Advanced Trauma Care and Recovery

What's the Big Deal About Porn Addiction, Is it Even Real?

cambrowne1@gmail.com (Cameron Browne) — Fri, 22 Jan 2021 00:41:32 GMT

When you enter a conversation about whether porn addiction is real, you may need to prepare for a great debate. The controversy regarding porn addiction seemed to intensify with the release of the DSM 5 in 2013. But why?

You won't find porn addiction in the DSM. As such, some may dismiss the addictive behaviors that accompany the addiction as something else. Likewise, some may ask, "What's the big deal?"

In this article, we'll talk about some reasons why some may struggle to consider the reality of porn addiction. We'll also highlight some of the issues that can develop from excessive use of pornography.The body content of your post goes here.

Is Porn Addiction Real?

Well, that depends on what criteria you base your opinion on. For example, you won't be able to find pornography addiction in the DSM. However, many professionals will debate the reality of the harm and addictive like patterns they see. So, why isn't it listed in the DSM? Some argue that society plays too large of a role in dictating what 'normal' behavior is, especially regarding sexual behavior. As a result, the definitive criteria seems to shift to be more opinion-based.

Next, there is the issue that there is not a substance introduced into the body influencing the brain. However, gambling, a behavioral addiction, is in the DSM. As a result, some believe this opens the door for pornography addiction to possibly find its way into the DSM.

What is the role of the DSM regarding addictions? Well, with an official listing in the DSM, there is more opportunity to receive funding for research. Furthermore, if it's in the DSM, health insurance coverage is more likely. As access to pornography rises, so does the risk of addiction. As studies continue, the answers to many questions can become more clear. An official diagnosis in the DSM could help clarify the reality of this harmful addiction.

Where Can I Turn for Help with My Porn Addiction?

The reality for many who are living with porn addiction is that they want to stop, but they can not. In other words, the consequences they face may not influence their ability to resist compulsive urges to act.

Like other addictions, porn addiction can heavily influence daily life. In addition to mental and physical health issues, it can also damage careers and relationships. Furthermore, porn addiction can lead to illegal activity.

The feelings and emotions that accompany other addictions are often present with porn addiction as well. For example, you may experience shame, guilt, hopelessness, anger, and fear. These emotions can lead to isolation, anxiety, depression, and aggression.

The good news is hope and happiness can return through healing and recovery. At Advanced Trauma Care & Recovery , we understand addiction. Likewise, we realize the negative reality of porn addiction. We want to help you get your life back. Call us today.

Why Does My Sexual Addiction Become More Difficult to Avoid During the Holidays?

Thu, 17 Dec 2020 23:28:22 GMT

During the holidays, self-care can take a back seat to busy schedules and stress. However, self-care is a critical component to help you avoid diving deeper into your sexual addiction. So, how do you keep yourself a priority when you're pressed for time and overly stressed during the holidays?

Social gatherings and expectations can be detrimental to your recovery without a plan in place. During times of high-stress, relapse prevention can be a critical component to your success.

This article will discuss sexual addiction and why the holidays can be prime time for relapse.

What is sexual addiction?

Sexual addiction can change the way your brain works. Like other addictions, it's the compulsive urge to act upon a thought in order to relieve a craving or quiet the mind. Unlike other addictions, sexual addiction is not in the DSM. However, there are many clinicians who understand the reality of the addiction. Likewise, many living with sexual addiction acknowledge their desire to stop but lack the ability to do so.

Sexual addiction includes the compulsive involvement in sexual activities and behaviors. Furthermore, those with an addiction can not stop participating in the behaviors, even if they want to. Another sign of addiction is when life becomes unmanageable without your addiction. For example, if you need to view porn first in order to enjoy intimacy, you may be relying on your addiction to manage this area of life.

Why Are the Holidays Difficult for Those With Sexual Addiction?

It's no secret that stress, depression, and grief disappear during the holidays. In fact, feelings like this may be exacerbated during this time of year. But why is it that many living with addiction, including sexual addiction, struggle to avoid relapse during the holidays?

Triggers are common during the holidays. For example, parties often include alcohol, which can be easy to overindulge in. For one living in recovery from alcohol, it can be a nightmare. Then, there are the expectations that may feel impossible to meet. Feelings of inadequacy can leave you desperate for an escape. Furthermore, financial stress can be a burden you can't seem to carry. Not to mention, feelings of grief and loss can hit extra hard during the holidays. As a result, reality can begin to feel much too difficult to remain in. Stress, triggers, and negative emotions during a time when many appear to be so happy can lead to moments of overwhelm. So, what can you do? How can you avoid your sexual addiction when triggers leave you wanting to engage?

What Can I Do To Avoid Turning to My Sexual Addiction During the Holidays?

Your biggest key to success will be a solid relapse prevention plan. For example, what situations are likely to be your biggest triggers? Then, how do you handle the temptations during moments of despair? Likewise, what can you do to fill your time during your holiday break? By planning and preparing with tools and ideas that you know can work for you, you can set yourself up for success.

Another critical component to your success is self-care. However, self-care is often something that takes a back seat during the holidays. After all, parties often offer unhealthy food choices and late nights. Furthermore, due to packed schedules, it can be hard to find time to fit in exercise. Likewise, the weather during the holidays can make it difficult to spend time outside. In other words, there are many circumstances that can make this time of year difficult for anyone. Adding sexual addiction to the mix can feel even more defeating. However, there are many who are successful in avoiding relapse during this time of year. As a result, you have every reason to hope for the same success.

At Advanced Trauma Care & Recovery , we specialize in treating sexual addiction. As such, we understand the complexities of sexual addiction. We also recognize the stressors that can come with the holidays. As a result, we may be able to help set you up for success this upcoming year. Call us today.

What Is Neurofeedback, and Could It Help Me With My Anxiety Symptoms?

Tue, 17 Nov 2020 00:29:59 GMT

Let's talk about what you might expect during a neurofeedback session.

For many, 2020 has been a year full of trauma, anxiety, grief, and loss. As a result, mental health issues continue to rise. If this seems to be true for you, there may be a solution that can help. Neurofeedback is a therapeutic technique used to help reduce symptoms of anxiety, depression, and PTSD. Could neuro help you?

Neurofeedback is not a quick fix. Instead, it's a form of treatment that can be effective in treating symptoms of anxiety and trauma over time. Although gradual, neuro treatment may be another way to help you through your healing process.

In this article, we'll talk about what neurofeedback is. We'll also talk about what you might expect during a neurofeedback session.

What is Neurofeedback?

You may be familiar with the term biofeedback. Biofeedback is a technique used to teach the body to control involuntary functions. For example, relaxation skills teach you how to control your breathing. Often, through visual or auditory feedback, your mind and body learn how to work together to control automatic functions. Another example of biofeedback includes mood rings. The stone changes colors depending on your mood or body temperature.

Neurofeedback is a type of biofeedback that works with your brainwaves. The goal of neurofeedback is to teach your brain, specifically your brainwaves, the best and most efficient way to function. As a result, the height and width of your brainwaves adjust accordingly. Those who undergo sessions may see improvement in their cognitive functioning and sleep patterns.

Neurofeedback monitors the activity of your brainwaves through electrodes (EEG). EEG sensors are put on various parts of your scalp, depending upon your symptoms. It's non-evasive, and the wires simply monitor your brainwave activity and provide useful feedback.

PTSD, ADD, ADHD, and anxiety each affect the brain in one way or another. As a result, your brainwaves may be reacting in response to your ADD or anxiety. Through neurofeedback, the activity in your brain can become more regulated. Thus, alleviating the symptoms, you may be experiencing.

Neurofeedback does not provide a quick fix. Likewise, it's not a cure for ADD or anxiety. Instead, it's a tool used to help alleviate your symptoms.

What Goes on During a Neurofeedback Session?

Unlike other therapeutic approaches, neurofeedback doesn't require you to interact with a therapist. Instead, you'll attend a session and watch a movie or play a video game.

When you arrive, you'll sit in a chair that typically reclines and is comfortable. Then, your therapist or a technician will attach EEG sensors to different parts of your scalp. The wires are placed according to your unique symptoms and target areas. This is a painless and simple process. From here, you get to relax and watch what's going on on the screen in front of you.

While you watch your show, when brainwave activity needs correcting, the audio or visual portion of your movie will stop. Instead, the screen may go white, silent, or both. However, your brain will course correct and regulate your brainwaves. As it does, the visual and auditory feedback resumes. All of this is involuntary, meaning you lay there, and your brain will learn what it needs to do. Over time, your brain learns wavelength patterns that affect efficiency and reactivity. As a result, neuro can begin to help improve your functionality and reduce your symptoms.

In order to achieve lasting results from neurofeedback, it requires multiple sessions. On average, 30-40 neurofeedback sessions lead to lasting changes. Many attend sessions twice a week over a four to sixth month period.

At Advanced Trauma Care and Recovery , we specialize in the treatment of anxiety, betrayal trauma, and PTSD. If you are interested in learning if neurofeedback might be right for you, contact us. We'd love to hear from you.

What's All the Buzz About Accelerated Resolution Therapy?

Tue, 03 Nov 2020 22:12:21 GMT

Is Accelerated Resolution Therapy Different Than EMDR Treatments?

You may have heard of Accelerated Resolution Therapy. Yet, you may not know why a growing number of army hospitals are using it to treat PTSD. The answer is in the name itself.

Accelerated Resolution Therapy is accelerated, meaning you can find relief in as few as one to five sessions. As a result, many people who are living with PTSD are finding hope and healing. You, too, may be able to gain freedom from your trauma triggers.

In this article, we will define Accelerated Response Therapy. (ART) We will discuss who can benefit from ART, how it works, and why some therapists may choose another approach first.

What is Accelerated Resolution Therapy?

Through Accelerated Resolution Therapy, you'll remember a past traumatic event, then "create new images of the trauma." ( pubmed.gov ) ART uses rapid-eye movement to help the patient relax as they access the traumatic event. Likewise, ART is evidence-based, meaning it is supported by much scientific research.

It is gaining traction because it is efficient, effective, and economical. For example, Accelerated Resolution Therapy takes an average of only 3.7 sessions. ( pubmed.gov )

Who Can Benefit from Accelerated Resolution Therapy?

People of all ages can benefit from Accelerated Resolution Therapy. Young children, teens, women, men, civilians, and soldiers can participate in ART. Likewise, it's proving to help people struggling with depression and PTSD.

Since ART doesn't require people to relive their traumatic event, it appeals to people who don't like to share their emotions. This is one of the reasons why it seems to work well in military hospitals.

There are a few basic skills you'll need to benefit from Accelerated Resolution Therapy. For example, you'll need to be able to track a therapist's hand with your eyes and concentrate. If you can do this, then you are likely to be able to try this approach to healing.

How Does Accelerated Resolution Therapy Work?

Research is still trying to pin down exactly why this new treatment works. However, many believe there is a connection with the eye movement in REM sleep.

REM is similar to Accelerated Resolution Therapy in that it involves rapid-eye-movement. Likewise, REM sleep is the phase of sleep when we have vivid dreams. REM may also help consolidate memories. ( medicalnewstoday.com )

We now know when we access memories, they become far more malleable than previously recognized. Instead, they become like play-dough, which makes it possible to recreate them into something else.

ART enables patients to access their memories and stretch and reshape them. Several hours later, the memory reconsolidates and becomes, in effect, a new memory. ( goodtherapy.org )

Why Haven't I Hear of Accelerated Resolution Therapy?

Lane Rozenwig developed Accelerated Resolution Therapy in 2008. Therefore, it's still a relatively new form of treatment.

Because of its newness, it's not a first-line therapy. In other words, it's not often the initial treatment for PTSD and trauma. Therapists may try other forms of treatment first because they have a longer track record. For example, prolonged exposure (PE) therapy or EMDR therapy may be the first approach to help you heal.

However, Accelerated Resolution Therapy is showing quicker results and may be more effective. As it continues to prove to be successful, more people will have access to it.

At Advanced Trauma Care and Recovery, we're helping our patients heal. Through the effective form of treatment, Accelerated Resolution Therapy, success can be yours. Please call us to see if ART can help you or your loved one heal.

EMDR Therapy Is Showing Promising Results, but Can It Help Me?

Thu, 01 Oct 2020 18:37:16 GMT

Learn how EMDR and other types of treatments can help you heal from your trauma.

Are you living with unresolved trauma? From post-traumatic stress disorder to betrayal trauma, the after-effects can be debilitating. However, EMDR treatment can help you heal.

Traumatic events can become frozen in our minds. As a result, sounds, sights, or smells can trigger those memories. In an instant, a flashback takes you right to those moments of high distress. Your body experiences the same emotional intensity as it did the first time. It is exhausting and terrifying. However, through a therapeutic approach called EMDR, you can find relief.

EMDR therapy is highly successful for treating those with PTSD. Furthermore, this approach is helping people with other mental health issues. Can it help you too?

What is EMDR Therapy?

Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy is a relatively new therapeutic approach. Through an eight-stage process, you can reprocess a traumatic event. Unlike other forms of talk therapy, EMDR uses bilateral stimulation of the brain.

Many people with post-traumatic stress disorder have found life-changing success through treatment. Likewise, it can help treat issues like anxiety, eating disorders, and depression.

How does EMDR therapy work?

To understand how EMDR works, it first helps to know what happens within the brain during the time the trauma occurs.

In the midst of a traumatic incident or intense fear, adrenaline releases, and your stress response takes over. As a result, the memories imprint within your brain, along with the fierce emotions of the moment. As a result, the memories remain in a place in your mind that can be easily triggered. So, when you see, hear, or smell something familiar to the event, it can take you right back to that moment as if it's happening for the first time. Hence the reason PTSD and other traumatic events can be so debilitating.

Because our brains are not hard-wired, healing is possible. During your session, your therapist will ask you to recall the details of your traumatic event. However, as you do, a bilateral stimulus, like side-to-side eye movement, is introduced. By stimulating both hemispheres in the brain, you can introduce new information and reprocess the moment. As a result, you can resolve and heal the trauma.

What are the benefits of EMDR therapy?

There are many benefits of EMDR therapy. According to the EMDR Institute, Inc., studies of this approach show that 84%-90% of single-trauma victims no longer have PTSD after three 90-minute sessions. (psycom.net) Through treatment, triggers lose their intensity. As a result, unresolved trauma will no longer threaten to interfere with your daily thoughts and activities. You can live your life without the debilitating effects of trauma or PTSD.

At Advanced Trauma Care & Recovery, we can help. Through EMDR treatment, you can overcome the adverse effects of your trauma. If you have unresolved trauma, this approach may be the solution you've been searching for. Help may be a phone call away. Call us today.

Can EMDR Treatment Help With Issues Other Than PTSD?

Tue, 01 Sep 2020 20:36:38 GMT

Are you searching for a way to live life without PTSD triggers?

Treating post-traumatic stress disorder has become successful through EMDR therapy. Likewise, it's helping those living with mental health issues like depression. It can help you resolve the root cause of your anxiety or fear.

Many people suffer from the debilitating effects of anxiety, PTSD, and trauma. However, a relatively new therapeutic approach is changing that. Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing therapy is providing relief.

If you are searching for a way to live life without triggers, this may be your answer. In this article, we'll talk about EMDR therapy and if it might work for you.

What is EMDR?

EMDR therapy is a technique that uses sensory input to reprocess trauma. Likewise, it's based on concepts of cognitive-behavioral therapy and has very few side effects.

During the eight-phase process, you'll discuss the details of the traumatic events in your life. Then, as you discuss memories, your therapist will introduce a sensory stimulus. Examples include eye movements, bi-lateral tapping, or sounds. Next, you may notice other memories come to your mind. You'll discuss and reprocess your thoughts. As a result, you can experience a shift in the emotions regarding the situation.

Treatment success is due to the dual attention processing that activates the ability to recall, reprocess, and heal.

How does EMDR work?

EMDR therapy can help you reprocess a traumatic event. As we experience emotional distress, our memories can get stuck in the moment of intense fear. However, your therapist can help you access your information processing system. Then you'll be able to reprocess the trauma. As a result, you can begin healing. Furthermore, you will also become desensitized to trauma triggers.

Through bilateral stimulation, emotional ties to the events become accessible. You can think of the process of unblocking your emotions as reprogramming your mind. As a result, you can gain new perspectives and confidence. Furthermore, you'll likely notice an improvement in your mental health and self-esteem.

What Are Some Issues Where EMDR Therapy May Be Beneficial?

Some areas where EMDR therapy has been beneficial include issues with:

nightmares
eating disorders
trauma triggers
addiction
phobias and fears
anxiety

One highly successful aspect of this type of therapy is the treatment of anxiety and anxiety-related problems. For example, you may be able to overcome panic attacks or phobias in as few as one session. If you are suffering from any of the problems above, You may want to consider this approach.

Although many therapies can help you cope with anxiety symptoms, EMDR therapy enables you to get to the root cause of it.

At Advanced Trauma Care and Recovery, our therapists use EMDR therapy to treat many mental health issues. We understand the complexities that trauma can cause. If you are living with anxiety or unresolved trauma, EMDR treatment may be right for you. Call us today.