Image by Clker-Free-Vector-Images from Pixabay I've encountered a particular institutional condition often in my work: the drug treatment center with an “assembly line” mentality. Some of the worst behavior happens in these places, clients are rarely served quality care. But it isn't because of poor staff (who tend to be some of the most passionate … Continue reading When Treatment Centers Become Assembly Lines
Question from the field: “What are your top 3 book suggestions for parents, in addition to Al-Anon?”
Disclaimer: nothing in this post should be taken or held as clinical instruction, clinical supervision, or advisory concerning patient care. I'll hedge my answer and say the three books I list below are the ones I tend to suggest to clinicians that they read as a resource for their own learning. And from that on-going … Continue reading Question from the field: “What are your top 3 book suggestions for parents, in addition to Al-Anon?”
Some 2025 USA drug use statistics
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) published a summary of drug use data from 2025 on August 12 of this year. The data is compiled from the Monitoring the Future Longitudinal Panel Study that has been examining self-reported drug use among those aged 19-65 since 1976. Here are a few direct quotations from the NIH … Continue reading Some 2025 USA drug use statistics
In recovery, helping helps the helper IF…
We've known for many years that social model programs are effective and that helping helps the helper, but why do they help? Our findings tentatively suggest that sober living homes (SLHs) adhering to social model principles do not achieve better outcomes by stimulating more helping, but rather that more resident helping can foster a supportive … Continue reading In recovery, helping helps the helper IF…
Can science give up on defining recovery and maintain a recovery orientation?
Justin Bell's recent post on the scientific dilemma of whether to drop or keep recovery sparked a lot of discussion. One takeaway from the discussion is the confirmation that people really struggle to hold space for one definition in scientific spaces while holding space for other definitions in personal, community, and professional service spaces. There … Continue reading Can science give up on defining recovery and maintain a recovery orientation?
Adding some key considerations to simple DSM-5-TR criteria counts
Disclaimer: Nothing in this document should be taken or held as clinical instruction, clinical supervision, or advisory concerning patient care. I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the basic inadequacy of counting up how many DSM-5-TR SUD criteria are met by the person served – and stopping right there to understand their addiction illness. One reason … Continue reading Adding some key considerations to simple DSM-5-TR criteria counts
Revisiting the Article That Sent Shockwaves Throughout the Substance Use Disorder Profession
By Mark Sanders and Bill Stauffer In 2005 historian William White, MA published an article in the Great Lakes ATTC Bulletin titled, Recovery Management: What if we Really Believed Addiction was a Chronic Disorder? The article captured the profession’s attention and imagination as it challenged how we were currently doing business at that time (the Acute Care Model) and … Continue reading Revisiting the Article That Sent Shockwaves Throughout the Substance Use Disorder Profession
Science Debates Dropping the Word “Recovery”
Image by Mohamed Hassan from Pixabay We write a lot about the measurement and exact definition of recovery on this blog, so I won't rehash all the discussions here. But I will update readers that (based on my attendance at a recent researcher convening) the young recovery science field is still very much debating the … Continue reading Science Debates Dropping the Word “Recovery”
Research Article Review: “A comparative analysis of the most common causes of mortality and substance use by age”
A very interesting paper by researchers at Lighthouse Institute has been published in the journal called Public Health. Here’s the citation and link to the article: Caroline B. Allen, Michael Dennis, Candace Mouton, Christine E. Grella. A comparative analysis of the most common causes of mortality and substance use by age, Public Health, Volume 257, … Continue reading Research Article Review: “A comparative analysis of the most common causes of mortality and substance use by age”
Revisiting William White – Sponsor, Recovery Coach, Addiction Counselor:
The Importance of Role Clarity and Role Integrity – Bill Stauffer & Mark Sanders “The fate of the recovery coach role will be influenced by the forces that shaped those roles that came before it: the future evolution of professional treatment organizations and recovery mutual aid societies, evolutions in the design of addiction treatment (e.g., … Continue reading Revisiting William White – Sponsor, Recovery Coach, Addiction Counselor: