appropriate action towards this problem, it is important to note that AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center and Gamblers Anonymous are some of the best support group that have for several decades have helped millions globally to be free from their gambling addiction by way of enabling sustainable ways of remaining on the direct path of continued abstinence from gambling through peer support. The groups use 12-step recovery methods similar to those which are outlined by Alcoholics Anonymous for the treatment of alcohol addiction among other relevant treatment methods. If you or any of your loved ones is showing signs of gambling addiction, you can help them by scheduling for an appointment with doctor Dalal Akoury today for the commencement of your journey to total gambling addiction recovery. Waste no time and get your life back on truck with real committed professionals.

http://regenerativepotential.com/integrativeaddictionconference/

 

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internet_addiction

The Integrative Approach to Behavioral Addiction

February 15, 2016

Introducing the Integrative Approach to Behavioral Addiction

Behavioral Addictions:Addictions can come in many forms. For many, it is harder to not eat that cheeseburger than it is to not smoke that cigarette or drink that beer. For others it may be harder to not consistently use sex as a therapy. Yet and still, others may have the hardest time not placing a bet on their favorite prizefighter. Regardless of the category, the person may or may not fall under these three areas constitute behavioral addictions. The upcoming Integrative Addiction Conference being held in Austin, Texas covers these topics and many others.

behavioral AddictionThere are a number of ways to potentially treat behavioral addictions. Some approaches may look to study extensively the genetics of the person and then decide the best approach to treatment that way. Others may focus on sociological and/or psychological factors. In essence, the distinction being made here is that of nature versus nurture. However, much like the great philosopher Aristotle said, the best approach to a person’s behavior would be one that understands thoroughly not one or the other, but rather, both of the areas. It is not nature or nurture – it is nature and nurture. The true cultivation of a human being and their habits is derived from both the people we were born as, as well as from the things we learn and the habits we acquire from our teachers and peers. These are simplifications alluding to the age old anthropological debate, but this should be understood as a mere analogy. An integrative approach to behavioral addiction then, is one that takes in to consideration both genetic or neurological data while also considering an individual’s unique social and psychological environment.

 Check out the Integrative Addiction Conference Being Held In Austin, Texas

 Modern medicine, then, coupled with psychological treatment should both play a role in a successful integrative approach to behavioral addiction. In fact, this traditional dichotomy, even when combined, is still outdated. It really should not stop there. An integrative approach to behavioral addiction can be taken in the most literal of terms. Thus a successful integrative approach to behavioral addiction should be multifaceted, incorporating a number or potential treatment styles. According to the integrated approach philosophy this is essential to maintain function and successfully treat addiction and recovery. The ideal therapy should incorporate a number of approaches such as neurological, social, communal, psychological, or familial factors. This is the basic idea behind the integrative approach to behavioral addiction.

The multifaceted and nuanced approach may bother some used to more cut and dry or traditional methods and approaches to behavioral therapy, but these integrated methods to not exist without justification. Quantitative and qualitative data informs such approaches. As human beings, we most often want to simplify things or put them in categories for our own convenience. In many instances, the underlying reality operating before us that is life is actually more complex than our natural capacities or inclinations want it to be.

For this reason, there is a general trend across various disciplines, academic and professional, that look to incorporate the most multifaceted approaches possible. Rather than relying only on medical data to provide research on depression pills, psychological information is understood to create a more informed outlook. Rather than looking only to the field of Archaeology to understand a given artifact, the field of History is referenced to better understand the social significance of the artifact. As opposed to only referencing empirical physical sciences and quantifier logic to write a contemporary analytic philosophy paper, the poetry of Goethe is referenced and adds perspective to a given metaphysics or epistemology by separating from the leaves and branches and showing us the trees and forest. The general professional and academic trend then is one of being multidiscipline, or multifaceted in approach. The former dichotomies of treatment then should no longer bind us and in fact, most evidence tends to point against them, at least in the most absolute and confining sense of the dichotomy.

Behavioral addiction

What we do know, however, is that the decisions that we make on a daily basis indubitably change the person who we become. This is why a more multifaceted and integrated approach is most likely the most logically sound and effective one. It allows us to take into consideration all of the individual’s unique factors when formulating a treatment plan. If someone is struggling greatly with food, it is important not only what his or her genetic predisposition is, but also what available food is around their everyday environment. Even further, why is it the case that this food is what is available? What are the current socio/economic conditions of the area the person is in? What other hurdles might be getting in the way or discouraging recovery? If there are any, what are the negative influences? Are they people? Are they activities? These are all potential things to consider if we want to have an integrated approach to behavioral addiction.

Similar questions (yet specific to each addiction) should be asked for both gambling and sex addictions as well. The complex physical, psychological, and social factors tend to determine an individual’s behavior. Because of this, an integrated approach to treating these addictive behaviors is a potentially successful and complete one.

The best way to learn all about the integrated approach to behavioral addiction is to attend the upcoming Integrative Addiction Conference being held in Austin, Texas.

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Behavioral Addiction and Brain Function

Behavioral Addiction and Brain Function

February 12, 2016

Understanding Behavioral Addiction and Brain Function

Addictive behavior is a compulsion to repeat a rewarding non-drug related behavior repeatedly despite any consequences to the person’s physical, social, financial or mental well-being.  There are genetic factors involved here. The gene transcription factor known as ΔFosB has been identified as being one of the critical factors in the development of addictive states in both behavioral and drug related addictive behaviors.  Overexpression of this gene in the nucleus accumbens is both necessary and sufficient for the neural adaptations seen in addictive behaviors and drug addicts. A recent study suggested a cross-sensitization effect between drug-related behaviors and a natural reward which was mediated by ΔfosB. Besides this increased expression of  ΔfosB, there are many other similarities in the neurobiology of behavioral/drug addictions. 

One of the most important discoveries in the diagnosis and treatment of addictions is the recognition of the drug-based reinforcement and, more importantly, the reward based learning process. There are several structures within the brain that are important in the conditioning process of behavioral addiction. These are called sub-cortical structures.  These sub-cortical structures taken together are called the reward system.  This reward system is something that we all have—it is a necessary survival process, much like digestion. 

Behavioral Addiction and Brain Function

One system being subjected to major study is the amygdala.  The amygdala is a sub-cortical structure that is involved in emotional significance and associated learning.  Research shows that dopamine-sensitive projections from the ventral tegmental area make possible a motivational or learned association with a specific behavior. This means that dopamine neurons play a significant role in the learning and sustaining of many acquired behaviors. 

Three stages 

There are three stages to the dopamine reward system:

  • the initial burst of dopamine
  • triggering of behavior
  • further, impact on the behavior

This means that the most common result of dopamine-based learning is to create addictive properties associated with certain behaviors. The way it works is that once the brain is electrically stimulated (possibly through the addictive behavior), there is a burst of dopamine.  This burst of dopamine further triggers the behavior involved, which encourages these already-stimulated neurons to increase the stimuli.  Once the behavior is triggered, it is very difficult to work away from the dopamine reward system. 

The other side of this equation is the newly found idea that the human brain can anticipate rewards, and can be triggered by the brain’s early detectors of the reward, and can start triggering the behavior that starts the dopamine reward system.  In some cases, it may lead to issues due to error.  These errors can be used as teaching signals to create complex behavior tasks over time. 

Diagnosis 

At the time this article was written, the diagnostic models used do not have the necessary standards to identify behaviors as addictions in a clinical setting. Behavioral addictions have been proposed as a new class of diagnosis in the DM-5, but the only category included in this class is gambling addiction. Internet gaming addiction has been proposed in the appendix as a condition for further study, but this does not help in the diagnosis and treatment of other behavioral addictions such as sex addiction, or the various types of eating addictions. 

Behavioral addictions are sometimes called impulse-control disorders.  These disorders, which include gambling, consumption of alcohol, sex addiction (not limited to but including the use of pornography and sexual intercourse) eating disorders, use of computers and video games, use of the internet, shopping, exercise and stealing (shoplifting) are increasingly recognized as being treatable addictions.

Brain Function

 In August of 2011, the American Society of Addictive Medicine issued the statement that defined all addictions regarding brain changes.  Their statement read in part, “Addiction is a primary, chronic disease of brain reward, memory, motivation, and related circuitry.”  This means that all addictions are potentially susceptible to treatment with pharmaceuticals.

 This is the first time that the American Society of Addictive Medicine has taken the position that substance abuse is not just about substance dependence.  It is about how the brain function of addicts differs from the brain function of non-addicts.  The emphasis here is not on the external factors that act on the reward system but on the system itself.  Food, sexual behaviors, shoplifting, and even chronic hair-pulling can all be linked to this “pathological pursuit of rewards” talked about in this new definition of addiction.

 The thing is, we all have this reward system.  It is a survival mechanism, creating the desire for things that offer satisfaction, like food and sex.  However, in a healthy person, there is a feedback system that limits our consumption.  In an addict, these feedback systems seem to either be absent or, in fact, dysfunctional to the point that instead of “enough” the addict wants “more”.  This is what leads to the unhealthy pursuit of these items. So anyone who has one addiction is vulnerable to others, but this also points to the possible development of effective treatment for addictions that have historically been hard to manage.

Understanding Behavioral Addiction and Brain Function

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Explaining Process Addiction

July 12, 2014

Does Process addiction Exist?

What is process addiction? This refers to a compulsive behavior that involves an action which on its own is not physically addictive but the person becomes dependent upon it. These behaviors may include: – love, sex, gambling, shopping, internet etc. This is a behavioral addiction and it doesn’t include alcohol or drug addiction.

Process addiction is mostly overlooked but it can be destructive to the victim. When a person is a victim of a process addiction, he/she feels severe coercion to engage in the activity repeatedly, sometimes even at the expense of their own physical, mental, relational or financial wellbeing.

Process Addiction

Which are some examples of these process addiction activities?

The list of activities which result into process addiction is very long since it is normally based on the activities that the individual regularly undertakes. When the activities are done repeatedly for a long period of time, there develops what can be called a habit in doing the activity. The person then becomes addicted with the activity over time and it becomes almost impossible to do without the activity. Some of the common ones are: – love, sexual activity, eating, shopping, gambling, watching pornography, mention them.

From this list though there are two behaviors which have proven to be outstanding. These are sexual addiction and pathological gambling.

·         Sex addiction

Sex addiction comes with recurring obsession to engage in sexual activity. A victim of this kind of addiction may end up sleeping with multiple partners over a short period of time and sometimes even forego personal duties in favor of sexual indulgence.

What are the symptoms of sex addiction?

Some of the indicator of a person addicted with sex may include excessive engagement in sexual acuities such as, pornography, masturbation and also behaviors like fetishism, exhibitionism and prurience.

  • Pathological gambling

Gambling is an activity that many of us engage into in variety of ways. This refers to any activity that someone engages with an expectation of monetary or material gain. The activity normally has probabilities and the person gambling accepts chances of losing or winning. An example of such events is a gamble on the results of a given football match e.g. World cup finals. The persons gambling predicts the result and places a valued item or some amount of money which is supposed to gain profit in the event of a win and in the opposite, it is lost altogether.

Even though these events we sometimes to for fun or looking for gain, when done for a long period they may turn out addictive. The person may increase the habit to a point of financial distress and often sacrificing belongings and time trying to get more money and consequently gamble it.

Which are the symptoms of behavioral addiction?

Process AddictionAddiction is usually difficult to spot. This is because different people engage into different activities during their free time in the form of hobbies. This makes it difficult to tell who is an addict of a given activity. However, people who are addicted to an activity will want to do it repeatedly, despite the damaging consequences which may come with the event.

The following are some of indicators of a behavioral addicted person:-

  • The person exhibits repetitive habits which persist or are continued despite their significant negative consequences.
  • The person experiences a feeling of loneliness, depression, anxiety and even sometimes highly stressed.
  • Another indicator of a behavioral addict is taking of increasingly big risks. For instance, the person may bet on the result of an event at 5dollars, the results goes contrary and the person bet again and again without a win but not seeming to give up even when the current bet is the only amount the person has as balance at that given time. This kind of addiction makes the person think of gambling without the losses that it comes with while the person unsuccessfully betting.
  • The addicts of behavioral addiction face difficulty in controlling impulses in general. These people follow their urge without having to reason out.
  • The victims of behavioral addiction have difficulty in sustaining relationships. This is particularly the case with the sex addicts. These people cannot control their sexual urges and thus they end up in uncontrolled sexual activities and normally with many different people. This makes it difficult for them to have a long term relationship due to un-trustworthiness (though they cannot control it) or in the event that the partner cannot withstand the frequent sex requirements of such persons.
  • Finally, the behavioral addicts will always want to hide or lie about their impulsive habits.

Treatment of behavioral addiction

In most cases, due to the nature of behavioral addiction the appropriate treatment is psychotherapy. Some times this therapy may need to be accompanied by some medication. It is common that the occurrence of behavioral addiction may be accompanied by likes of mood loss, anxiety or sometimes impulse control disorders. In such cases, treating all these conditions concurrently can relieve the symptoms of both.

Now we have seen the various symptoms of behavioral addiction. Are you in the category of victims of the same or do you of a person suffering from behavioral addiction like gambling and sex addiction? Meet professionals who will solve your problem at AWAREmed.

Does Process addiction Exist?

 

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Stress and Addiction: Where’s the connection?

June 28, 2014

Relationship between Stress and Addiction

Addiction and stressDid you know that excessive stress could lead one to addiction? What is stress and what is addiction and how are they related to each other? Well, I will come to that later in my next paragraph. First and foremost, let’s talk about stress. In everyone’s life, one undergoes or experiences some stress of some kind. With the fast moving life of today one tends to find him or herself always trying to cope up especially since everything and everyone has evolved really fast for the past ten years or so. All this added up together can lead to one easily falling into what we call stress. Did you know that stress can also come from family, friends and peer pressure? These three elements especially the latter has caused lots of pressure in the world today that has been dubbed ‘digital’.

Now let us talk about what stress and addictions are. Well, for starters, stress is some kind of strain or tension felt when one is experiencing environmental, work or even family challenge. This could be as a result of death of a child, a lover and even of a close friend or relative, divorce, peer pressure and financial matters. To mention but a few. Addiction on the other hand is when one is devoted to something that could either be drug related or just devotion to something of some kind. Someone with an addiction problem always have the strong urge and need to always have that thing that they are addicted to. It’s almost if not a disease of some sort and can be treated if one seeks treatment in time.

We all know that a little push is good for everybody thus a little bit of pressure is not harmful. It’s dangerous only when it goes overboard. As the saying goes, too much of something is dangerous, so it stress and pressure. If you push yourself too much you will always get into stress, trying so hard to cope in your job, family or amongst your friends and feeling that you are not meeting their standard could also push one into stress because they will always be trying to fit in. well, trying is not bad but not to an extent that it affects you or drives you into stress and depression. It’s your life we are talking about here.

So how does stress result into addiction?

It’s actually not rocket science to relate the two. Though not all stress will always catapult into addiction, most of them usually do. Infect stress and addiction are almost synonymous. Synonymous in the fact that you can rarely get one without the other. Most or all individuals have their own ways of dealing with different kinds of stress in different ways. Some people will just need to take a few hours or days off from work or whatever stress is it that they are going through and it all goes away but there are some people who will turn to stronger things like alcohol, cigarettes or drugs like cocaine or heroin to relax them from the stress they are undergoing. In most countries, cigarettes and alcohol are legal so they are usually the most sort after as stress relievers. They are equally cheap, affordable and readily available.

One can start by just joining friends or relatives for a social drink over the weekend to put away or forget the stress he or she is went through during the week. It could just be an innocent get together that could start with one weekend then when you go home or is on your own, you will feel like the stress is has gone away or subsided. This trend may go on from weekends to daily because you will always seem to feel tensed during the week and after a few drinks later in the day or even on weekends you will feel better. By this time, you will have found or would thing you have a solution of getting rid of your stress. Is it me or does cigarette make a good companion of alcohol? These two go together very well just like stress and addiction. In fact, it’s almost impossible to separate the two. Most often your drink will be generously escorted with a cigarette. Some will also start with the hard stuff like heroin and cocaine.

  • Addiction

Well, remember we had mentioned earlier that addiction is too much devotion to something regardless of what it is? Now when one starts depending too much on something it becomes addiction. Please don’t get it twisted and start looking for comfort somewhere else as any form of dependency may lead to addiction. However there are many ways to know if you are addicted or headed there especially for the ones using drugs. We all know our body and can tell if there any weird changes. If you start losing weight, getting tremors then start getting worried. Honestly though, do we need to wait to experience all these and is it really worth it?

First avoid stress by always keeping away from whatever drives you into stress. It’s given that some stresses are inevitable like death or even family matters like divorce but it will help to know that we are not the only ones going through such calamities. Issues like peer pressure are avoidable. How? Simple. Keep away from anyone expecting too much from you at the expense of your health. All said and done, alcohol, cigarettes or any form of addiction will never be cure for stress.

If you fall victim of addiction from stress related causes, or suffering any form of addiction, we at New Frontier Medicine Academy.

Stress and Addiction: Where’s the connection?

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