Sunday, January 27, 2013
Siberian Psychologists Whip Addicts Clean
The bizarre beating "treatment" doesn't enjoy mainstream support—but some recipients swear by it.
01/07/13
Siberian psychologists are taking a hardline approach
to helping people with addiction: literally beating it out of them. The
practitioners claim that lashing addicts on the buttocks with a willow
cane can help those for whom more conventional methods have failed.
Practitioners Dr. German Pilipenko and Professor Marina Chukhrova say that their
treatment is grounded in science: "We cane the patients on the buttocks
with a clear and definite medical purpose—it is not some warped
sado-masochistic activity," insists Professor Chukhrova. The pair say
that addicts suffer from a lack of endorphins, and that pain can
stimulate the brain to release the feel-good chemicals, "making patients
feel happier in their own skins." Mainstream doctors dismiss the
practice, saying that exercise, acupuncture, massage, chocolate or sex
are all better at stimulating endorphin secretion. Dr. Pilipenko admits,
"we get a lot of skepticism...but so do all pioneers." The Siberian Times reports
that "the reaction of most people is predictable: to snigger, scoff or
make jokes loaded with sexual innuendo." And one recipient of the
treatment, 41-year-old recovering alcoholic Yuri, says
his girlfriend accused him of simply visiting a dominatrix. But he adds
that although "the first strike was sickening...Somehow I got through
all 30 lashes. The next day I got up with a stinging backside but no
desire at all to touch the vodka in the fridge. The bottle has stayed
there now for a year."
Natasha, a 22-year-old
recovering heroin addict with several months clean, says, "I am the
proof that this controversial treatment works, and I recommend it to
anyone suffering from an addiction or depression. It hurts like
crazy—but it's given me back my life." She receives 60 strokes of the
cane per session (drug addicts get double the dose of alcoholics), at a
cost of about $100. Her "therapy" is hardly for the faint-hearted: "With
each lash," says Natasha, "I scream and grip tight to the end of the
surgical table. It's a stinging pain, real agony, and my whole body
jolts." But she also insists, "I'm not a masochist. My parents never
beat me or even slapped me, so this was my first real physical pain and
it was truly shocking. If people think there's anything sexual about it,
then it's nonsense." Professor Chukhrova stresses that care is taken to
ensure clients' safety: "The beating is really the end of the
treatment. We do a lot of psychological counseling first, and also use
detox. It is only after all the counseling, and heart and pain
resistance checks, that we start with the beating." The doctor adds that
the willow branches used are "flexible and can't be broken nor cause
bleeding." And the practitioners are also at pains to deny any ulterior
motives: "If any patients get sexual pleasure from the beatings, we stop
immediately," says Professor Chukhrova. "This is not what our treatment
is about. If they're looking for that, there are plenty of other places
to go."
Saturday, January 26, 2013
Addiction Recovery - "The Most Excellent Way"
Since
1986, "The Most Excellent Way" has been providing the Christian
solution to chemical dependency and life-controlling problems: Jesus!
"The
Most Excellent Way" is LOVE according to the Bible, 1 Corinthians
12:31, 13:3-8. God Himself demonstrated His love for us by freely giving
us the gift of Life, abundant Life, His Son. And, we love because He
first loved us!
"At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived
and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures.
We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another.
But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared,
He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of His mercy.
He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit,
whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior,
so that, having been justified by his grace,
we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life."
Titus 3:3-7 NIV
"The
Most Excellent Way" is a loving group of men and women affected
directly or indirectly by drugs or alcohol or any addictive behavior as
pornography or any anti-Biblical behavior. In the Support Meetings, we
grow in our faith in Christ with the encouragement of God's Word and
prayers. Thousands worldwide have been helped through attending these
weekly meetings.
A person can be totally free from addiction and
compulsive behavior only by the power of the indwelling Spirit of Christ
Jesus. Your Creator has created you and knows everything about you
(everything!) and if you are one of His, He still loves you. And…there
is a good purpose and a plan for your life.
Please join us on Wednesday evenings for this loving, caring support group meeting! We are here for YOU!
First Baptist Church Markham Woods contact person: Ernie Rudisill
Visit the national headquarters website at www.mostexcellentway.org
Addiction Support Group Meeting
Weekly: Wednesdays – 8:15PM
First Baptist Church Markham Woods
5400 Markham Woods Road
Lake Mary, FL 32746
407.333.2085
Friday, January 25, 2013
Teaching Teens to Manage Personality Traits May Reduce Problem Drinking
High school programs that teach teens to better manage
their personality traits can help reduce and postpone problem drinking, a
new study suggests.
“Two factors determine problem drinking: personality and peer
pressure,” said study author Dr. Patricia Conrod of King’s College
London’s Institute of Psychiatry. “Teaching young people how to better
manage their personality traits or vulnerabilities helps them make the
right decisions in given situations, whether it is a matter of
overcoming their fears, managing thoughts that make them very emotional,
controlling their compulsions, analyzing objectively the intentions of
others or improving their self-perception.”
In the two-year study, high school staff in London worked with
ninth-grade students, who were divided into two groups. One group
participated in a personality-based intervention program run by school
staff, while the second group received the standard United Kingdom drug
and alcohol curriculum. All of the students’ drinking patterns were
examined.
Students filled out a personality questionnaire to determine their
risk of developing future alcohol dependence. Personality traits
identified with a greater risk of alcohol dependence included
impulsivity, hopelessness, sensation-seeking, or anxiety, Newswise reports.
School staff members trained in the personality-based program
delivered group workshops targeting the different personality profiles.
The workshops taught the teens to better manage their personality
traits. “Our study shows that this mental health approach to alcohol
prevention is much more successful in reducing drinking behavior than
giving teenagers general information on the dangers of alcohol,” Dr.
Conrod said in a news release.
After two years, the study found high-risk students in the
intervention group had a 29 percent reduced risk of drinking, a 43
percent reduced risk of binge drinking, and a 29 percent reduced risk of
problem drinking, compared with high-risk students in the standard drug
and alcohol education programs. The intervention also significantly
slowed the progression to more risky drinking behavior in the high-risk
students over the two years.
The study appears in JAMA Psychiatry.
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