Eating disorders often involve extreme emotions, attitudes, and behaviors. These all move around weight and food. Disorder include but are not limited to: anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder, and other feeding or eating disorders. They disrupt the life of the person suffering, as well as the family. Recent studies show that up to 30 million people of all ages and genders suffer from an eating disorder. Unfortunately, only 1 in 10 receives treatment for their condition.

There IS Hope for Eating Disorder Recovery

Many people who have an eating disorder can connect to a deep emotional or psychological issue that adds to their illness. Certified ARISE® Interventionists have the knowledge and experience to handle even the most complex cases.

Behavioral Health issues often interfere with or substantially limits major life activities. These activities include work, communication with others, ability to learn at school, capacity to care for oneself and engagement in relationships. Untreated, or under-treated mental illnesses is a common factor in homelessness. Furthermore, a significant percentage of incarcerated people have severe mental illnesses. Although these are two extreme examples, it is important to recognize this as a risk.

Approximately 1 in 5 adults in the U.S., that is about 43.8 million people is suffering from a mental illness. Almost 18.5% of people in America experiences mental illness in a given year. What’s more, it is also important to remember that mental illness is an illness like any other.

Gambling is a process addiction. Similar to addictions to shopping, sex, binge eating, the Internet, and hoarding, gambling affects all aspects of life. As high as two percent of adults who gamble will eventually develop a gambling-related addiction. Similar to other process addictions, gambling addictions may not initially present themselves as such.

Process addictions tend to increase over time. At first, the addiction appears to be just for fun. There seem to be no negative consequences to the Person of Concern or other members of the family. However, despite the growing concerns the addictive individual experiences, it may feel impossible to quit.

Gambling addiction is often expensive and can endanger many aspects of a person’s life. For example:

• financial stability
• job security,
• relationships

People suffering from a gambling addiction learn how to hide the truth. Traits such as blame-shifting and behavior justification allow a person to continue destructive behavior. Many individuals who suffer from a gambling addiction resort to gambling when they are worried, stressed, or angry.

Video games are a popular leisure-time activity for many teens and adults. It can be challenging to recognize gaming addiction because it is so widely accepted as a recreational activity. However, gaming addiction is a growing concern around the world, and those who struggle with it need help and support to recover.

Regular or online Gaming addiction can present in a variety of ways. A person may show signs of addicted behavior through an obsession with the game, or perhaps even lying about the amount of time or money spent gaming. Additionally, neglect of social life, loss of time, bouts of anxiety and anger, as well as a change in personal hygiene are all characteristics of someone who is struggling with an addiction to gaming.

According to recent studies, gaming addiction causes similar changes in the pleasure-center of the brain as those seen in long-term drug addicts. A person may sit down for an hour an unintentionally continue to play for 4-5 hours without stopping.

At first, gaming will produce increased dopamine levels in the brain. Over time, those addicted to gaming experience normal dopamine levels while gaming, and lowered levels while not playing video games. This leads to dependency and addiction, much like drug or alcohol addiction, with similar effects on the brain. Increased play time means increased dopamine levels in the brain. The gaming addict may not notice the need for more and more game time as it grows slowly over time.

Internet addiction disorder (IAD), also known as problematic Internet use (PIU) or compulsive Internet use (CIU), refers to excessive computer or internet usage to the point that it interferes with daily life. Internet addiction disorder is a process addiction or compulsive disorder much like compulsive shopping/spending, sex addiction, hoarding, compulsive eating, gaming addiction or gambling addiction. Studies show that the same brain structural changes are present in those with an Internet addiction disorder as those addicted to drugs or alcohol.

Many people addicted to Internet may begin to show signs of pulling away from their non-digital lives and connecting more with the experiences online. Usage becomes a problem when the amount of time needed to feel satisfied by the Internet increases to the point that it begins interfering with the Person of Concerns daily life. Those struggling with Compulsive Internet Usage will experience an interruption of typical daily life, social relationships, work, and physical health. Even in the face of negative consequences, the Person of Concern is unable to pull away from the lure of online and internet activities.

Sex addiction is the compulsive participation or engagement in sexual activity. Despite negative consequences, those suffering from this addiction are not able to stop. Often, those with a sex addiction are unable to control their sexual behaviors, urges, and thoughts.

A Misunderstood Addiction

Sex addiction can often be misunderstood. Like many other process addictions (such as gambling, gaming, or shopping) can often go unnoticed and undiagnosed for long periods of time. As sexual behaviors become more obsessive, they become more disruptive. Additionally, these habits may cause severe damage to one’s life. Hiding the repercussions may be impossible for the person suffering from the addiction.

Compulsive shopping, spending, and hoarding – is a compulsion like other process addictions (such as sex addiction, gambling, gaming addiction, Internet addiction, and addiction to food). It originates, like other addictions, from trauma, loss and/or abuse that expresses itself as an unmet emotional need. For many, buying items, spending money, and holding on to objects can provide temporary relief from the feelings of distress. They provide the Person of Concern with a sense of identity and self esteem, or fill a void that they are often not even aware of. Often these behaviors result in a cycle of impulse and regret very difficult to break.

Compulsive Shopping & Spending

Compulsive shopping & spending, also knowing as compulsive-buying disorder (CBD), is said to impact as many as 6% of the American population.

In today’s society many people associate material goods with happiness, the rush of buying a new home, a new car, or a cute new outfit makes us feel good. For those suffering from a compulsive shopping and spending disorder they feel that a new purchase could change their standing in society, or their outlook on life – just one more purchase could fill that void

A person suffering from a compulsive-shopping/spending disorder will often feel the compulsion to purchase, regardless of the product. The desire to shop is usually the most intense when battling strong, negative emotions and thoughts.

Compulsive shopping, spending, and hoarding – is a compulsion like other process addictions (such as sex addiction, gambling, gaming addiction, Internet addiction, and addiction to food). It originates, like other addictions, from trauma, loss and/or abuse that expresses itself as an unmet emotional need. For many, buying items, spending money, and holding on to objects can provide temporary relief from the feelings of distress. They provide the Person of Concern with a sense of identity and self esteem, or fill a void that they are often not even aware of. Often these behaviors result in a cycle of impulse and regret very difficult to break.

Compulsive Hoarding

Compulsive Hoarding – often a result of compulsive shopping/spending, is the consistent inability to part with objects. Even in the face of unhealthy living conditions, separation from loved ones and friends, or legal troubles, a person struggling with a Compulsive Hoarding Disorder is unable to stop collecting objects regardless of actual value.

Commonly collected objects include newspapers, pets, boxes, children’s toys, furniture, trash, plastic bags, and receipts.

If your loved one is struggling with Compulsive Hoarding, their home is the biggest indicator. The amount of items in the home will greatly surpass that of the average home. Compulsive hoarding (also knowing as hoarding disorder) is characterized by great anxiety at the thought of throwing something away or releasing ownership in any way.

The effects of addiction in the workplace cost American businesses over $100 billion in lost productivity annually due to premature death and illness. When the Addicted Individual (AI) is the CEO, a physician, attorney or other high-level executive, the degree of risk to your business goes far beyond the financial cost, possible litigation, and a stained reputation within your industry. Our ARISE® Executive Intervention process helps your business identify those early risks and initiate Intervention before major loss in the workplace occurs.

The ARISE® Intervention is designed to meet the challenges of addiction in the workplace, is flexible, modular and can be tailored to fit the culture of your particular business and timetable. If your addicted executive has already completed treatment and you are still worried about his or her effectiveness and sobriety, ARISE® can be initiated at that time. ARISE® gets over 83% of addicted individuals into treatment, with 61% sober by the end of the first year.

An Executive Intervention calls for a highly qualified interventionist – one who is able not only to influence the addicted individual to get help with their addiction through treatment, but one who will also work with you and their colleagues to support their recovery as they return to the workplace. The ARISE® Continuum of Care will continue for a full six months after entering treatment. Our specialized Certified ARISE® Interventionists are highly professional and exercise absolute confidentiality.

Different from other forms of intervention, with our Executive ARISE® Intervention, the primary participants are the senior members of the workplace, rather than the family. Once the executive has entered treatment, the Certified ARISE® Interventionist, involves the family in regular weekly meetings with the executive and treatment team. The involvement of the senior members of your company during this phase of the ARISE® process is done only at your discretion and in consultation with the Senior Certified ARISE® Interventionist.

Towards the end of treatment, the planning process for return to the workplace or other alternatives will involve consultation between you and the Certified ARISE® Interventionist. If the executive does return to your company, the ARISE® Continuum of Care will involve work on re-entry, relationship repair as needed, and monitoring and accountability measures around the addictive behaviors. During this phase of ARISE®, the family work will continue separately from the workplace endeavors. However, measures of monitoring and accountability will also occur on the home front to support the efforts in the workplace.

While the ARISE® Invitational Intervention itself can be done gently and over a period of 1-3 weeks, in the case of Executive ARISE® Interventions, we prefer to complete this phase in one sitting to ensure that there is no further disruption or destruction in your workplace.