Sovereign Health Announces Impactful LA Times Editorial, 'This New Addiction Treatment Helps the Brain Heal,' from CEO Dr. Tonmoy Sharma

"We know substance abuse causes damage to the brain. Alcoholism, for example, causes significant gray matter loss, and that can affect decision-making processes," said Dr. Sharma. "With cognitive remediation therapy, our goal is to bolster and teach compensatory strategies. We can target certain functions, like attention or memory issues, and it has shown to help people stay in treatment longer."

As noted in the article, Sovereign is one of the few treatment centers in the country that not only studies the cognitive deficits caused by drugs and alcohol, but also offers cognitive remediation therapy (CRT) as part of its behavioral health treatment programs. CRT utilizes brain-training activities to exercise specific cognitive functions.

The use of CRT in addiction treatment is still in the early stages. But as addiction experts increasingly treat addiction as a mental health issue rather than a conscious choice, neurological tools such as CRT are becoming more common. "Overcoming addiction is more than just wanting to stop," said Dr. Kumari. "There are underlying brain issues that drive addiction, and once that becomes more accepted, CRT should become more widespread in addiction care."

Dr. Sharma has been recognized with numerous awards and honors for his work in advancing mental health treatment in the U.S., Europe and Southeast Asia. In 2009, he helped found Sovereign Health, which now operates nine treatment facilities throughout the United States. For more information about Dr. Sharma, click here.

Dr. Kumari is a leader in the psychiatric and neuroscience research fields. She obtained her Ph.D. in psychology from Banaras Hindu University, India, in 1993 before moving to the Institute of Psychiatry in London, U.K., to continue her research. Dr. Kumari has over 250 publications in reputable psychology, psychiatry and neuroscience journals.

About Sovereign Health

One factor that differentiates Sovereign from other treatment providers has been its ability to offer separate mental health and addiction or dual diagnosis treatment programs at its facilities. Patients seek its services to receive treatment for mental health issues, including trauma, schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Sovereign also offers treatment for cognitive deficits and eating disorders. For more information, visit www.sovhealth.com.  

SOURCE Sovereign Health

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