South Africans are taught to trust what they see. If someone looks healthy, they must be healthy. If someone is eating in public, they cannot possibly have an eating disorder. If someone goes to gym, posts normal photos, works, studies, parents, jokes, and gets on with life, then clearly nothing serious is happening. That mindset is why eating disorders are […]
Cannabis dependence is easy to dismiss because it does not look like what people expect addiction to be. There are no obvious binges, no violent withdrawals, no dramatic social collapse that forces recognition. The person using cannabis may appear calm, functional, and in control. This creates a powerful illusion that nothing serious is happening. Because the stereotype of addiction is […]
Domestic violence linked to alcohol is often described through physical incidents, shouting matches, and the obvious explosions that tear through a home. Yet long before anything becomes visible, children feel the emotional weather change. They sense the tension in the air as if the home itself is holding its breath. Their bodies tighten, their hearts race, and their instincts alert […]
Rehab Is Not the Finish Line, It’s the Starting Point Most people think rehab is where the real magic happens. They imagine a 28-day programme that cleans someone up, fixes their thinking, heals their trauma, and sends them back into the world reborn. Families especially cling to this idea because it offers hope, the hope that once rehab ends, the […]
Loving Someone With Addiction Will Break You If You’re Not Careful Helping a person with addiction is one of the hardest emotional experiences anyone can go through, not because you don’t love them, but because addiction turns love into a battlefield. You’re constantly torn between wanting to save them and trying to save yourself. You feel guilty when you pull […]
When Addiction Enters a Home, Violence Often Follows People like to pretend that addiction is only about substances. They talk about drinking, using, gambling, or smoking as if these behaviours exist in a vacuum. But inside real homes, behind closed doors and drawn curtains, addiction often brings something far more dangerous than the substance itself, violence. Sometimes it’s loud and […]
Sobriety is an ongoing journey, not a fixed destination. Relapses can occur because addiction is a chronic illness that requires lifelong management. Studies indicate that 40 to 60% of those struggling with drug or alcohol addiction will relapse. While relapses are serious and disappointing, they are not insurmountable. Similar to other chronic illnesses like diabetes or asthma, relapse rates are […]
We’ve often heard the narrative of addiction disrupting lives. But seldom do we dive deep into the transformative journey that ensues when an individual receives proper addiction treatment, a journey not just of recovery but of profound personal and professional growth. Dr. Andrew Tatarsky, a renowned figure in the field of addiction treatment, has always emphasized the importance of understanding […]
In the bustling wards and clinical rooms of our rehab centre, patients often enter with burdens heavier than just their addictions; they carry the weight of society’s judgements, bias, and deeply embedded stigma. As a medical doctor working tirelessly with countless patients, I’ve borne witness to a potent tool that not only aids in combating addiction itself but also in […]
It’s not uncommon to hear people say, “It’s just dagga; it can’t be addictive,” or, “It’s a prescription drug, so it must be safe.” These myths about addiction can be misleading and even dangerous. Addiction is not limited to illicit drugs like tik or heroin. As you delve deeper into the world of substances and their effects, you’ll discover that […]