An Addict In Our Son's Bedroom touches upon a very important issue for loved one's of addicts: We've all done it. Seldom, if ever does it work. We make deals, we are willing to sell our soul, our dignity and our future to an addict in an effort to stop the madness. My efforts … Continue reading Negotiating Recovery
Tag: Family
a family disease
Guinevere Gets Sober has a great post unpacking some of her thoughts about the new ASAM definition of addiction and what it means for the common expression that addiction is "a family disease." When I woke around 6 this morning I started to wonder: if addiction is an illness inside the addict’s neurological system, then how … Continue reading a family disease
Taking action with a child’s drug problem
One Dad shares his response to his son's drug use. I doubt I'd take identical measures, but every family needs to decide upon a course of action that makes sense for them. The important thing is that he took action and that he continues after the crisis ends. It’s been nearly a year since we … Continue reading Taking action with a child’s drug problem
Against every instinct
A powerful plea for compassion and understanding for parents of addicts: We seek advice from those who claim to know. We turn our backs on all our instincts and we let our children fall, and then ooze pain from our pores as we watch them suffer - dirty, hungry, helpless, homeless, hopeless - and when … Continue reading Against every instinct
Tab Dump
Parents of drug addicts need our help - A plea for drug policy depates to consider the needs of parents of addicts. For families carrying the burden of drug dependency, the public and political debate often centres on the rhetoric of how to send the right message to young people. It's an empty argument for those … Continue reading Tab Dump
Not to letting one feeling cancel out the other
the mark of maturity and courage is not to let one feeling cancel out the other, to give people their humanity —Ta-Nehisi Coates A great post about the fear and rewards of giving the addict the right to their own journey from the blog, An Addict In Our Son's Bedroom: It's hard to watch my … Continue reading Not to letting one feeling cancel out the other
Family Members: Codependent or Grief Stricken?
A friend shared this post with me: "Codependency," describes a set of skills that were learned in that close relationship, become unsuccessful, and are vigorously pursued because members of the network have not yet identified and grieved their loss. To address these behaviors, fear and uncertainty need to be addressed. Persons with emotional attachment to those … Continue reading Family Members: Codependent or Grief Stricken?
CarePartners
The University of Michigan is trying a new program to improve depression care by involving a friend or family member in their care. Patients who enroll in the CarePartner program enlist a trusted individual in their life to check-in on them and help manage depressive symptoms. The program entails the patient completing an automated telephone assessment … Continue reading CarePartners
Recovery Review 