Question by afireinsidethedarkness: Books like “Go Ask Alice” & “Smack” but more adult?
I love books like go ask Alice, smack, the road of the dead, crank, ect.. but Im 20 & I would like to find more adult books that are like the ones I like.

Can anyone suggest any?
I don’t like fantasy or romance books.. I like “true” stories where people have problems that they overcome within the story.

I also don’t like old books. I never have been able to get into them.

Best answer:

Answer by Emmy
I just finished ‘Candy’.http://www.amazon.com/Candy-Novel-Addiction-Luke-Davies/dp/0345423879 Its about heroin addicts, it’s very good.

Also ‘Beauty queen’. http://www.amazon.com/Beauty-Queen-Linda-Glovach/dp/006205161X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1280854029&sr=1-1

Answer by Ace
These are definately “adult” books. Some are extremely graphic and disturbing, so if you’re used to teen and young adult books, I’m not sure if you’ll like them. But they will definatly open your eyes. And your doors of perception will be cleansed.

“Trainspotting” by Irvine Welsh. Darkly witty, the story tells of a group of hoods and their various addictions.

“Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas” by Hunter S Thompson. Gonzo journalism at its best, describes a drug and alcohol infused journey to las vegas.

“Factotum” by Charles Bukowski. Part of a series of books about one Henry Chinaski, a drunken, whoring degenerate. It’s delightfully perverse.

“Less Than Zero” by Bret Easton Ellis. Somewhat disturbing novel of sex, drugs, and nightlife.

“The Basketball Diaries” by Jim Carroll. Coming-of-age in a world filled with violence and drugs.

“Party Monster” by James St James. True story of a brutal murder in the club scene.

“Coin Locker Babies” by Ryu Murakami. Very creepy story of two boys abandoned as newborns and left for dead. Their struggle to survive involves violence, identity loss, and murder. I highly reccommend it.

“Bastard Out of Carolina” by Dorothy Allison. Tells of a girl dealing with physical and sexual abuse at the hands of her step father.

“Requiem for a Dream” by Hubert Selby Jr. The dreams of two best friends are slowly destroyed by addiction.

“Long Way Gone” by Ishmael Beah. True story of a twelve year old boy forced into the army to witness and commit atrocity. At the end of the book, he learns to overcome his severe addictions to drugs, violence, and hate.

A history of violence
It's hard for people to recognise that mental health, as well as other social problems like drug addiction, have a basis in the brain. Raine feels things are slowly beginning to change; there is increasing recognition that drug addiction is a disease …
Read more on The Star Online

Faith Leaders Issue Easter Statement on War on Drugs, Mass Incarceration …
The statement calls for repealing laws that criminalize drug possession and replacing them with policies that expand access to effective health approaches to drug use, including evidence-based drug treatment. It also calls for the elimination of …
Read more on Drug War Chronicle

The Rise of the Stealth Drone
As The Wire reported in early March, Bill Gothard, the leader of the Institute in Basic Life Principles, resigned his position in the wake of a series of accusations of alleged sexual abuse from dozens of women in the organization. IBLP, like Vision …
Read more on Daily Beast

by Joffley

Question by +: Splenda Addiction?
Ive been using the little packets of splenda alot lately now and i think im addicted to them is this good or bad?

Best answer:

Answer by Maddi
i dont think its bad
but i hate spenlda

Answer by mo_rox
I think in between.

Women, Sexual Abuse and Addiction
Dependent measures were obtained at each wave of the study and included questions about lifetime and new assault status, alcohol abuse, and drug use. Wave 1 use of drugs, but not abuse of alcohol, increased odds of new assault in the subsequent 2 …
Read more on Scientific American (blog)

Do You Have an Alcohol or Drug Problem?
Alcohol and drug use can progress into abuse and even addiction so insidiously that sometimes people do not realize that it has become a problem for them and those around them. The following self-assessment tests can help you determine whether or not …
Read more on About – News & Issues

Question by James R: What are the best medications currently available to treat PTSD?
Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome. And why are the medicatiosn you selected effective at treating it? Please, serious, informed answers only. Thanks everyone. Best answer gets 10 points.

Best answer:

Answer by bmac
There are a lot of treatment options. Some medication (it is an anxiety disorder) so some SSRI antidepressants and anti-anxiety medications can be helpful. But most helpful is intense therapy/counseling. PTSD survivors have to work THROUGH the trauma. Medication alone won’t help much.

Answer by you_me_us16
Treatment of PTSD

A National Center for PTSD Fact Sheet

This fact sheet describes elements common to many treatment modalities for PTSD, including education, exposure, exploration of feelings and beliefs, and coping-skills training. Additionally, the most common treatment modalities are discussed, including cognitive-behavioral therapy, pharmacotherapy, EMDR, group treatment, and psychodynamic treatment.

Common Components of PTSD Treatment
Treatment for PTSD typically begins with a detailed evaluation and the development of a treatment plan that meets the unique needs of the survivor. Generally, PTSD-specific treatment is begun only after the survivor has been safely removed from a crisis situation. If a survivor is still being exposed to trauma (such as ongoing domestic or community violence, abuse, or homelessness), is severely depressed or suicidal, is experiencing extreme panic or disorganized thinking, or is in need of drug or alcohol detoxification, it is important to address these crisis problems as a part of the first phase of treatment.

It is important that the first phase of treatment include educating trauma survivors and their families about how persons get PTSD, how PTSD affects survivors and their loved ones, and other problems that commonly come along with PTSD symptoms. Understanding that PTSD is a medically recognized anxiety disorder that occurs in normal individuals under extremely stressful conditions is essential for effective treatment.
Exposure to the event via imagery allows the survivor to re-experience the event in a safe, controlled environment, while also carefully examining his or her reactions and beliefs in relation to that event.
One aspect of the first treatment phase is to have the survivor examine and resolve strong feelings such as anger, shame, or guilt, which are common among survivors of trauma.
Another step in the first phase is to teach the survivor to cope with posttraumatic memories, reminders, reactions, and feelings without becoming overwhelmed or emotionally numb. Trauma memories usually do not go away entirely as a result of therapy but become manageable with the mastery of new coping skills.
Therapeutic Approaches Commonly Used to Treat PTSD:
Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) involves working with cognitions to change emotions, thoughts, and behaviors. Exposure therapy is one form of CBT that is unique to trauma treatment. It uses careful, repeated, detailed imagining of the trauma (exposure) in a safe, controlled context to help the survivor face and gain control of the fear and distress that was overwhelming during the trauma. In some cases, trauma memories or reminders can be confronted all at once (“flooding”). For other individuals or traumas, it is preferable to work up to the most severe trauma gradually by using relaxation techniques and by starting with less upsetting life stresses or by taking the trauma one piece at a time (“desensitization”).

Along with exposure, CBT for trauma includes:

· learning skills for coping with anxiety (such as breathing retraining or biofeedback) and negative thoughts (“cognitive restructuring”),

· managing anger,

· preparing for stress reactions (“stress inoculation”),

· handling future trauma symptoms,

· addressing urges to use alcohol or drugs when trauma symptoms occur (“relapse prevention”), and

· communicating and relating effectively with people (social skills or marital therapy).

Pharmacotherapy (medication) can reduce the anxiety, depression, and insomnia often experienced with PTSD, and in some cases, it may help relieve the distress and emotional numbness caused by trauma memories. Several kinds of antidepressant drugs have contributed to patient improvement in most (but not all) clinical trials, and some other classes of drugs have shown promise. At this time, no particular drug has emerged as a definitive treatment for PTSD. However, medication is clearly useful for symptom relief, which makes it possible for survivors to participate in psychotherapy.

Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) is a relatively new treatment for traumatic memories that involves elements of exposure therapy and cognitive-behavioral therapy combined with techniques (eye movements, hand taps, sounds) that create an alternation of attention back and forth across the person’s midline. While the theory and research are still evolving for this form of treatment, there is some evidence that the therapeutic element unique to EMDR, attentional alternation, may facilitate the accessing and processing of traumatic material.

Group treatment is often an ideal therapeutic setting because trauma survivors are able to share traumatic material within the safety, cohesion, and empathy provided by other survivors. As group members achieve greater understanding and resolution of their trauma, they often feel more confident and able to trust. As they discuss and share how they cope with trauma-related shame, guilt, rage, fear, doubt, and self-condemnation, they prepare themselves to focus on the present rather than the past. Telling one’s story (the “trauma narrative”) and directly facing the grief, anxiety, and guilt related to trauma enables many survivors to cope with their symptoms, memories, and other aspects of their lives.

Brief psychodynamic psychotherapy focuses on the emotional conflicts caused by the traumatic event, particularly as they relate to early life experiences. Through the retelling of the traumatic event to a calm, empathic, compassionate, and nonjudgmental therapist, the survivor achieves a greater sense of self-esteem, develops effective ways of thinking and coping, and learns to deal more successfully with intense emotions. The therapist helps the survivor identify current life situations that set off traumatic memories and worsen PTSD symptoms.

Psychiatric disorders that commonly co-occur with PTSD

Psychiatric disorders that commonly co-occur with PTSD include depression, alcohol/substance abuse, panic disorder, and other anxiety disorders. Although crises that threaten the safety of the survivor or others must be addressed first, the best treatment results are achieved when both PTSD and the other disorder(s) are treated together rather than one after the other. This is especially true for PTSD and alcohol/substance abuse.

Complex PTSD

Complex PTSD (sometimes called “Disorder of Extreme Stress”) is found among individuals who have been exposed to prolonged traumatic circumstances, especially during childhood, such as childhood sexual abuse. Developmental research is revealing that many brain and hormonal changes may occur as a result of early, prolonged trauma, and these changes contribute to difficulties with memory, learning, and regulating impulses and emotions. Combined with a disruptive, abusive home environment that does not foster healthy interaction, these brain and hormonal changes may contribute to severe behavioral difficulties (such as impulsivity, aggression, sexual acting out, eating disorders, alcohol/drug abuse, and self-destructive actions), emotional regulation difficulties (such as intense rage, depression, or panic), and mental difficulties (such as extremely scattered thoughts, dissociation, and amnesia). As adults, these individuals often are diagnosed with depressive disorders, personality disorders, or dissociative disorders. Treatment often takes much longer than with regular PTSD, may progress at a much slower rate, and requires a sensitive and structured treatment program delivered by a trauma specialist.

Janneke Sobeck: Death and denial: substance abuse in Winona
The Winona County Alliance for Substance Abuse Prevention (ASAP) is a coalition in its infancy, seeking widespread representation from various sectors of our community. Our alliance objectives are to prevent substance abuse among our youth and build …
Read more on Winona Daily News

Politicians, community members discuss heroin problem in Hudson
There was also discussion about more education and prevention programs in schools and efforts being made through the St. Croix County Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition to bring communities together to prevent substance abuse locally. For more …
Read more on River Towns

TINA GUMMERSON: Drug prevention is working
The point is drug prevention IS working. There has been an overall downward trend in alcohol and other drug use nationwide since the early '90s. However, there are still too many people using drugs and too many public health and safety problems in our …
Read more on Galesburg Register-Mail

by Phil Roeder

Question by Katie: How can you forgive someone who is not sorry for wronging you?
I have been hurt someone and they are not sorry for what they’ve done. I have tried to communicate with this person and they won’t apologize to me, and said “they’re mad” at me. I did not do anything, this person hurt me.

This person will admit to my friends that he was wrong, but won’t admit to me he was wrong. How can we reconcile this, i think its hopeless. I’ve tried to communicate with this person but I get the “silent treatment”.

Best answer:

Answer by Legandivori
Thje person is correct in that that person wants to hurt you and it is working. The best way is to forbive yourself for spending a lot of time trying to change someone from their destructive ways.

Answer by ptw1701
It’s not always easy, but in time you might find it in your heart to forgive this person for whatever he/she did. The reason this person will admit fault to others instead of you is because he/she may feel guilty. For some, its easier to admit fault to others than to admit it to the person that’s been hurt face to face.

Therapy That Confronts Trauma of Sexual Abuse Helped Teen Girls With PTSD
TUESDAY, Dec. 24, 2013 (HealthDay News) — Teen girls struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder stemming from sexual abuse do well when treated with a type of therapy that asks them to repeatedly confront their traumatic memories, according to a …
Read more on HealthDay

De Blasio's Daughter Reveals Substance Abuse
In a video released by her father's campaign team, Ms. de Blasio said she had sought treatment for her troubles, which she said worsened when she left home for college in 2012. “It made it easier, the more I drank and did drugs, to share some common …
Read more on New York Times

Prolonged exposure therapy found beneficial in treating adolescent girls with …
… of prolonged exposure therapy – in which patients revisit and recount aloud their trauma-related thoughts, feelings and situations – shows greater success than supportive counseling for treating adolescent PTSD patients who have been sexually abused.
Read more on EurekAlert (press release)

What's So Bad About Casual Drug Use?
Rather than arguing whether such figures are hypocrites (Radel voted in favor of mandatory drug testing for food-stamp beneficiaries) or debating how they should attempt damage control (he's also pledged to enter a substance-abuse program after paying …
Read more on TIME

Baku, UNICEF talk about drug trafficking in occupied territories
Azerbaijani Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the State Commission on Combating Drug Abuse and Illicit Drug Trafficking Ali Hasanov received head of the UNICEF office in Azerbaijan Mark Hereward on November 25 in the Cabinet of Ministers. Hereward …
Read more on AzerNews

Dustin Paxton Victim Recalls The Torture, The Pain And Why He Didn't Seek Help
How he says what he says is as telling as the facts the man tries to convey when he speaks. He slurs his speech, he has problems putting his thoughts together, more than a few times loses … The physical, psychological and sexual abuse he suffered at …
Read more on Huffington Post Canada