Mental Health Month: You Are Not Your Illness

“You are not your illness. You have an individual story to tell. You have a name, a history, a personality. Staying yourself is part of the battle.” – Julian Siefter   For Mental Health Month, our very own Jody Morgan has shared part of her story with us.    ​I started working in the mental […]

What is #NoMoreShame?

    Stigma surrounding addiction and mental illness has always been an impediment to eradicating the addiction epidemic. Stigma prevents people from asking for help and often causes them to isolate, which is never the answer. There are many organizations today that are working to fight the stigma of addiction, including Stamp Out Stigma, New […]

Ohio is the Worst State for Opioid Overdoses

Ohio is at the top of the list for opioid overdoses       It is fair to say that just about every state in the country has felt the ramifications of the opioid epidemic. Drugs like Oxycontin, Fentanyl, and heroin have ravaged communities throughout the nation, leaving thousands of families grieving the loss of […]

The Importance of Recovery for Young People

Why recovery is an important topic for young people         When our modern idea of recovery from drugs and alcohol first took form in the 1930s, young people were not factored into the equation of sobriety. In fact during those early years of recovery very few women were even introduced to the […]

The Key to Your Loved One’s Recovery is You

Take care of yourself to help your loved one       People in recovery who have strong, involved support systems are more likely to recover than those who don’t. However, if you want to help your loved one get sober you have to remember to take care of yourself also.   You are your […]

The Importance of Self Care

Why it is important to prioritize self-care       It is so easy in the fast paced modern society that we live in to forget to stop, breath, and take care of ourselves. We can get so caught up in the daily goings on, the schedules, and the obligations that we completely neglect the […]

The Dangers that Synthetic Opioids Pose

Opioid abuse and the dangerous epidemic       It is no secret that synthetic opioids have become a huge problem in this country, to the point where President Obama has addressed the issue in an attempt to raise awareness among the population about the potential epidemic that we have on our hands. He has […]

Can addiction really lead to this?

Addiction and its Effect on Suicide   Addiction and suicide sometimes, unfortunately, goes hand and hand. A person caught in the depths of addiction can often times see no way out and as a result, believe that their only option is to commit suicide. This is always an extremely sad thing to hear, not only […]

Ohio’s 2017 Behavioral Health Conference

Moving forward in recovery-oriented systems of care     Ohio’s 2017 Behavioral Health Conference is coming up soon and we wanted to share some information about the event with you. The conference is taking place on January 10-11 at the Hyatt Regency in Columbus, Ohio. The theme for this year’s conference is “Moving Forward in […]

How Stigma Affects Recovery

The stigma of addiction and mental illness   As far as we’ve come as a society in our understanding of addiction there is still an overarching societal stigma that comes with being an addict or an alcoholic. The pervasive thought being that addicts and alcoholics are some shadowy figures lurking around the corner ready to […]

Not just another statistic

We are more than just a statistic   Often times it is difficult to look beyond the statistics in life. This can be especially true for anyone living with addiction or mental illness. Guest blogger Victoria Jones is here, however, to share her story and why it is important to realize that you are more […]

Let Your Voice Be Heard For Mental Health Awareness Month

What to know about Mental Health Awareness Month   It’s hard to believe that May is already here. Summer is fast approaching and so are many great mental health and addiction events. The arrival of May also means more awareness around mental health. Yes, May is mental health awareness month so we have decided to […]

A new type of addiction-recovery app: The Ascent solution

What is addiction, really? ad·dic·tion əˈdikSH(ə)n/ noun noun: addiction; plural noun: addictions the fact or condition of being addicted to a particular substance, thing, or activity. “Addiction is a chronic, often relapsing brain disease that causes compulsive drug seeking and use, despite harmful consequences to the addicted individual and to those around him or her. Although the […]

Learning about the Opiate Epidemic: Ohio’s 2016 Opiate Conference

Addiction recovery conferences and the Ascent app   A couple of weeks ago we wrote about some of the events we would be attending this year relating to addiction and mental health. One of those events is the Ohio Opiate Conference which is being held in Columbus, Ohio next Monday and Tuesday and the other […]

The causes of addiction relapse and the sobering statistics

Statistics on addiction relapse and how to address them Drug and alcohol rehab statistics show that the percentage of people who will relapse after a period of recovery ranges from 50%-90%, according to AlcoholRehab.com.  Those are the facts and those numbers are staggering. Ascent’s founder, Brian Bailys, saw this first-hand as 90% of people in […]

Ascent solution peer-recovery coach profile: Denny Wilson

Ascent solution now available for pre-order Now that the Ascent solution has been available for some time to addiction-recovery treatment centers and drug courts–and it is now officially available to consumers as well–our peer-recovery coaches have had an opportunity to connect with the first set of peers signed on. The coaches have enjoyed getting to […]

Ascent solution now available for individuals

Ascent is grateful for the feedback on its B2B launch It has now been over a month since the launch of the Ascent solution and we are blown away by the reception it has received thus far. Not only did several treatment centers and organizations choose to utilize the Ascent solution for their clients in […]

Ascent peer recovery coach profile: Shawn Pasch

How Shawn Pasch went from struggling with addiction to leading others to sobriety 2016 is already off to a great start for the recovery industry. There are exciting things happening all around the world with the addiction recovery community. Even many of the presidential candidates understand how important the addiction issue is and have made […]

Ascent peer recovery coach profile: Libby Sosa

As a follow up to last week’s post about our new peer recovery coaches, we want to take the time to share some of their stories in more detail. Everyone has a story and we hope that sharing some of our coach’s stories will help motivate and inspire others on their journey through recovery. This […]

How drug courts can use Ascent’s solution

Relapse happens. It happens often. Addiction treatment centers are all too familiar with it, and unfortunately, the current approaches to continuing care are frequently ineffective. Ascent’s service, however, takes a different approach to aftercare. The Ascent solution is an e-recovery tool paired with peer recovery coaching. Ascent has partnered with A-CHESS to enhance aftercare recovery […]