Beyond REHAB & 12 STEP FINDING WELLNESS BEYOND TRADITIONAL INTERVENTIONS

Where we are going today

HOW DO DRUGS & ALCOHOL

CHANGE US?

HOW CAN TRADITIONAL

INTERVENTIONS HELP?

WHERE CAN WE GO FROM

HERE?

Changes How does drug use change our brain? What we are going to look at:

Basic structural information

Electrical circuitry of the brain

The Brain

4 Major Areas

Balance

Prefrontal Cortex Job #1 – Executive Function Job #2 – Limbic Inhibition

Limbic System Emotional Memory Defense/Protection Anxiety Reward/Pleasure Alarm Memory Encoding Rage/Anger

BETA 11-18 Hz Awake, alert, & cognitive skills. If too high: anxiety or excitement

ALPHA 8-10 Hz Relaxed (if balanced), rumination, dazed, & marijuana

THETA 4-8 Hz Deep Relaxation, meditation, mental imagery, sleepiness, & lite sleep

DELTA .1-4 Hz Deep sleep, neuronal growth, healing, long-term memory encoding, HGH, etc

Imbalance

Prefrontal Cortex SLOW WAVE SATURATION

Limbic System HIGH WAVE SATURATION (MOST) LOW WAVE SATURATION (WEED)

New Neurological Signature

How long before the brain goes back?

Marijuana

Considered to be one of the more subtle and least effective drugs by most people using it as well as many of the general population.

Brain 2 years later

Wait to judge the next slide

Not bashing any group or method

Not saying any of the following do not help

Saying: understanding can open the door to greater healing. Even subtle changes to existing

programs have shown incredible outcome changes.

After treatment or other interventions

• 1st - Most treatment isn’t long enough to move into brain healing and reorganization.

• 2nd - Lack of understanding considering the neurological underpinnings of drugs and

alcohol (outside of dopamine and serotonin)

• 3rd - Many people/groups unknowingly reinforce the existing imbalanced brain

• 4th - Most people don’t know how to understand or heal themselves

• 5th - Medications can hinder healing and brain reorganization

Alternatives MINDFUL-BASED TECHNIQUES

• MEDITATION

• Yoga

• Qi Gong

DIETARY TECHNIQUES

• Researching and changing diet to support healing and clarity

COGNITIVE MAINTAINENCE AND IMPROVEMENT

• Cognitive rebuilding through counseling

• Neurofeedback

• Cognitive Whiplash