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How To Choose the Right Psychiatrist for Addiction Treatment
By Samuel Glazer, MD Addiction is understood as a brain disease that is multidimensional, and, to this point, there are still very few effective treatments. What we also know is that addiction responds best to a combination of both medicine and psychotherapy for the addiction, as well as its underlying causes (only once the substance…
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Kratom: Harmful or Helpful?
By Dr. Ronnit Nazarian There is little information on Kratom, and there is much misinformation out there. Some people believe Kratom is a safe drug to use because it is legal, easy to obtain, natural, advertised heavily, and has “claimed” to treat many illnesses from anxiety to diabetes to opioid withdrawal symptoms. However, the consequences…
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Understanding the Harm Reduction Model (Controlled Drinking)
By Dr. Britt Gottlich, Psy.D. According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health performed by the NSDUH, “[A]bout 7.3 percent of adults ages 18 and older who had Alcohol Use Disorder in the past year received any treatment in the past year… People with Alcohol Use Disorder were more likely to seek care…
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Cannabis: A New Drug Epidemic?
By Dr. Olga Megwinoff During the late 1990’s when I was a psychiatry resident at NYU Langone Medical Center, the opiate epidemic was just beginning. We were taught that if a patient had pain, you had to give them prescription painkillers. At the time, “research” showed that they were necessary to control pain and did…
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Anxiety and Alcohol Use
By Ronnit Nazarian, Psy. D A common theme that I have found while speaking with patients who overdrink has been that they also experience an underlying anxiety disorder. Moreover, they have mentioned having difficulty finding something that helps them disconnect from their stress and anxiety that works as well as having a drink. To most…
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What is an Addiction Therapist?
By Tracey Bassett Psy.D. Deciding to take the step to seek addiction treatment is a very important and often difficult step. It can be complicated by the overwhelming amount of treatment centers, treatment modalities, and types of professionals that say they specialize in addiction. Today, our Manhattan addiction therapists will explore the different types of…
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The Effects of the Pandemic Lockdowns: Substance Use, Depression, Anxiety, Attention and Concentration
Written by Britt Gottlich, Psy D As we begin to see an end in sight for the pandemic, I’ve spent time reflecting on my time as a psychologist for the past year. While the pandemic may be ending and places are starting to open up and as we return to a sense of normalcy, I…
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Neuropsychological Testing and Substance Use Disorders
Written by Ronnit Nazarian, Psy.D. Most of us are aware of the long-standing emotional and behavioral effects of substance abuse. However, the more subtle and detrimental effects that are harder to assess are the negative impacts substance abuse has on a person’s cognitive abilities (e.g., short-term memory, fluid reasoning, processing speed). For example, we see…
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The Importance of In-Person Addiction and Alcoholism Treatment During the COVID 19 Pandemic
There have been many mental health challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic, including increased depression, anxiety and exacerbations of PTSD as a result of isolation, changes in lifestyle and fear. Along with increases in suicidality and domestic abuse, one of the most dangerous mental health effects of the pandemic has been increased substance abuse.1Along with all…
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