JUST ONE RESOLUTION INSTEAD OF JUST ONE DRINK

Here we are in what has come to be called “No Year”—that shady side of Christmas and sunny side of the New Year.  Around the globe the resolutions are humming into full gear:  weight, work, you name it, everyone has that inevitable pre-promise list of changes started.

Maybe you have just one thing on the list:  really quit drinking this year.  Make it a reality, not another ride around the hamster-wheel.

Quitting drinking requires How and it requires Help.  You may not be sure if you are addicted to alcohol, but you have a pretty good idea that you may be drinking too much, just out of habit. 

During the “No Year” might be the best time of all to decide to ring in 2011 without alcohol as your frequent companion.

You may be scared to find out that you just can’t get by without that weekly binge or that daily toddy.  Scared.  But don’t let that fear stop you from taking that first step to seeing if you really can stop. Or maybe you are even afraid to learn how to stop drinking.

And if you can’t stop—The Recovery Place is here to help you quit drinking. 

That’s our Resolution each and every New Year.




View Original Post, Just One Resolution Instead of Just One Drink

Tweet

DRINKING SOMEONE ELSE TO DEATH

Once every 50 minutes.  A fact.

At this moment, less than an hour from now, someone will be receiving a phone call that will change every other minute for the rest of their lives.  The call with the news that someone they love has died in a car accident involving alcohol—or the call telling them that someone they love was drinking and driving and caused someone else to die.

Nearly 11,000 people a year.  

That is how many people will die from an accident that involves drinking and driving.  Sometimes the driver, sometimes the passenger, and sometimes the person who just happens to be walking down the street and gets in the way.

The tragedy of drinking and driving accidents is too wide-spread in scope to take in all at once.  But it is worth some thought about the fuller consequences of drinking and driving, especially now when holiday festivities are in full swing.

Just can’t believe yourself when you make that commitment not to drink?  Make sure somebody else drives.  Take a cab, walk, or don’t go to that party.  And take away the keys of someone else, if you just aren’t sure they know when to stop the festivities.

Could you live with drinking someone else to death?

The Holiday Season is the most dangerous time to be on the road--Drive with caution!  


View Original Post, Drinking Someone Else to Death

Tweet

COLLEGE CARDIO THAT ISN’T GOOD FOR YOUR HEALTH: ENERGY DRINK FACTS

Stop what you’re doing. Feel your heart beating in your chest? No? Well, good, you aren’t supposed to be able to feel it when you are just sitting at your computer.

Okay, then, take your pulse. Feel strong and regular? That’s good, too. 

Now count your pulse. For arguments sake, let’s say you are counting 72 beautiful, strong regular beats a minute. 

Now imagine this: your heart bounding at triple that speed. That’s 210 beats a minute! Bam, bam, BAM! That’s your heart you feel slamming against your ribcage, a little gift from the energy drinks you’ve tossed down to keep you going while you pull an all-nighter, studying for your final exams.  

Except maybe you don’t even notice. You've added a couple of shots to the mix, just to relieve the stress of studying for finals.

Or, hey, you can even buy this double energy burst in a can: alcohol plus mega caffeine. How convenient is that?

Convenient but risky.

Energy drinks combined with alcohol have seen a striking increase in usage among college students. Often this is done with the mistaken idea that the caffeine overrides the side-effects of alcohol and makes it okay to drive after going out with friends.  In fact, the stimulants found in energy drinks often enhance the effects of the alcohol, even though the person may not feel drunk.

Save the cardio for the gym. Getting it in a can could be deadly.


View Original Post, College Cardio that isn't Good for Your Health: energy Drink Facts 

Tweet

BORN TO DRINK?—GENETICS ARE A HEADS UP, NOT AN EXCUSE

Multiple research studies have shown connections between the genes you are born with and the chance you may have for becoming an alcoholic.  Other studies show that environment and genetics together can be an even more damaging combo when it comes to abusing alcohol.

But does this mean there aren’t choices?  This is truly a case of knowledge being powerful. Dr. Enoch Gordis, director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) stresses that “these genes are for risk, not for destiny.”

By having an understanding of what may be lurking in our cells and in our families we can create support systems and tools to control and avoid alcohol problems, particularly in our children.

For active alcoholics, these research studies are important pathways to the development of interventional and pharmaceutical treatments for the disease of alcoholism.

This diagram gives support to the idea that genetics play a role in alcoholism, but not the only role. It is imperative to be aware of the factors behind your disease in order to effectively treat it. 
View Original Post, Born to Drink?—Genetics Are a Heads Up, NOT an Excuse
Tweet