Some writers are using Phillip Seymour Hoffman's death as an opportunity to attack the disease model and getting a lot of support from treatment critics. Why would they pick an argument about the disease model and question the existence of loss of control after a man with everything to live for used heroin to his … Continue reading Hoffman and Free Will
Category: Random
On Listening Without Expectations
This is for all of you professional helpers out there. Thinking about this notion of listening and receptivity is a good reminder that when we hit roadblocks with clients, often, the problematic resistance is within us. Some great thoughts on listening well. [emphasis mine] When you’re really listening, you don’t expect anything and you don’t … Continue reading On Listening Without Expectations
Philip Seymour Hoffman
It's nice to see a victim of addiction be remembered not just for their talent, accomplishments, personal drama or whatever else, and instead be remembered for his goodness. It’s being widely reported that Philip Seymour Hoffman died of a drug overdose. He was found in a West Village apartment with the syringe still in his … Continue reading Philip Seymour Hoffman
What kind of corporate citizen is Reckitt Benckiser?
While the story has nothing directly to do with addiction, Marketplace provides a little background on the kind of corporation that Reckitt Benckiser (manufacturer of Suboxone) is: Here's the background: Many rodenticides act as anticoagulants, killing pests by making them bleed internally. They're great at killing rats, but they're also killing animals that eat rats. Stella … Continue reading What kind of corporate citizen is Reckitt Benckiser?
On knowing and piety toward science
I've pushed back before on the limits of research, "rational" policy, evidence-based policies, and the assumption that research is objective, etc. On Being recently discussed science and the unknown. Here are a few choice bits. On the limitations of science: Dr. Gleiser: . . . one of the grand goals of modern physics is to build a Theory … Continue reading On knowing and piety toward science
Hope as a human right
A court ruling speaks to the primacy of hope. Hope is an important and constitutive aspect of the human person. … To deny them the experience of hope would be to deny a fundamental aspect of their humanity and, to do that, would be degrading. via Even life prisoners should have hope and a chance … Continue reading Hope as a human right
“narrative truth”
This reminded me of something from Bill White. At the heart of Perry’s argument — in line with neurologist Oliver Sacks’s recent meditation on memory and how “narrative truth,” rather than “historical truth,” shapes our impression of the world — is the recognition that stories make us human and learning to reframe our interpretations of reality is key to our experience … Continue reading “narrative truth”
On a lighter note…
Mother’s little helper
Ann Dowsett Johnston says that alcohol is the new mother's little helper: But those Mad Men years took their toll. My mother wasn’t the only one self-medicating with a combination of alcohol and a benzodiazepine called Valium. By the end of the sixties, two-thirds of the users of psychoactive drugs—Valium, Librium—were women. In fact, between … Continue reading Mother’s little helper
Blame and illness
On blame and illness: After Linnea Duff learned at age 45 that she had developed lung cancer, she practically encouraged people to ask if she had ever smoked. But in the eight years since, her feelings have soured considerably on the too-frequent question, and she’s developed an acute sense of solidarity with fellow … Continue reading Blame and illness
Recovery Review 