The Brain and Addiction
When someone stops using after heavy or prolonged use and experiences symptoms like sweating, anxiety, or nausea, this is called:
What is withdrawal?
This word describes internal or external cues that increase risk of relapse.
What are triggers?
This term describes minimizing or justifying substance use despite evidence of harm.
What is denial?
Name one skill that can help you reduce cravings?
Exercise, journaling, meditation, calling support, prayer, breathing, etc.)
These programs are peer-support groups such as Alcoholics Anonymous or Narcotics Anonymous.
What are 12-step programs?
This brain chemical is heavily involved in pleasure and reward and spikes with substance use.
What is dopamine?
The acronym HALT stands for Hungry, Angry, Lonely, and this.
What is tired?
Experiencing withdrawal symptoms like tremors, nausea, chills, and sweats when stopping a substance indicates this condition.
What is physical dependence?
This communication style involves expressing your needs clearly and respectfully.
What is assertiveness?
This recovery concept refers to taking responsibility for past behaviors and making amends.
What is accountability?
This phenomenon occurs when more of a substance is needed to achieve the same effect.
What is tolerance?
This stage of relapse happens before physical use and involves thoughts like “Maybe I can handle just one.”
What is mental relapse?
Examples of social consequences are
what are losing jobs, legal trouble, and damaged trust are examples of this type of consequence.
This grounding technique involves noticing 5 things you see, 4 you feel, 3 you hear, etc.
What is the 5-4-3-2-1 grounding technique?
Finish the sentence
One day at a time
This brain structure is associated with fight or flight and emotional triggers.
What is the amygdala?
This technique encourages someone to notice a craving without acting on it, allowing it to rise and fall like a wave.
What is urge surfing?
When individuals attribute things they don't like about themselves onto another person.
What is Projection.
This DBT skill helps people get through uncomfortable feelings without making things worse.
What is distress tolerance?
This term refers to building a life that makes returning to substance use less appealing.
What is building a recovery lifestyle?
Chronic substance use decreases activity in this region of the brain responsible for executive functioning, impulse inhibition, risk evaluation, and long-term planning, contributing to compulsive use despite consequences.
What is the prefrontal cortex?
This CBT-based coping skill helps individuals identify, challenge, and replace distorted thoughts that increase relapse risk.
What is cognitive restructuring/reframing?
Name five criteria of a Substance Use Disorder
Avoiding people and places, staying with yourself.
what is isolating
This psychological concept refers to believing you are capable of staying sober.
What is self-efficacy?