National Library of Medicine (NLM): Readiness To Change Questionnaire The following questionnaire is designed to identify how you personally feel about your drinking right now. Please think about your current situation and drinking habits, even if you have given up drinking completely. Read each...

As we have seen so far addiction is a complex process that includes changes that occur in the neurochemistry of the person who is addicted. During early recovery the neurological and biological effects of addiction often manifest themselves as a complex of symptoms.
These symptoms are...

Prochaska & DiClemente developed a stages of change model that identifies 5 progressive stages of change as they specifically apply to overcoming addictions. Precontemplation The stage where the inpidual is not contemplating changing any of their addictive behaviors. This stage is often...

Stages of Addiction While genetics and neurochemistry assuredly play important roles in addiction the experience of addiction from the addict’s perspective is not at the genetic or neurochemical level. The experience of addiction is progressive.
At first the inpidual may just be ...

Pharmacological Interventions So far we have seen that addiction is a complex subject that encompasses the fields of genetics and neurophysiology. Neurochemistry also plays a very significant role in addiction.
Some of the newer psychopharmacological and physical aversion approaches to...

The experiences of addiction While current research shows that genetics (see the mu-opioid blog entry) and brain physiology (see the amygdala blog entry) play an important role in addiction none of these third order factors are experienced by the inpidual's whom is addicted.
The inpidual's...

Genetic Predisposition One of the promising emerging models of addiction comes form the burgeoning field of genetic research. One of the more recent findings for example has clearly linked to the mu-opioid gene to smoking addiction, alcohol addiction, and drug addiction.
Researchers at the...

Addiction is often defined as continuing the same negative behaviors despite the consequences or the risks involved. The question is why?
Why do people continue their addictions in spite of negative consequences? The answers are not simple. One of the purposes of this blog is to explore the...