Ten years after the passing of legislation requiring insurance companies to cover behavioral and mental health issues like they cover physical health conditions, a new study shows that overall treatment for mental illness and substance abuse issues have risen significantly. According to a new analysis of individual procedures or services covered by private insurance companies…
ReadLast week, actor, director, screenwriter, and two-time Oscar winner, Ben Affleck revealed to the world he has completed treatment for alcohol addiction in a post to fans on Facebook. I have completed treatment for alcohol addiction; something I've dealt with in the past and will continue to confront. … Posted by Ben Affleck on Tuesday, March…
ReadOpioid addictions are hitting Oklahoma hard, but a new implantable device seeks to help make treatment and recovery for those who are addicted to prescription painkillers or heroin. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) just approved an implantable version of the new medication, Probuphine, which is a first of its kind treatment for opioid addiction.…
ReadSo many of Scott Weiland’s lyrics are embedded in my psyche. It probably has something to do with the age that I was when I first heard phrases like: “Leavin on a Southern train only yesterday you lied promises of what I seemed to be only watched the time go by” and “Driving faster in…
ReadNew research published in the journal Neuron may give inside to why drug treatments for addiction and depression are ineffective for some individuals while working on others. Researchers from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis say they believe the inconsistent effect is associated with the brain’s reward and aversion pathways. After observing mice,…
ReadLast week, I watched the documentary, “I Am Chris Farley,” which was mostly about Farley’s rise to fame and his brilliant comedic talent. As I watched and laughed at the now classic Saturday Night Live clips, I found myself longing for a different ending. The cloud over it was the knowledge that his life came…
ReadDr. Ruwan Jayatunge has contributed several articles to our blog, NeuroNotes, on traumaticbraininjury.net. Dr. Jayatunge’s most recent article, “Meditation – an Effective Treatment Mode for Substance Use Disorders,” is focused on the treatment of substance abuse, and this is a type of treatment we provide on our behavioral health unit at Brookhaven Hospital. Meditation practice can…
ReadNew research published in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research shows criminal offenders with alcohol problems who enter an alcohol treatment program as part of their sentence are drastically less likely to be charged or convicted of another crime during the 12 months following their treatment. The researchers from Plymouth University in the U.K.…
ReadSubstance abuse is becoming a serious problem among the elderly. Recent estimates say nearly three million Americans aged 55 and older live with alcohol abuse and the number is expected to double by 2020. Meanwhile, drug abuse in adults over 50 has more than doubled between 2002 and 2013. It is commonly believed substance abuse…
ReadA study by researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital and the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania could hugely improve treatment for cocaine addiction, as it claims to have found a potential target which would greatly improve treatment efficacy. Their findings, published in Molecular Psychiatry, show evidence that changing a single amino acid…
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