In the coming days I’ll be posting some of the practice guidelines that were developed during the Behavioral Health Recovery Management (BHRM) project. The guidelines were developed with public dollars for free dissemination to the public. The BHRM project was an effort that existed inside my workplace from around 1998 – 2007. Concerning the … Continue reading The Behavioral Health Recovery Management (BHRM) Project: Overview and Practice Guidelines
Social Movements End – So How Will Ours End?
Six years ago, I had the opportunity to spend time with David Mactas, the first Director of the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment. He got the ball rolling on establishing the funding for recovery community organizations nationwide, including the Recovery Community Support Program (RCSP) grants from SAMHSA. I was talking with him about what had … Continue reading Social Movements End – So How Will Ours End?
Harm Reduction: The Warmth and Chill of Mainstream Acceptance
For decades, drug-related harm reduction has existed in relative isolation, often navigating legal gray zones because of strict state and federal regulations. These laws banned not only harm reduction programs, but also the basic supplies they needed to prevent overdoses and the spread of disease. However, with recent changes to these regulations and the removal of restrictions on federal funding, harm reduction stands on the brink of becoming a mainstream facet of the nation’s response to alcohol and other drug use. And as might be expected with any change of this size, the harm reduction community has met this monumental shift with both applause and apprehension.
Effective Drug Policy Must Look Beyond Life Preservers!
An oft quoted observation by Desmond Tutu: “there comes a point where we need to stop just pulling people out of the river. We need to go upstream and find out why they’re falling in.” We seem to be stumbling on even the first measure, pulling people out of the river. We simply toss in … Continue reading Effective Drug Policy Must Look Beyond Life Preservers!
Where Are They Going to Heal?
In April of 2023, the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) designated the combination of xylazine with fentanyl an emerging threat. Over the preceding year, it started to become apparent that xylazine was rapidly spreading across the nation. By mid-July, a plan was formulated for a national response to address what was unfolding. One … Continue reading Where Are They Going to Heal?
Additional Commentary on the Mathematical Model of Recovery
Think about the impact of this - there are thousands of such relations between pathological states and the inverse states of wellness.
Seeking Common Ground in Our Understanding of Addiction
“Our agreement or disagreement is at times based on a misunderstanding.” - Mokokoma Mokhonoana There are many current models conceptualizing substance misuse and addiction. Many generally agree on what happens in the brain yet offer various schools of thought to explain why it occurs. Despite a lot of common ground, the proponents of each school … Continue reading Seeking Common Ground in Our Understanding of Addiction
Research Article Review: Mathematically Modeling Substance Use Disorder Symptoms During Addiction Recovery
Here’s the link for the research paper I’ll be discussing in this post. I’ll start by saying that in my estimation this paper is important in at least 3 ways: One: In this study, “recovery” is not merely defined as “abstinence”, nor is abstinence their only marker of recovery. Two: The study examines… markers of … Continue reading Research Article Review: Mathematically Modeling Substance Use Disorder Symptoms During Addiction Recovery
The Perfect Storm is Foundering Our SUD Interventional Infrastructure
“A story only matters, I suspect, to the extent that the people in the story change.” ― Neil Gaiman Exactly twenty years ago, key SUD field leaders examined our SUD service infrastructure and published can the national addiction treatment infrastructure support the public’s demand for quality care? It noted extreme instability across our entire workforce. … Continue reading The Perfect Storm is Foundering Our SUD Interventional Infrastructure
Preserving the Message. “The Narcotic Farm: Origins and Influences upon 12-Step Mutual-Aid for Individuals with Addiction”
Here's a presentation from Preserving the Message titled "The Narcotic Farm: Origins and Influences upon 12-Step Mutual-Aid for Individuals with Addiction". It was published on their YouTube channel on 07/08/2023. To me, this presentation is tremendous and fascinating. Consider leaving a comment on their channel or at the bottom of this post. For example, you … Continue reading Preserving the Message. “The Narcotic Farm: Origins and Influences upon 12-Step Mutual-Aid for Individuals with Addiction”
Recovery Review 