Resources for Family

When a friend or family member is struggling with drugs or alcohol, you are likely to feel a whole bunch of emotions. You might feel sad or angry or disappointed. You might feel helpless or anxious or overwhelmed. You might feel a combination of any or all of those things. And you might have a...Read More

Loneliness Is the Enemy of SobrietyIn a recent blog entry, we discussed the various ways in which staying single in the early days of recovery can be a good idea. Rushing into a romantic entanglement can add complications to an already challenging situation and is often not the best strategy for maintaining your hard-won sobriety.We...Read More

Family Systems Therapy can be particularly beneficial in the context of addiction recovery. Substance use disorder, (formerly known as substance abuse), and addiction not only affect the individual struggling with the addiction but also have a significant impact on the entire family unit. Family members may experience feelings of helplessness, anger, guilt, and anxiety, and...Read More

You have regained your sobriety and started your recovery journey. You have established some good routines—going to recovery meetings, keeping a gratitude journal, getting outside to enjoy the fresh air and beauty to be found in the natural world—and you are feeling pretty good about your ability to manage cravings and maintain your sobriety over...Read More

As a parent of an adult child who has a drinking problem, you want the best for your child. Unfortunately, things are not as simple as they once seemed and life now is very confusing. Although you still have the same love for your child, once they reach their 18th birthday they are legally considered...Read More

Whether You’re Talking Social Prescribing, Recreational Therapy, or Having a Hobby, Activity Can Help An article in The Guardian, a British news publication, caught our eye recently. Under the headline and subhead “Young people to be prescribed surfing and dancing by NHS to help anxiety: Study to assess if ‘social prescribing’ such as surfing or...Read More

Some Kids are Dealt a Bad Hand—and the ACEs can Lead to Substance Use and Mental Health Disorders Do you like to play cards? No matter what your favorite might be—poker, cribbage, bridge, spades, go fish, kings in the corner, solitaire, or what have you—it is generally the case that the four aces are an...Read More

Struggling with a substance use disorder can feel quite lonely. As your drug or alcohol use continues and worsens, you may well find yourself cut off from more and more people.  That might be because you are trying to hide your problem from others. It might be because your drug or alcohol use has led...Read More

When you are struggling with drugs or alcohol, you are not the only person who is affected by your situation. The list of those who might be impacted by your substance use disorder is potentially long, but in this blog entry, we want to focus on a specific kind of person: the children in your...Read More

There is a reasonable chance that when you hear someone mention mindfulness, you imagine a person sitting quietly with their eyes closed while they breathe in and out and don’t seem to do much else. And it is certainly the case that mindfulness practice often can be fairly described in those terms. The heart of...Read More