First Things First — When Recovery From Addiction Feels Overwhelmingly Difficult, Keep It Simple
Recovery from addiction. Just three words — Keep It Simple. Such a big meaning, such a confusing concept – especially for those living with the family disease of addiction. Questions swirl: What does a person do? How is it done? Can it possibly work? Where do I start? If it’s not me but my family…
Read MoreHonor Veterans Support Their Mental Health
One of the most important ways we can honor our veterans this Veterans Day is to support their mental health. And I mean SUPPORT as in doing the same kinds of things we do to SUPPORT a person’s physical health. We don’t question or shame or expect speedy results when a person seeks help and…
Read MoreSecondhand Drinking: Society’s Problem
Secondhand drinking is society’s problem. Most of us are unaware (don’t notice) it exists in our workplaces, schools, families and communities. Most of us don’t know nearly 80 million Americans are directly affected, as are hundreds of millions more worldwide. This count doesn’t include those indirectly affected. As such, you or someone you know are…
Read MoreExcessive Alcohol Use – a Leading Cause of Preventable Death
Excessive alcohol use is a leading cause of preventable death in America. It causes more preventable deaths than opioid overdoses; more preventable deaths than all drug overdose deaths combined. It causes more preventable deaths than car crashes. According to the CDC, “excessive alcohol use is responsible for more than 95,000 deaths in the United States each…
Read MoreHow Does a Person Lose Control of Their Drinking
How does a person lose control of their drinking? How much is too much? What can a person do to regain control – or can they? Readers asking these kinds of questions have risen dramatically as drinking and relapse have escalated during the Covid-19 pandemic. But it’s not just readers worried about their own drinking…
Read MoreWhen Drinking Causes Secondhand Drinking – It’s a Problem
“When drinking causes secondhand drinking — it’s a problem” is a concept not widely understood. Yet it’s a problem for nearly 80 million Americans (and hundreds of millions more worldwide). Who are these people? They are the moms, dads, husbands, wives, brothers, sisters, children, grandchildren…whose loved one’s behaviors change when they drink alcohol. They are the…
Read MoreSubstance Use Disorder Recovery Needs to be a Family Affair
Substance use disorder recovery needs to be a family affair for one simple reason. A person’s substance use disorder (SUD (whether it involves alcohol or other drug) affects nearly every member of a family. Much of my work has been around raising awareness of the little understood fact and the importance of treating both “sides”…
Read MoreIt’s Just Marijuana or Is It?
“It’s just marijuana!” I can’t tell you how many times I hear this in my work. Many go on to defend using marijuana as safer, less harmful to self and others than drinking alcohol or using other drugs, like cocaine or prescription pain meds. It’s Just Marijuana or Is It? Now I am the last…
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