May 22, 2013
“The Physiology of Addiction” was presented on Tuesday May 21, 2013; by Dr. Carl Christensen, MD, PhD, FACOG, CRMO, ABAM. This program explores the differences in neurochemistry between the addicted brain and the normal brain, the progression of physiological changes that occur in chemically dependent individuals, the mechanisms of physiologic tolerance and withdrawal, and the effects of treatment on the addicted brain. Dr. Carl Christensen is the Medical Director of the Addiction Medicine Services at the Detroit Medical Center; Medical Director of the James Wardell Women’s Recovery Center; and an associate with Pain Recovery Solutions in Ann Arbor, where he treats people experiencing pain and chemical dependency and specializes in treating pelvic pain and chemical dependency in pregnant women. Dr. Christensen retired in 2013 from the Wayne State University School of Medicine after serving for 32 years as an Associate Professor in the departments of Psychiatry and Obstetrics and Gynecology. He is also the Past President of the Michigan Health Professional Recovery Program and the Michigan Society of Addiction Medicine, and a past Medical Director for Dawn Farm. Dr. Christiansen has been named among the “Top Docs” in Addiction Medicine in Hour Magazine for several years. This program is part of the Dawn Farm Education Series, a FREE, annual workshop series developed to provide accurate, helpful, hopeful, practical, current information about chemical dependency, recovery, family and related issues. The Education Series is organized by Dawn Farm, a non-profit community of programs providing a continuum of chemical dependency services. For information, please see http://www.dawnfarm.org/programs/education-series.