Author: Jason Schwartz

I have been an addiction professional and social worker since 1994. I started blogging in 2005 as the Clinical Director at Dawn Farm. I currently serve as the Director of Social Work and Spiritual Care for a healthcare system. I've also served as the Director of Behavioral Health at another hospital. I'm also a lecturer at Eastern Michigan University’s School of Social Work. Views expressed here are my own. Keep in mind that the field, the contexts in which the field operates, and my views have changed over time.

the evolving drug tastes of society

~ Jason Schwartz

Here are a few sentences to ponder, as we process the latest data on the overdose crisis: Most drug epidemics don’t simply disappear: they transform themselves into something else. For example, periods of excessive stimulant use are often followed by periods of rising alcohol, sedative and opiate use. There are drug-facilitated cycles of stimulation, introspection, … Continue reading the evolving drug tastes of society

As federal government supports recovery, it should encourage expungements of substance use disorder-related arrests and convictions

~ Jason Schwartz

by guest contributor Mitchell Berger, MPH In recent years, federal agencies have increasingly emphasized supporting those in recovery from substance use disorders (SUDs). The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), for instance, formed  in 2021 an Office of Recovery to “forge partnerships to support all people, families and communities impacted by mental health and/or substance use conditions … Continue reading As federal government supports recovery, it should encourage expungements of substance use disorder-related arrests and convictions

Unstable therapists and an intoxicating sense of power

~ Jason Schwartz ~ 1 Comment

A sentence to ponder on a hot topic. “The trouble is, LSD attracts unstable therapists as much as it does the neurotic patient,” said Sidney Cohen, a leading psychedelic researcher and psychiatrist, in 1963. “It gives them an intoxicating sense of power to bestow such a fabulous experience on others.” Enders, C. (2024, August 23). … Continue reading Unstable therapists and an intoxicating sense of power

A lost vision, community despair, professional contempt, and people who “suck”

~ Jason Schwartz ~ 1 Comment

In the midst of growing pessimism in the American culture about the prospects of recovery, there is a growing call for a new, grassroots recovery advocacy. This movement is re-raising questions about the potentials and pitfalls in the interrelationship between recovering people, mutual aid organizations, treatment institutions, and public education and social advocacy agencies. White, … Continue reading A lost vision, community despair, professional contempt, and people who “suck”

“we just didn’t harm reduction hard enough”

~ Jason Schwartz ~ 2 Comments

A conversation with a colleague yesterday brought to mind the recent study that found no statistically significant impact from an NIH-funded project distributing naloxone, increasing access to MOUD, and providing overdose education. These findings seem like they would have been big news. These interventions have been the centerpieces of the national response to the opioid … Continue reading “we just didn’t harm reduction hard enough”

Toward a “Conspiracy of Hope” (Bill White and Jason Schwartz)

~ Jason Schwartz

(Originally posted 2017) So it is not our job to pass judgment on who will and will not recover from mental illness and the spirit breaking effects of poverty, stigma, dehumanization, degradation and learned helplessness. Rather, our job is to participate in a conspiracy of hope. It is our job to form a community of hope which surrounds … Continue reading Toward a “Conspiracy of Hope” (Bill White and Jason Schwartz)

Love and Addiction Counseling (Bill White and Jason Schwartz)

~ Jason Schwartz ~ 5 Comments

A version of this post was originally published in January 2018. [Cross-posted at williamwhitepapers.com] Addiction counseling has become an increasingly professional and pristine affair, and service relationships reflect a more detached process than in years gone by. And yet one worries about the loss of something precious in our current fixation on the technical mastery … Continue reading Love and Addiction Counseling (Bill White and Jason Schwartz)

Nora Volkow on More Realistic And Pragmatic Addiction Treatment

~ Jason Schwartz

(This post was originally published on 2/6/2022) Source: NIDA There is and can be no ultimate solution for us to discover, but instead a permanent need for balancing contradictory claims, for careful trade-offs between conflicting values, toleration of difference, consideration of the specific factors at play when a choice is needed, not reliance on an … Continue reading Nora Volkow on More Realistic And Pragmatic Addiction Treatment