Editorial

Daily media reports document in dramatic fashion the problems in human suffering associated with substance use disorders (SUDs). These accounts typically focus on the devastation associated with SUDs and often fail to note the hope associated with treatment and recovery. The Alcoholism Treatment Quarterly (ATQ) since its inception has promoted an interprofessional response to the individual, community, and societal problems associated with SUDs, confident that over time many pathways to treatment and recovery can be found and implemented.

Best and de Alwis describe how hope born of recovery increases community cohesion, challenges stigmatization, and increases the integration of populations in recovery into the larger communities. A further expression of hope-based recovery is recounted by Isler and his colleagues, as they describe the ability of recovery homes, like the Oxford House, to maintain a healing and supportive relationship between parent(s) in recovery and their children as parents and children live together in a healing community. Zaccari and her coauthors describe how a mixed-gender seeking-safety group enabled the participants to grow in recovery while reducing post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) related symptoms. The ability of these groups to create a safe place enables the participants to appreciate and apply the shared helping, coping strategies. The withdrawal regimen, associated with alcohol dependence (alcohol use disorders), is an essential component of treatment which Beresford and his colleagues explore in terms of a new Severity of Withdrawal Scale (SEWS), which promises to safely reduce the time and use of medications associated with previous withdrawal regimens. The ability of infrared spectroscopy to identify the effects of alcohol and other drugs and the functioning of the brain is leading to exciting new discoveries which have significant treatment and recovery implications. Wagner and others’ study examines the relationship between prefrontal cortex activity and expressions of anxiety found in alcohol use disorder recovery, brain activation, as experiences by moderate and binge drinkers are examined with a focus on how alcohol mediates attention and response inhibition. In a related study, Kashfi and his colleagues examine the effects of moderate and binge drinking on spatial attention. Both of these brain studies have implications for treatment and recovery.

The Perspectives section of the ATQ is dedicated to the exploration of the larger issues, including policy, theory, terminology, cultural considerations and others, which have treatment and recovery implications. Williams and Mee-Lee examine the models of addictions that underpin modern discharge categories in treatment settings. They propose that the “moral-choice” compliance, contrary to a modern understanding nature of addiction, be replaced by a participatory model stressing empowerment and autonomy with client-fueled adherence and commitment to recovery as the driving force. Perumbilly and Anderson provide an important international perspective on the treatment of SUDs as they paint a very hopeful picture of treatment initiatives in India, initiatives that embrace in interprofessional approach, with a commendable focus on the relational and familial dimensions of recovery.

At the outset of this editorial, an absence of hope in addressing the many problems associated with SUDs, especially in media coverage was noted. A welcome relief from such negative coverage is found in the recent publication Facing Addiction in America: The Surgeon General’s Report on Alcohol, Drugs and Health (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2016). Dr. Murthy’s elegant report realistically captures the challenges and promise in dealing with addiction as a chronic illness, where treatment and recovery issues are imbedded in the larger health system and enterprises that “recognizes the humanity within each of us.” The next issue of the ATQ will provide commentary on this very important report. As a final note, contributors to the ATQ are asked to use the ScholarOne program in submitting manuscripts for review. Your patience is appreciated as we adjust to this new program. As always, readers’ comments on this issue of the ATQ and suggestions on the direction and relevance of the journal are welcomed.