California - Outpatient Rehab in San Diego

Scott H. Silverman recently appeared on America Trends to discuss the shocking death toll wrought by the Opioid Epidemic, and share thoughts about how we can make progress against this "pandemic within a pandemic."

His segment on August 11^th, 2021 discussed his background and recovery and talked about how he approaches his work in helping those with a SUD by “meeting them where they are at” to reduce the stigma of addiction, which is a huge hurdle that we need to overcome as a society in order to make progress in the battle against the opioid epidemic.

Watch the entire segment here: https://youtu.be/TV2_3uTDNQ4

"San Diego county has seen a significant increase in overdoses. According to the County Office of Communications, there were 457 fentanyl-related overdose deaths alone in 2020 across San Diego county, a 202% increase from 151 recorded deaths in 2019."

These are the kinds of insights that caused The East County Californian to write an article about Scott's efforts to educate and save lives.

“The prescription meds kids are taking, mixed with other toxins— the body doesn’t have the capacity for those combinations. There’s no science around that yet, there’s no longitudinal study for Lexapro with methamphetamine."

The article also talks about Scott's new book The Opioid Epidemic, which he says is “a roadmap for families to have conversations, build awareness." He wants people to be aware that

"young people can take something that looks like Xanax, a prescription-strength sedative thinking they are going to feel mellowed out for a few hours. Instead, he said, a pill that looks like Xanax might be laced with Fentanyl, a synthetic opioid that can be deadly when consumed with alcohol and is a major contributor to the opioid overdose rate."

Read the entire article on The East County Californian here.

About Confidential and Scott H. Silverman: Scott has been fighting against addiction for over 20 years, one person, speech, and book at a time. Contact us by calling (619)452-1200 or visit Your Crisis Coach to learn more about Scott's work and public appearances. You can buy a copy of his latest book "The Opioid Epidemic" here.

Scott covered a wide range of topics, including:

The devastation wrought by the opiate epidemic
The negative stigma around substance use disorders (SUDs), and tips on overcoming it
How to get help for a SUD

Of course, Scott also answered questions about his new book, "The Opioid Epidemic," which is now shipping and you can purchase here.

Watch the entire segment here: Scott H. Silverman on Fox News 32 Chicago.

Listen to Jon Dwoskin's five-part interview series with Scott H. Silverman, author of The Opioid Epidemic: What You Don’t Know Will Destroy Your Family and Your Life.

Scott goes in depth on the opioid epidemic, how it is affecting us, and most importantly, what we can do about it

The segments include:

What to Look (and Listen) For
Engaging in the Conversation
Approaching the Subject in the Workplace
The Community's Responsibility
When to Ask for Help

Listen to the entire series here. Jon Dwoskin's popular "Coffee with Jon" podcast highlights information and insights from this highly influential business coach, mentor, executive coach, author, and speaker.

The First and Most Important Thing

Help is available and treatment works. There’s absolutely no downside to reaching out for help immediately to ask questions about your current situation.

Call us now at (619) 452–1200 if you have any questions about addiction or recovery, for you or your loved one.

**First Responders Are Expected to Need Help**

First responders should not be shy about asking for help with a substance use disorder. It has always been 'part of the job,' and the recent pandemic and other societal factors have increased the stress that first responders and emergency personnel are under.

If you are a member of the police, fire department, or medical community, your organization has infrastructure to support you getting help. Contact your employee assistance department to get help.

Who Pays for the Treatment?

First responders will job insurance and employee assistance programs to help pay for treatment. When you work with the admissions department at a treatment program, they will help facilitate the process of contacting your insurance benefits provider and explaining what your 'out of pocket costs' (if any) will be. You will want to have a copy of your benefits card ready to show the admissions counselor.

Why First Responders Need Specialized Addiction Treatment

It is generally helpful for all people who seek treatment to be with their peers. Firemen, police, paramedics, and doctors respond better to treatment if it involves a group of other emergency personnel. Our treatment center in San Diego provide outpatient treatment that many veterans and first responders.

First Responders Need Tools to Manage Stress

First responders will need to be given tools to manage stress as they returned to their professions. Mindfulness training and experiential activities are very helpful

Enhanced Relapse Prevention Training for those with Access to Medications

Many first responders like doctors, nurses, and paramedics, will also often have access to medications when they return to their professions. This requires additional relapse prevention tools so that the person .

Evidence Based Treatment

Read our article called Addiction Treatment 101 to learn about the various levels of treatment. This article will answer many of your questions. Access to the full range of other evidence-based treatment modalities. At our San Diego outpatient treatment program, here are some of the activities that recovering first responders participate in:

Individual therapy sessions
Group therapy
Experiential therapy

Why Wait When Help is Available Now?

Treatment that is effective and tailored to meet the needs of San Diego first responders is available now. Addiction is progressive and the people who really get better are those who get clinical help. Call us today to get the process started so that you or the first responder in your life gets the necessary help to live life without the influence of substances.

You can call us right now at (619) 452–1200 if you want to talk to one of America’s leading experts in overcoming addiction.

Scott. H. Silverman joined KUSI’s Elizabeth Alvarez on Good Morning San Diego to divulge in just a few of his tricks and tips on how those struggling can go from addiction to recovery and how their families can navigate those waters.

To watch the entire segment, go here.

To jump to Scott's segment, go here.

Scott was recently featured at a Symposium on America's Drug Epidemic in San Diego. The presentation also featured U.S. Attorney Laura Duffy, San Diego County Sheriff Bill Gore, San Diego Police Chief Shelley Zimmerman, Dr. Greg LaDue, and Scott H. Silverman. The City Club, in association with the First United Methodist Church of San Diego, Congregation

View the Interview on Breath Body Connection.

This interview with Scott Silverman, Expert Crisis Coach, author and speaker, is filled with mind blowing stats on opioids, alcoholism, and mood altering substances plus a lot more.

Main take away is that if you think you have a problem, please get the support you need. He even offered his number, so if you need support or have questions, don't hesitate to contact Scott at 619-993-2738.

His latest book,"The Opioid Epidemic" can be purchased on amazon. Here is the link.

California’s homeless population reached an all-time high in 2020 with over 70-percent living without shelter.

See Scott's appearance on California Insider for a lengthy and extremely thought provoking segment called "How California Created the Homelessness Industrial Complex"

Watch the segment here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nlfKpD2ONbo

Mindfulness is simply a technique to be in the present movement and aware of what is going on around you. It is an ancient Buddhist practice that is supported by modern science. Every year, more and more research has declared the benefits of a regular mindfulness meditation practice.

Moreover, if someone is ready to recover from alcohol or any drug addiction, then practicing mindfulness will be very helpful. It can be especially helpful in overcoming addiction, whether drug addiction or even the shakes from drinking alcohol. Mindfulness has been included in several treatment methods, including mindfulness-based stress reduction, mindfulness-based cognitive therapy, or dialectical behavioural therapy.

What is Mindfulness?

Buddha introduced mindfulness as a part of spiritual enlightenment more than 2,500 years ago; it is an art of being present in our own lives. It’s a pleasant way of opening our minds to greater awareness and, a deeper understanding of ourselves and our surroundings.

Many studies have shown that mindfulness activities can reshape the brain positively, improve physical and mental health, and promote overall well-being. It can suppress anxiety and provide self-awareness and help us acknowledge and cope with emotions that may not be implanted in reality.

Including mindfulness exercises in the treatment helps those who have struggled with addiction to alcohol, drugs, or other destructive behaviours.

The connection between mindfulness and addiction:

In the human body, the brain is the only organ specifically designed to be shaped by experience and practice. When we repeatedly engage in thoughts and behavior that drive addiction, we unknowingly shaped our brains in ways that worked against us and prevented us from being mindful.

The mindfulness exercises empower us to intentionally reshape our brains in ways that bring greater control, awareness, and happiness to our lives.

Five ways mindfulness helps in addiction recovery:

One of the core strengths of mindfulness is that you can practice it anywhere, anytime. You don’t have to adopt a particular system or invest a great deal of time and energy to take advantage of it.

Followings are some of the mindfulness practices that can enhance recovery in many ways.

Mindfulness is the opposite of evasion - Substance use disorders usually begin to avoid painful emotions, intrusive thoughts, social anxiety, and physical pain. What starts as support soon turns into an addiction. However, when you practice mindfulness, you teach yourself to accept whatever you are experiencing instead of trying to escape it. And after you get what is happening and investigating the experience, you learn that unpleasant things are temporary and tolerable.
Mindfulness helps you learn to relax - Through your addiction recovery journey, it is essential to learn to relax. Mindfulness reduces stress, which ultimately helps to decrease pain, anxiety, craving, and the physical harm associated with chronic stress. Most people do not know that when they become stressed because it glides in gradually, but before they know it, they become tense and irritable. However, practicing mindfulness every day can provide two significant benefits for stress. Primarily, it provides a daily break during which you can sit quietly and get relaxed. This can prevent stress from continually growing. Secondly, it makes you more aware of what is going in your body and mind when you relax, you are aware of the tension expanding in. When you know how to relax, you can easily manage anxiety and cravings.
Mindfulness reduces the repetition of depression - The majority of people who look for treatment for addiction disorder also experience a co-occurring mental health issue. Among which the most common mental health issues are depression and anxiety disorders. Many depressed people will develop an alcohol use disorder at some point in their life while others will develop a drug use disorder. However, some studies conducted on meditation found that the practice can relieve the symptoms of depression to a certain degree. Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy has been proved to reduce substance use disorder; a significant reduction in depression risk can make a huge difference.
Mindfulness helps to respond instead to react - One of the reasons addictions are so hard to beat is that pattern of conditioned reactions. Part of your brain is responsible for high reasoning and nearly gets cut out of the decision-making process, and you react reflexively to stimuli associated with drugs and alcohol. Meditation mindfulness changes the structure of the brain. The part responsible for attention, self-control, planning, and memory, among other things. Mindfulness practice can help you to understand your thoughts, both good and bad.
Mindfulness encourages compassion - Compassion is necessary for addiction recovery for two significant reasons. Firstly, it helps you connect with other people, particularly other people recovering from addiction. To have strong social support and a feeling of belonging is among the best prophet of a successful recovery. But this can be quite challenging to build, as many people have become normal and feel ashamed and isolated.

Another way empathy helps you recover from addiction is that you can expand compassion to yourself. People going through addiction recovery often feel shame and guilt and even think that they don’t deserve to feel happy. However, feeling sympathy for yourself allows you to move ahead and improve the way you talk to yourself. You become less judgemental, which reduces the feeling of depression, anxiety, and negativity.

Conclusion:

Mindfulness is helpful for addiction recovery, but it can also help deal with various mental health issues such as depression, stress, and anxiety. Mindfulness meditation and exercise is an ancient practice that was initiated with Buddha. However, regular mindfulness practices can be an effective and efficient way to deal with any addiction recovery.