Category Archives: Willing Ways Articles

Teens & Marijuana Addiction

Teens and Marijuana Addiction

How to Spot When The Adolescent in Your Life May Have a Problem I frequently give talks about marijuana at schools. If the audience includes parents, the most common question is a variation on, “What are the signs that my kid might be abusing marijuana?” Kevin P. Hill, M.D., M.H.S., is an assistant professor of psychiatry at Harvard[…]

10 Reasons Why Some of Us Are So Vulnerable to Depression

10 Reasons Why Some of Us Are So Vulnerable to Depression

Stuck in Negative Thoughts They Can’t Escape, Many Fall Prey to Sadness People’s thoughts and attitudes explain why some develop depression following stressful life events. The following list provides an overview of various vulnerability factors that put a person at risk for developing depression. There are indications that these distorted beliefs precede the initial onset of depression. Thus, improving faulty thinking may[…]

Can Compulsive Internet Use Affect Adolescent Mental Health?

Can Compulsive Internet Use Affect Adolescent Mental Health

A New Study Looks at Internet Compulsion & Mental Health in Young People The Internet is everywhere these days.  Or at least it seems to be.  With over three billion current users (nearly half the world’s population) and more likely to come online in the years to come, the prospect of universal Internet access doesn’t[…]

Train Your Brain to Release Stress.

Train Your Brain to Release Stress

Feel Better Faster With New Techniques From EBT ​Stress is getting to us!  New data are showing that stress is getting under our skin and causing even more serious problems than we had thought. Laurel Mellin, Ph.D., is an Associate Clinical Professor at UC San Francisco. She is also the Founder of Emotional Brain Training, www.ebt.org. Editor: Muhammad Talha At the very[…]

Can You Be ‘Addicted’ to Water?

Can You Be ‘Addicted’ to Water

A Brief Look at Psychogenic Polydipsia, Hyponatraemia, And ‘Aquaholism’ In May 2015, I went to the cinema with my oldest son to watch Mad Max: Fury Road. The reason I mention this is because one of the characters in the film (who live in a world where water is a scarce commodity) tells someone else not[…]

Recovery (like Addiction) Relies on Neuroplasticity

Recovery (like Addiction) Relies on Neuroplasticity

There’s Nothing Chronic About This “Chronic Brain Disease.” The experts at the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) are very clear: “Addiction is defined as a chronic, relapsing brain disease.” (Here’s the NIDA party line in a bit more detail.) As you can see, addiction is viewed as a chronic disease much like cardiovascular disease or diabetes. And they should know, right? After all the[…]

4 Ways to Be There for Someone Recovering from Addiction

4 Ways to Recovering From Addiction

It Can’t Be About Your Expectations For Them When a loved one is in crisis, it can be hard to know what to say. It can feel safer to do nothing in the hope of avoiding messy feelings or uncomfortable communication. What your loved one needs as they take their first steps toward recovery, however, is your[…]

What Makes Teenagers Abuse Drugs & Alcohol?

What Makes Teenagers Abuse Drugs and Alcohol

A new study explores the roots of drug and alcohol use in teenagers. Drug and alcohol abuse has always been a major problem for many young people. According to the 2014 Monitoring the Future survey of drug use among 8th, 10th, and 12th graders, the reported use of illicit drugs has generally gone down though alcohol, cannabis, and tobacco are still[…]

Why We’re Addicted to Our Smartphones, But Not Our Tablets

Why We’re Addicted to Our Smartphones, But Not Our Tablets

Our Smartphones Are Shifting From Device to Dependency Remember all of the wisecracks about executives and their BlackBerry addictions? Back then, constant contact was limited to the few and the mighty — relatively speaking, of course. But now, the last laugh might be on us. In record time, our smartphones have become indispensable, and as mobile technology has[…]

How to Stop Kids From Binge Drinking

How to Stop Kids From Binge Drinking

Know How to Do it, But Need The Social Push The United States has come a long way in encouraging people to smoke less or quit. We need a similar push against alcoholism and binge drinking. Public health measures do help. On U.S. campuses, nearly 40 percent of students confess they’ve downed 5 or more alcoholic drinks at a time[…]