Expressive Writing, Happiness, and Drug Addiction Treatment Expressive writing is the practice of writing about events that are very emotional or meaningful for you. During expressive writing, you are encouraged to ignore the rules of grammar, punctuation, and spelling. This allows your writing to be focused on the topic, rather […]

Addiction and the 2SLGBTQ+ Community Members of the 2SLGBTQ community are at increased risk of addiction due to the stigmas against 2SLGBTQ+ individuals, childhood trauma, lack of support and isolation. Rates of addiction within the 2SLGBTQ+ community are up to 3 times higher than the general population. This indicates the […]

The History of Electrical Brain Stimulation and Addiction Treatment Deep brain stimulation involves the implantation of electrodes in the brain. These electrodes are then able to provide continuous electrical stimulation to specific areas of the brain. The introduction of an electrical signal is used to disrupt the naturally occurring electric […]

Everywhere you look there is a headline proclaiming the increased use of opioids and the skyrocketing number of overdoses. “Opioid Epidemic” has become a household term, with our country’s opioid abuse problem all too well known. However, as the opioid epidemic dominated the headlines, another drug problem was silently thriving. […]

What is Pink? U-47700, also known as Pink, is a synthetic opioid, originally produced in hopes that it would be an effective pain killer, with a lower risk of addiction than morphine. However, this was not the case. U-47700 is in fact over 7 times more potent than morphine, and […]

“All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players: they have their exits and their entrances; and one man in his time plays many parts.” Great line isn’t it? It’s from “As You Like It” by none other than William Shakespeare. Admittedly I don’t know too […]

Chronic stress changes the architecture of the brain, due to high cortisol levels. As a result, more neurons grow in the amygdala—the region of the brain responsible for fear and anxiety. And fewer neurons grow in the prefrontal cortex and hippocampus—the regions responsible for executive functions and memory. These changes […]

Canadians currently have one of the highest per capita rates of opioid use, second only to Americans. And although we are in second place, opioid use in Canada is rapidly increasing. An abundance of opioid prescriptions, as well as easy access to illicit opioids is a cause for concern during […]

Around 2000, OxyContin appeared on Canada’s market. Twelve years later, the province of Ontario has the highest prescription opioid-related deaths and opioid addicts than in any other province in Canada.  First Nation Reserves in Ontario especially in the north have declared states of emergency.  Today Ontario wants to prevent a […]