Addiction is not a choice.  No woman chooses to become addicted.  It is a symptom of the underlying problem.  Women turn to alcohol or drugs to numb their pain.  That pain may stem from years of emotional, psychological, sexual or physical abuse.  The deep depression, loneliness, and emptiness fuel this disease.

Addiction is the symptom.  The underlying, real problem needs to be addressed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Addiction is a disease involving serious psychological and physical changes from the constant heavy use of alcohol, drugs, or both.

 

Symptoms include:

uncontrollable alcohol use and/or other drug cravings,

seeking, and use, that continues even in the face of repeated negative consequences. 

Addiction is a progressive, chronic, and fatal disease. If left untreated, it can only lead to jails, institutions, dereliction, and death, in no specific order.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There are over 11 million Women in need of treatment for addiction in the USA. Sadly, there are very few options available for those who have no resources. Many female addicts developed behavioral and emotional disorders as a direct result of severe abuse as children.

 

They turn to drugs and/or alcohol in an effort to ease the pain. Prostitution, Adult Night Clubs, Jail, and Human/Sex Trafficking become a way of life. Ultimately, this way of life gets passed down to their children.

 

Without help, the cycle of abuse and dysfunction continues.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Scientific evidence is emerging now which helps explain why at least some people become alcoholics and addicts. In their cases, this “allergy” to substances is an underlying emotional illness, like depression or an anxiety disorder.

 

This theory has been called the Self Medication Model, for it suggests many substance abusers are simply using alcohol or drugs to anesthetize the pain of profound sadness or high anxiety.

 

Colette Dowling promotes this idea in her book, You Mean I Don’t Have To Feel This Way...

“The studies are indicating an underlying depression is very prevalent in people who abuse substances,” says Dowling in an interview.

 

The thinking is that depressives and those with extreme anxiety disorders react differently to alcohol, says Dowling. They take a drink and Bang!, the brain chemistry changes and they have a profound experience –akin to a religious experience. They find relief and the feeling that there is more to life than pain and unhappiness — something almost spiritual and good.

 

As one addictions doctor says, “they don’t call alcohol `spirits’ for nothing.”

 

In these people, the reward and motivation to keep drinking are greater than for normals, who might get a buzz from drinking, but in many cases, don’t enjoy it.

 

“Alcohol doesn’t have the same physiological meaning for social drinkers because they feel OK, to begin with,” says Dowling. “But for someone who feels like crap, to begin with, who actually starts to feel like a human being when they get high, imagine what that’s going to do.”

Dowling says studies now suggest many addicts and alcoholics have brain chemistry deficits, created either by genetics — they’re born that way — or by stressful environments. These brain imbalances, she argues, can often be treated successfully by the modern anti-depressants and should be used in conjunction with talk therapy to treat addiction.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Learn to Fish treats the Underlying problem.   We offer Hope, Healing and New Beginnings. Our program has changed lives and saved lives.  Women have a place where they can start on a path to their recovery.  It’s their personal journey, and we make every effort to ensure that we provide them with the proper tools for success.

 

LTF provides counseling services to all our women through Samaritan Counseling Services. 

 

Each woman receives a thorough diagnostic evaluation by a Board Certified psychiatrist who has been in private practice over 15 years with a strong interest in treating women’s issues. He values meeting the patients where they are spiritually and sharing their journey to improved mental and spiritual health with her unique blend of psychiatric precision and compassion.

 

Additionally, each woman has a private weekly counseling session with a female LMHC (Licensed Mental Health Counselor) where she can feel comfortable sharing any issues in confidence with a compassionate, skilled professional who specializes in addiction, co-dependency, domestic and sexual abuse issues, and trauma.

 

Most of our clients have been diagnosed with Type A Trauma. The A stands for Absence. The absence of anything good ever happening to them.

 

Imagine a life filled with physical, sexual and emotional abuse and nothing good ever happening to make you feel better.

Addiction is a treatable disease. However, without proper treatment for Addiction, there is no happy ending.  Addiction is a terminal illness!