Who are you? My name is Michael Joseph Harney, Jr. I was born in Newport News, Virginia at Riverside Hospital. I grew up in the city called Hampton, Virginia. When people ask me where I’m from I say “Hampton, Newport News” and they can’t figure out which one I’m from, but that was the peninsula. … Continue reading Addiction Professionals in the Pandemic – Michael Harney
Author: Brian Coon
“Recovery”: let’s do the math
In this essay I make two claims. My two claims will take the form of slightly changed versions of two borrowed sentences. (I will present the original versions of the two borrowed sentences later in the essay). I simply took the borrowed sentences and changed a few key words. In my changed version of each … Continue reading “Recovery”: let’s do the math
One, Two, or None?
Opioid maintenance therapy (OMT), also called medication-assisted treatment (MAT), is known as a Gold Standard addiction treatment. That’s one Gold Standard if you are keeping count. The model of care used by Physician Health Programs (PHP’s) is known as a Gold Standard addiction treatment. That’s two Gold Standards if you are keeping count. But what … Continue reading One, Two, or None?
What IS Addiction?
Lately, I’ve been preparing some updates of training materials. In doing so, I’ve gone back and re-gathered old information from original sources once again, as I have done before. This time, it's been especially interesting. See what you notice in comparing the definition of addiction from ASAM in 2011, the DSM-5 in 2013, and from … Continue reading What IS Addiction?
Addiction Professionals In the Pandemic – Terrence Walton
Who are you? I’m Terrence Walton. I am a husband that just celebrated his 20th anniversary, a father of two small children, and a man who has dedicated his life to two big things. One is the well-being, in every sense of the word, of my family, and then secondly is to help free men … Continue reading Addiction Professionals In the Pandemic – Terrence Walton
Should We Include a Moral Dimension? The Aesthetics and Anesthetics of Addiction
The True, The Good, and the Beautiful In his lecture titled, “The True, The Good, and The Beautiful” Roger Scruton asks what these three things embrace and what they have to do with each other. Overall, the subject matter of that lecture is aesthetics: the philosophy of art and beauty. Scruton states that pleasure says, … Continue reading Should We Include a Moral Dimension? The Aesthetics and Anesthetics of Addiction
Addiction Professionals in the Pandemic – Chrissy Smith
Who are you? I’m Chrissy Smith. I’m a licensed clinical social worker, and I’m a mom, and a wife, and that about sums it up. I have a Bachelor’s in Social Work from Bradley University with a minor in Psychology. I have a Master’s in Social Work with a focus on Community Behavioral Health from … Continue reading Addiction Professionals in the Pandemic – Chrissy Smith
Coaching Tips for System Change and Recovery Orientation
We often expect those we serve to: be willing to make significant changes,sustain effort while making difficult changes that take time,and be willing to endure and benefit from practical lessons while making change. But what about changes our organizations can make? Could some peer support of the organizational change process be helpful? Could some coaching … Continue reading Coaching Tips for System Change and Recovery Orientation
Research Describes Everyone and Applies to No One
Two experiences I had that took place roughly 25 years into my clinical work combined to effectively dismantle my strict allegiance to the primacy of “empiricism” as it was taught to me, and rigorous use of “evidence-based practices” as I had been trained. I'll discuss those two experiences down below. But a few years before … Continue reading Research Describes Everyone and Applies to No One
Meditation on the Serenity Prayer
Action is in italics. What one lacks is held in circles. One asks for what one lacks.