Addiction Medicine Made Easy | Fighting back against addiction
Health, Fitness & Longevity
About
Addiction is killing us. Over 100,000 Americans died of drug overdose in the last year, and over 100,000 Americans died from alcohol use in the last year. We need to include addiction medicine as a part of everyone's practice! We take topics in addiction medicine and break them down into digestible nuggets and clinical pearls that you can use at the bedside. We are trying to create an army of health care providers all over the world who want to fight back against addiction - and we hope you will join us.*This podcast was previously the Addiction in Emergency Medicine and Acute Care podcast*
Episodes
- Whipped Cream With A Side Of Spinal Cord Damage
This episode discusses nitrous oxide (whippets) from an addiction medicine perspective, detailing why it is addictive and its resemblance to ketamine, benzodiazepines, and opioids. It covers serious health risks like spinal cord degenerati…
- Goodbye Benzos, My Old Friend: Benzodiazepine Tapering Done Right
This episode translates ASAM benzodiazepine tapering guidelines for clinicians and patients, discussing dose reduction strategies, differentiating dependence from use disorder, and addressing access to care. It also covers special risks fo…
- What Happens in Residential Treatment: Inside The Place Rock Bottom Leads To
This episode features Rachel Docekal, CEO of the Hanley Foundation, discussing the specifics of residential addiction treatment and partial hospitalization. They cover program structure, patient care, quality indicators, ethical practices,…
- Why Pushing A Loved One Harder to Get Sober Doesn't Help
Therapist Jeff Jones discusses how pressuring a loved one struggling with addiction can hinder their recovery. He explains the benefits of setting boundaries, utilizing techniques like the 180-degree experiment and journaling, and reframin…
- An OB Addiction Specialist Explains Why Marijuana Is Not Benign In Pregnancy
Dr. Nazanin Amadieh, an OBGYN and addiction specialist, explains the risks of modern high-potency marijuana use during pregnancy. The discussion covers impacts on fetal development, newborn outcomes, and postpartum relapse, emphasizing the…
- BIND: Benzodiazepine Induced Neurological Dysfunction
Dr. Andrew Rizzo explains Benzodiazepine Induced Neurological Dysfunction (BIND), detailing the biological mechanisms of chronic benzodiazepine use, including GABA receptor function and the brain's adaptation processes. The discussion cove…
- Straight to the Shot: A New Way to Quit Fentanyl and Start Buprenorphine
This episode discusses a new direct-to-inject protocol for initiating buprenorphine treatment in fentanyl addiction, aiming to simplify the process and reduce withdrawal symptoms. It compares different methods and protocols, highlighting t…
- Addicted to Toxic Relationships: Trauma, Sex Work, and The Fight for Recovery
This episode of Addiction Medicine Made Easy features a conversation with Carly about her experiences with addiction stemming from trauma, including sexual assault and harassment. The discussion covers substance abuse, recovery, the comple…
- What I Told a Room Full of High School Seniors About College Party Culture
This episode addresses college party culture, offering guidance on safe alcohol consumption, the effects of modern cannabis, consent issues, and recognizing signs of alcohol addiction. It provides practical advice for college-bound student…
- You Can Use Hypnosis to Drink Less Alcohol???
This episode explores how clinical hypnotherapist Georgia Foster utilizes hypnosis to help individuals reduce alcohol consumption. The discussion covers the neurological basis of drinking behavior, the role of the amygdala and prefrontal c…
- Understanding Addiction — For the People Who Love Someone Struggling
This episode discusses addiction as a brain systems failure, not a lack of willpower. It covers cravings, compulsive use, harm reduction, adolescent brain development, the dangers of withdrawal, and practical steps for families to support…
- Saving Lives: How To Recognize And Reverse An Opioid Overdose
This episode provides a step-by-step guide on recognizing and reversing opioid overdoses using naloxone. It explains how opioids affect the brain's breathing center, the signs of overdose, how to administer nasal naloxone, and addresses co…
- Wait… Weed Does That??? The Cannabis Side Effects Nobody Warned You About
This episode explores how high-potency cannabis can affect psychiatric medications, sedation, and recovery, challenging the notion of cannabis as benign. Doctors discuss its impact on medication efficacy, the need for adjusted sedation pro…
- Up All Night: How Drugs, Alcohol, and Recovery Disrupt Sleep—and How to Fix It
This episode features psychologist Helen Dugdale discussing how substances and recovery impact sleep. It explores the formation of insomnia, the role of anxiety, and evidence-based strategies like CBT-I and EMDR to improve sleep, offering…
- Could This Device Change the Future of Addiction Treatment???
The episode features Joe Winston discussing a wearable neuromodulation device for opioid withdrawal, which uses patterned electrical stimulation to ease symptoms and cravings. The discussion covers the device's adaptive technology, clinica…
- How Ketamine Treats Depression, Anxiety, And PTSD
This episode features addiction psychiatrist Dr. Mark Hrymoc discussing ketamine therapy for mental health conditions like depression, anxiety, and PTSD. The discussion covers treatment protocols, how ketamine works, patient screening, ris…
- Parents in Recovery: Navigating Sobriety While Raising a Family
This episode features licensed counselor Sarah Benton discussing how parents in recovery can maintain sobriety while raising a family. They cover practical strategies for routines, setting limits, preventing burnout, and building a support…
- Parallel Recovery: What If Helping Your Loved One With Addiction Begins With Healing You?
This episode discusses Parallel Recovery, a method where personal healing aids in supporting a loved one struggling with addiction. It covers setting boundaries, communication techniques, and creating sustainable change within family dynam…
- How Cold Immersion, Breath Work, Yoga, And Meditation Can Build Lasting Sobriety
This episode discusses using the body to rewire the brain for addiction recovery, focusing on cold water immersion, breath work, meditation, and yoga as practical tools for impulse control and nervous system regulation. Coach Jason Lyle sh…
- Quaalude, Black Beauties, and More: A History of Misused Prescriptions
This episode examines the history of misused prescription drugs, including Quaaludes and Black Beauties, detailing their effects on modern medications and highlighting crucial lessons about safety, dependence, and withdrawal.
- How to Build Emotional Resilience
This episode defines emotional resilience as a learnable skill with six key domains: vision, composure, reasoning, health, tenacity, and collaboration. It offers practical strategies for managing stress, addiction, and burnout, including j…
- Wonderful Person, Horrible Disease: What It's Like Being Married To Someone With Addiction
A physician details the devastating effects of her husband's alcoholism, fueled by PTSD, on their family, covering crisis interventions, safety planning for children, and the challenges of stigma. She highlights the importance of setting b…
- How to Help Someone With Addiction Who Isn't Ready to Change
This episode discusses compassionate frameworks for helping individuals with addiction who are not yet ready for change. It emphasizes shifting from a
- A Principal’s Playbook For School Drug Prevention
Principal Leland Hansen shares a practical playbook for school drug prevention, focusing on a health-first approach with a six-week program for first offenses. The discussion covers current challenges like vape pens and online dealers, and…
- Why Substance Use Looks Different After 65
This episode of Addiction Medicine Made Easy examines how substance use risks change after age 65, focusing on alcohol, benzodiazepines, opioids, and cannabis. It covers age-related biological factors, diagnostic challenges, safer detox an…
- A Bariatric Surgeon Schools Me On Food Addiction and Weight Loss Surgery
Bariatric surgeon Dr. Mark Vierra explains how weight-loss surgery affects appetite hormones and signals, discussing patient selection, alternative treatments like medication, and the increased risk of alcohol use disorder after gastric by…
- The Brain Science Behind Addiction
This episode unpacks the brain science behind addiction, explaining how a hunter-gatherer reward system interacts with modern dopamine superstimuli. It covers cravings, compulsion, genetic risks, the link with mental health conditions, and…
- Gas Station Heroin and the Loopholes Fueling “Legal Highs” In America
This episode discusses the proliferation of "legal highs" like tianeptine, often disguised as dietary supplements, and their exploitation of regulatory loopholes. It examines the supply chain, risks associated with various kratom products,…
- What It’s Really Like To Practice Addiction Medicine
This episode details the practice of addiction medicine, focusing on a Central Coast California clinic's low-barrier, compassionate approach. It covers treatment with long-acting injectables, peer support, and integrated care for trauma an…
- Busting Myths, Building Trust: Communicating with Patients
Drs. Casey Grover and Sarah Nasir discuss effective communication strategies for patients with addiction, addressing common myths and exploring topics like medication-assisted treatment, trauma
- Dual Diagnosis: Why Treating One Without the Other Never Works
This episode discusses the challenges of treating dual diagnosis patients, where mental health conditions and addiction are intertwined. Dr. Mark Hrymoc emphasizes the need for simultaneous treatment, exploring various medication options a…
- Weight Loss Surgery Doesn't Treat Food Addiction
Dr. Casey Grover explores the science of food addiction, detailing how the food industry engineers addictive products and why weight loss surgery fails to address the underlying mental health issues. He shares his personal experience with…
- Stigma 4: When Heroes Need Help
This episode, the final in a series on stigma, focuses on the mental health challenges faced by first responders. Experts discuss how the high-stress nature of their work can lead to issues like PTSD and addiction, and how stigma often pre…
- Stigma 3: Mom vs. Addiction - The battle she never signed up for
Wendy Solorio shares her emotional experience as a mother supporting her daughter through addiction and recovery, detailing the challenges faced by families including navigating healthcare, financial burdens, and stigma.
- Stigma 2: Stigma Hurts, Compassion Heals
This episode details Gabrielle's recovery from fentanyl addiction, illustrating how compassion from a correctional officer and family support aided her transformation. Her story highlights the impact of dignity in recovery and the shift fr…
- Stigma 1: The Other Side of Addiction - Finding Light After Darkness
Ana Alamo details her personal journey from addiction to recovery, highlighting how her experiences with trauma and substance use, including pills and fentanyl, led to legal trouble and ultimately a path toward becoming a peer support spec…
- Benzodiazepines - Pills That Sedate but Don't Rehabilitate
Dr. Casey Grover explains that benzodiazepines, while sedating, do not rehabilitate patients. Long-term use can lead to tolerance, dependence, and severe withdrawal, with no specific medications available for addiction treatment. Modern me…
- When your brain can't let go: Understanding the PTSD-addiction connection
This episode discusses the deep connection between trauma and addiction, noting how unresolved PTSD often leads to substance use. It covers various trauma types, the impact of adverse childhood experiences, overlapping diagnoses like ADHD…
- Medical Literature Matters: How Addiction Professionals Keep Learning
This episode discusses practical strategies for addiction professionals to stay updated with addiction medicine research. It covers incorporating lived experience, developing personalized learning approaches, and making knowledge applicati…
- Meet Your Inner Mentor (Your Inner Critic Already Knows You) - Anonymous Drama Therapy
Mark MacNichol explains Anonymous Drama Therapy, which uses dramatic techniques to help individuals process trauma and develop emotional wellbeing by viewing inner thoughts as characters. Over 5,000 people have participated in programs pri…
- Breaking Barriers: Creating Patient-Friendly Addiction Treatment
Dr. Amy Swift explains how to create patient-friendly addiction treatment by reducing stigma, using trauma-informed approaches, and increasing accessibility. She highlights the importance of viewing addiction as a brain disease and adaptin…
- How To Use Naloxone Like a Pro with Dr. Reb Close (Rebroadcast)
Addiction specialists Drs. Casey Grover and Reb Close provide guidance on using naloxone (Narcan) to reverse opioid overdoses. They detail administration differences for medical versus community settings, highlighting the critical need for…
- Ketamine: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly
Dr. Casey Grover examines ketamine's dual nature, covering its benefits for treatment-resistant depression and PTSD, alongside risks like addiction and "ketamine bladder." The episode addresses the rise in recreational use, the lack of spe…
- When Mental Health Meets Primary Care: Transforming Addiction Treatment
This episode discusses integrating behavioral health and addiction services into primary care settings to improve healthcare delivery and treatment access. Drs. Patti Robinson and Jeff Reiter share their experiences creating integrated pra…
- Treating Opioid Withdrawal—With the Ear???
The ST Genesis device, using percutaneous nerve field stimulation on cranial nerves in the ear, significantly reduces opioid withdrawal symptoms by activating the parasympathetic nervous system. This FDA-approved technology may shorten the…
- A Deep Dive into Urine Drug Testing
This episode discusses urine drug testing in addiction treatment, detailing different testing methods like immunoassay and chromatography. It covers challenges such as false results, emerging substances like nitazenes, and adulteration det…
- The High Functioning Patient with Addiction
Dr. Samantha Harte shares her experience with high-functioning addiction, highlighting how perfectionism can mask internal struggles. She discusses her journey from overdose to becoming an author and recovery coach, emphasizing trauma-info…
- Breaking the Ice: Treating Methamphetamine Use Disorder
Dr. Casey Grover discusses methamphetamine use disorder, detailing its history, potent dopamine-releasing effects, and treatment strategies including medications like bupropion and contingency management. Addressing co-occurring ADHD and s…
- What Every Doctor Should Know About Addiction: Buprenorphine, Naltrexone, and More
This episode covers medication-assisted treatment for opioid and alcohol use disorders, focusing on medications like buprenorphine, naltrexone, disulfiram, and acamprosate. It explores addiction as a self-regulation challenge and discusses…
- What I Learned About Addiction from Matt Butler’s Prison Concerts
Matt Butler, a singer-songwriter, shares insights from performing concerts in prisons for a decade. He explains how music can create transformative healing spaces in correctional environments by penetrating emotional defenses and allowing…