The Coleman Institute Blog

If you are using heroin or other opioids to cope with emotional pain and are ready to live a life free of addiction, the Coleman Institute can help. Explore the best way to get off heroin with the Coleman Method, why it's important to experience our emotions, and how to live a life free of addiction.

I heard from Ken yesterday. Ken completed an Accelerated Opiate Detox with us about 5 weeks earlier. The burden lifted from his shoulders is immense.

“I want you to understand, I am not an addict,” Rebecca (not her real name), a 32-year-old social worker calling from Philadelphia, spoke emphatically into the phone.

“The pain I have is 100% legitimate and I work with a pain management specialist who is well respected. He warned me that if I spoke to a detox center, they would pigeonhole me as an addict. I simply can’t get off my pain medication by myself; I have tried and tried, and I get too ill…and then I give up.”

She was quiet for a moment and then softly began to cry. “My husband and I want to have a baby and I don’t want to be on this damn medication if I get pregnant.”

When considering the various health hazards associated with excessive alcohol consumption, the potential for physical harm often comes to mind: liver damage, heart disease and other health complications. However, one often overlooked but equally perilous consequence is Alcohol Induced Psychosis. In fact, a recent study by the National Library of Medicine suggests that up to four percent of people with alcohol dependency may develop the condition, a much higher prevalence than previously reported. Understanding the symptoms associated with Alcohol Induced Psychosis and the dangers it poses can help those struggling with excessive alcohol use recognize the onset of symptoms, avoid negative impacts and seek help from trusted addiction specialists.

Oscar* is 26 years old, has a girlfriend of five years and a one-year-old son. He has worked for a well-known delivery company for the better part of four years and has excellent insurance and benefits. Several months ago, he was physically dependent on fentanyl.

When Oscar called the Coleman Institute for Addiction Medicine in Richmond, Va., he told me that he had ‘played around’ with opioids in his teenage years, taking a Percocet or two at parties, and of course, his friends always knew there would be hydrocodone to share whenever anyone had their wisdom teeth removed. He smoked a little cannabis and drank some beer, but rarely overdid it. He was the guy who always had a job and was always a very reliable employee.