Do you experience higher levels of anxiety in the evening?There is a good chance that you, like many others, find nighttime to be the part of your day during which you feel most anxious. That anxiety can disrupt your ability to get the rest you need—and that can be the beginning of a negative cycle....Read More

For many of us, it seems like our time is a scarce resource—and a resource that is mostly used for other people. We give 40 hours (probably more) each week to our boss. We give hours to our families or partners in the form of household chores or running kids from here to there or...Read More

There is Withdrawal—And Then There is Post-Acute Withdrawal Syndrome We write about the challenges of withdrawal fairly frequently. The symptoms of withdrawal from any number of substances can be extremely difficult to withstand. A person using drugs or alcohol can easily find themselves stuck between a rock and a hard place: they want to quit...Read More

Can a Personality Test Reveal Your Propensity for Addiction? You have probably taken a personality test at one time or another. Maybe it was one of the many silly “tests” that show up on social media. They ask you a few questions about yourself and then reveal which member of the cast of Friends or...Read More

Recovery Advice Brought to You By the Letter “L” If you or someone you love is a Sesame Street fan, you might remember Bert and Ernie’s duet called “La La La.” It is not as famous, perhaps, as “Rubber Duckie” or “I Love Trash” or “C is for Cookie,” but it is a solid exploration...Read More

What defines success in recovery?  At the most obvious level, success in recovery could probably be defined simply as not using drugs or alcohol. If you are maintaining your sobriety, you are succeeding in recovery, right? In many cases, that formula—not drinking or using drugs = recovery success—is sufficient. But some people in recovery find...Read More

Is your inner voice a snooty critic or an enthusiastic cheerleader? For many, many people, the answer to that question is likely to be “snooty critic.” You might count yourself among them. Maybe your inner voice is constantly criticizing you or reminding you of mistakes and regrets. That situation is extremely common, but it isn’t...Read More

Life is complicated—and sometimes we do not fully realize how our experiences in the past might influence our behavior and challenges in the present. Traumatic experiences, for example, often underpin mental health and substance use disorders that develop later. At Bel Aire Recovery Center, we are committed to asking the right questions and finding the right...Read More

When you hear the word “countdown,” what comes to mind?  Our guess is that you think of quite a number of things before you think about a way to manage anxiety. You might think of the countdown to a rocket launch. You might think of a weekly countdown of the most popular songs in the...Read More

The holiday season can be a source of great joy and inspiration. We have even suggested that the late-year holidays can serve as a roadmap to getting sober. But the holidays can also be a time of significant stress—and that can be a problem if you are newly in recovery from a substance use disorder....Read More