addiction recover program (arp) conference merthyr tydfil, … · 2011. 11. 13. · addiction...

Addiction Recover Program (ARP) Conference

Merthyr Tydfil, Cardiff and Cheltenham Stakes

12 November 2011

Is There A Place For Me Here?

Addiction: You Will Be Freed

There is More To Addiction Than

Meets the Eye

Addiction is…

...a compulsion to repeat

a behaviour regardless

of its negative or

harmful consequences.

„Addiction has the

capacity to

disconnect the

human will and

nullify moral

agency. It can rob

one of the power

to decide.‟

Elder Boyd K.

Packer of the Quorum of the

Twelve Apostles

What Makes It Addictive?

1.

• The thalamus and brainstem regulate pleasure and reward activities. These include eating and sexuality which are important in the survival of the individual and the species.

2.

• When we overuse pleasure centres, the cells that produce dopamine are overworked. As a defence reaction, the brain decreases the amount of dopamine available and also causes shrinkage in the cells that produce the dopamine around the cerebral cortex.

3.

• Shrinkage of cerebral cortex is a consequence of addiction. The shrinkage in the cerebral cortex also contributes to the compulsivity and impulsivity seen in addiction.

Understanding the Addictive Nature of Pornography

By Donald L. Hilton Jr., MD

What Makes It Addictive?

4.

• The cerebral cortex is where benefits and risks of pleasurable stimulus are weighed. It is the "thinking" part of the brain.

5.

• Day-to-day pleasures are not enough to alleviate the brain's craving for dopamine. This craving in the newly reset pleasure thermostat in the brain is likely key in the desire to relapse.

6.

• Brain restoration comes with abstinence to pornography. Restoration to more normal brain volume has been seen with recovery in addiction.

Understanding the Addictive Nature of Pornography

By Donald L. Hilton Jr., MD

“Will

power”

is not

always

enough

We have not been

left alone

‘The submission of one’s will is

really the only uniquely personal

thing we have to place on God’s

altar. It is a hard doctrine, but it is

true.

The many other things we give to God,

however nice that may be of us, are

actually things He has already given us,

and He has loaned them to us. But

when we begin to submit ourselves by

letting our wills be swallowed up in

God‟s will, then we are really giving

something to Him.‟

Elder Neal A.

Maxwell of the Quorum of the Twelve

Apostles

ADDICTION RECOVERY PROGRAMME: A Guide to Addiction Recovery and Healing

Written with support from Church

leaders and counseling professionals

by those who have suffered from

addiction and who have experienced

the miracle of recovery through the

Atonement of Jesus Christ.

A lifetime project, not a 12 week cure.

Read, Write, Ponder, Pray, Share.

Available in 16 languages: Chinese,

Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French,

German, Italian, Japanese, Mongolian,

Norwegian, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish,

Ukrainian, Russian.

„We have known great sorrow, but we

have seen the power of the Saviour turn

our most devastating defeats into

glorious spiritual victories. We who

once lived with daily depression,

anxiety, fear and debilitating anger now

experience joy and peace. We have

witnessed miracles in our

own lives and in the lives of

others who were ensnared

in addiction.‟

“I have found peace and hope in

this programme and a resolve to

overcome my addictions through

Christ that I never thought was

possible for someone like me.”

—Luanne, who is

recovering from an

addiction to drugs

“There‟s no pretences;

there‟s no judging,” said

Jonathan, who is recovering

from an addiction to heroin

and methamphetamines.

“We come together, and we

strengthen one another and

build relationships in a way

that we can‟t have in any

other setting.”

The meaning of the title was

revealed by the artist in his

statement: “Living the gospel

demands that we help one

another climb upward out of the

darkness of the world into the

light of truth. As the Lord‟s

Church, we form a living chain

on the mountain of this mortal

existence drawing one another

toward the veil, and the

presence of the Lord.”

"Ascent" © David Linn.

Used by permission.

www.davidlinn.com

Lifting Burdens:

The Atonement of Jesus Christ

We

have

not

been

left

alone