As a specialist in the field of pain medicine since the 1970s (Dr. Gagné), and a clinical psychologist treating chemical dependency and personality and mood disorders since 1980 (Dr. Weedn), it’s hard not to be amazed how far the field has come and yet how perplexing it remains mired in its central conundrum: the tendency [...]

A frantic mother of a 15-year-old girl in a local suburban neighborhood tells her therapist that her daughter has quit the cheerleading squad, no longer dreams of college and becoming a lawyer, and her childhood friends have been replaced with friends she has never met. Her daughter has been isolating, reading all the latest celebrity [...]

Let us begin with definitions: Sanctuary: A place of refuge, safety, protection and asylum; a holy, consecrated spot The notion of sanctuary dates back to ancient times. Many civilizations provided the persecuted with impunity if they reached a recognized sanctuary. Western culture later adopted this concept where during times of battle, troops could retreat to [...]

Addictive use of the Internet is a new clinical phenomenon that many practitioners are unaware of, and subsequently unprepared to treat. Some therapists are unfamiliar with the Internet itself, making its seduction difficult to understand. Other times, its impact on the individual’s life is minimized, since many practitioners fail to recognize the legitimacy of the [...]

In the wake of the much-publicized tragedy for Tiger Woods and his family, the subject of sexual addiction is banter for talk show hosts, news commentators, comics and bloggers: “Is there such a thing as sexual addiction?” “What is the ‘treatment’ the renowned golfer is receiving?” Mr. Woods’s misfortune may do for sexual addiction what [...]

Most in the public only view the term “addiction” in terms of illicit drugs and alcohol, but the recent spate of celebrity deaths connected to prescription drug abuse has begun to raise the public awareness of addiction to drugs other than illicit ones. Even so, the public and policymakers remain largely unaware of what makes [...]

We at Patient Support International opened our first Smokers Treatment Center in 1989 and have since evolved into a full-scale residential treatment team for tobacco addiction. We have been involved in the treatment process of over 6,000 patients, many of whom were in recovery for alcohol, cocaine, opiates and prescription drugs. Queens University conducted a [...]