Matt Christian, LCSW Though more people are becoming familiar with the term “dual diagnosis”, let’s first get clear on what it means. Simply put, it’s when an individual has both a mental health disorder and substance use disorder simultaneously. This is not a rare occurrence. In fact, it is estimated that around 50% of people…
By the time clients come to see me, their substance use has often been damaging their lives for some time. As they begin taking steps to achieve sobriety, I always honor that losing the substances can be a real loss. There’s something that they were getting from the substances, especially at first. It may have…
Part 1: Why is this affecting teens differently? Matt Christian, LCSW We’re now two years (and who knows how many variants) into this pandemic, and it’s been rough on us all. However, just as the risks from Covid itself are different for different age groups, the psychological and social effects have been different as well.…
Whether it be the #MeToo, #TimesUp, Black Lives Matter, women’s equality or transgender rights movements, the United States is in a time of rapid social change. In the midst of such high-profile social movements, there may be a subtler social shift happening under the radar – a reduction in the stigma regarding men’s mental health…
The terms “mindfulness” and “meditation” have become such buzzwords in our current culture that one wonders if they are the psychological equivalent of the latest overhyped “lose weight quick” fad. However, mindfulness and meditation’s benefits have been experienced worldwide for at least 3,000 years! While mindfulness and meditation are closely related, I think it’s important…