addiction — Page 7 — Recovery Stories

‘Shedding Skins in Recovery’ by William L White

March 26, 2014 by David Clark

More wonderful reflections from Bill White in his latest blog posting.

‘For years, the following quote has rested over my writing desk: “The Phoenix does not mourn what lies in its ashes; the serpent does not mourn its old skin.” Arthur Frank

Addiction recovery involves a progressive unpeeling of the self and focused efforts of self-construction. It is helpful in thinking of this to distinguish between remission and recovery.

Remission of an illness can involve little more than the removal of symptoms and a return to the earlier trajectory of one’s existence. In this sense, remission is regressive – a return to an earlier level of functioning.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: addiction, masks, recovery, remission, self, skins, transformation, William White

‘Building Bridges Between Mental Health and Addictions Communities’ by Oryx Cohen

March 17, 2014 by David Clark

There is a real need to connect addiction and mental health communities, so this blog from Mad in America is very interesting.

‘When Linda Sarage and Jake Powers first approached me about writing a section for the fantastic manual developed by the addictions community – From the Ground Up: How to Build Your own Peer-to-Peer Recovery Center – that would help connect this manual to the mental health community, I envisioned writing a section that would serve as some sort of translation tool that could connect two very different communities toward a common purpose.

After reading the manual, however, I quickly remembered how much the mental health community has in common with the substance abuse community and how little “translation” is actually needed.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: addiction, communication, community, mental health, peer, Recover Project, recovery, trauma

‘Recovery Landscapes’ by Bill White

March 14, 2014 by David Clark

‘Interventions into severe alcohol and other (AOD) problems have focused primarily upon altering the character, thoughts, feelings, and behaviors of individuals. Far less attention has been given to influencing the environment in which such factors are birthed, sustained or changed. But interest in the geography of recovery is increasing. Researchers are beginning to suggest that reaching the tipping point of addiction recovery may have as much to do with community factors as intrapersonal factors. Recovery advocates and clinicians are calling for creation of a “healing forest” – “naturally occurring, healing environments that provide some of the corrective experiences that are vital for recovery.”

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: addiction, bill white, community, healing forest, landscape, recovery, treatment

‘Are we all addicted?’ by Becs Daddow

March 12, 2014 by David Clark

I like this article by Becs Daddow, of Nurture Development, who draws on the great work of Bruce Alexander. She emphasises that when we deal with an issue like addiction, it “requires a whole community response that doesn’t simply focus on a single issue whether that’s recovery, well-being, mental or physical health, and so on.” Too true!

‘You’ve probably heard people state that addiction is blind to status, fortune, and situation. It’s often said when talking about drug or alcohol addiction and you’ll be directed to the sad deaths of the rich and famous to make the point all the more resonant, offering a stark alternative to the stereotypical image of the gaunt, penniless, criminal heroin addict so often depicted.

The statement may in fact be truer than we realise at first. Read, for example, Bruce Alexander’s The Globalization of Addiction and you will find a compelling narrative that sets out how, in today’s post-modern world, most of us have ‘severe addictions’. They may not be addictions to drugs or alcohol but that doesn’t necessarily make them any less dangerous.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: addiction, Bruce Alexander, community, economic, globalisation, nurture development, recovery, social

‘High on Hope’: Peter’s Story

March 7, 2014 by David Clark

Please watch this excellent filmed Recovery Story. Thank you so much for this share, Peter.

‘A frank and honest account of a life dominated by addiction and crime that ends on a ‘HIGH’ – Peter’s story is testament to the paradigm shifts that can happen when people have, ‘just had enough’, ask for help and receive a sufficient amount of it.

Peter has turned his previous experiences into a positive as he now creates a positive ripple-effect in his community by helping others.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: addiction, feelings, film, hope, partnership, prison, recovery, story

‘An interview with Greg Williams – The Anonymous People’ by Veronica Valli

March 6, 2014 by David Clark

Greg Williams and The Anonymous People are in the news a lot recently which is great. Exactly what we want. Here’s a new interview from Veronica Valli.

‘If you are in the recovery community then you would have heard of the movie The Anonymous People. A ground breaking movie that highlights the need for more advocacy and more access to treatment for addicts and alcoholics.

Many of the participants of the movie have been interviewed for my Recovery Rocks series: Emmy award winning actress and NYT best selling author Kristen Johnston, former NBA basketball player Chris Herron, Recovery advocate and media commentator Joe Schrank.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: addiction, family, Greg Williams, interview, recovery, stigma, The Anonymous People, Veronica Valli

‘Dying of a Heroin Overdose Does Not Make You a Scumbag’ by A. Thomas McLellan, Ph.D.

February 28, 2014 by David Clark

Great article in the Huffington Post by one of the leading addiction treatment researchers involving the loss of one of my favourite actors.

‘In the wake of the tragic death of Philip Seymour Hoffman, I am shocked by the vast range of opinions and emotions that have been voiced in the public discourse. Media outlets of all shapes and forms are weighing in on his death – and specifically, the foolish, self-destructive choices he made associated with his addiction.

The explosion of speculation and moralizing surrounding this death brings to light how conflicted our feelings, as a society, are about this disease. And the science is clear on this point.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: addiction, brain, disease, overdose, philip seymour hoffman, science, stigma, treatment

‘Amplified Recovery’ by Bill White

February 24, 2014 by David Clark

“There is nothing about a caterpillar which would suggest that it will become a butterfly.” Buckminster Fuller

Recovery from a life-threatening condition can bring far more than the removal of pain and sickness from an otherwise unchanged life. Confronting one’s mortality through the experiences of illness and recovery can bring unexpected gifts.

Surviving heart disease, cancer, addiction or other life-threatening experiences can be an unlikely source of renewal and personal transformation – catalysts for living more fully and more meaningfully. There may be something to that notion of being stronger at the broken places.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: addiction, amplified recovery, inperfection, pain, recovery, recovery carrier, remission, strengths

‘Recovery is contagious redux’ by Bill White

February 7, 2014 by David Clark

Here’s the latest from recovery advocate William L White. Wonderful words, just wonderful words.

‘Those of you who have been reading my weekly blogs these past six months will recognize two simple and enduring themes: Recovery is contagious and recovery is spread by recovery carriers. Those notions first came to me on April 14, 2010 when I stood to speak at Northeast Treatment Centers’ (NET) dinner honoring NET’s 40th anniversary and the achievements of NET members. Here are some of the words that came to me as I stood before a room packed with people filled with hopes of what their newly found recoveries would bring.

“This night is a celebration of the contagiousness of recovery and the fulfilled promises recovery has brought into our lives. Some of you did not leave the streets to find recovery; recovery came to the streets and found you.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: addiction, affection, bill white, contagion, empathy, love, recovery, recovery carrier

GUEST BLOGGER: Beth Burgess and ‘Can You be Grateful For Your Addiction?’

February 5, 2014 by David Clark

In order to recover, alcoholics and addicts first have to go through the painful process of admitting their problem. Then comes the challenge of accepting the situation and doing the work to recover. But can you actually get to the point where you’re happy to be an addict? Where you appreciate what your addiction has given you and you actually enjoy your path in life?

I like being an alcoholic. Truly, I do. It’s an unusual position to take, I admit – but one that serves me well. I’m so happy, I even wrote a book about it. Let me tell you how I came to reach this point – and was able to write The Happy Addict to help others find the happiness that I already have.

The fact is that I spent a lot of my life fighting reality. I drank to escape, to numb, to hide and to retreat from the world. At the end of my drinking, there was nothing I could do to fight reality any more. My addiction was something I couldn’t deny or hide from any longer. The fact that alcohol was now betraying me was clear to me and everyone around me. My attempts at controlling my drinking had all failed and my chances of living through another withdrawal were pretty slim.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: addiction, alcoholic, beth burgess, connection, guest blogger, happiness, reality, thinking

My Favourite Blogs: How do I know a treatment service is recovery-oriented?

February 1, 2014 by David Clark

This is one of the most important blogs on the Recovery Stories website.

Some treatment services today say they are doing recovery – using recovery-based care – when they are not in fact doing so. So how do you know that you are going to receive genuine recovery-based care when you sign up to a treatment service claiming to be recovery-oriented?

Here is some help from Mark Ragins, a leading figure in the mental health recovery field, about what to look for in a service offering recovering-based care. Mark may be talking about mental health recovery, but what he says is of relevance to addiction recovery.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: addiction, collaboration, goals, hope, medical model, mental health, recovery-based, strengths

Bruce Alexander’s Globalization of Addiction Website

January 29, 2014 by David Clark

This website is well worth checking out. I really like Bruce Alexander’s ideas. They need reflecting upon.

‘Global society is drowning in addiction to drug use and a thousand other habits. This is because people around the world, rich and poor alike, are being torn from the close ties to family, culture, and traditional spirituality that constituted the normal fabric of life in pre-modern times. This kind of global society subjects people to unrelenting pressures towards individualism and competition, dislocating them from social life.

People adapt to this dislocation by concocting the best substitutes that they can for a sustaining social, cultural and spiritual wholeness, and addiction provides this substitute for more and more of us.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: addiction, Bruce Alexander, culture, dislocation, globalisation, history, political, society

‘Dis-ease’ by Phil Hanlon

January 28, 2014 by David Clark

I continue the series of videos made by Phil Hanlon, Professor of Public Health at Glasgow University. Check out all the video and writings on Phil’s Afternow website. I love this website – what Phil has to say is very important.

‘In this video Phil Hanlon suggests that the public health problems we now face (such as obesity, enduring health inequalities, the rise in mental distress, and increasingly problematic use of drugs and alcohol) have a common source: they are the result of the increasingly adverse effects of the mindset and approach which characterises modernity.

They can helpfully be thought of not as ‘diseases’ but as ‘dis-eases’, associated with modernity.

He suggests that the biggest problem we face may be modernity itself, which means that the health and wellbeing issues which confront us can no longer be addressed by conventional forms of thinking, tools or approaches.

We now face what might be called an ‘ingenuity gap’. This is the gap between the problems we face and the adequacy of the tools available to create solutions.’

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: addiction, afternow, dis-ease, indigenous people, modernity, obesity, phile hanlon, wellbeing

ManyFaces1Voice: Chris Herren

January 27, 2014 by David Clark

“To me it’s not about how society perceives me, it’s about how I see myself. It’s how I look at myself in the mirror. People still call me junkie. Not as many, but there are still those people out there. But it doesn’t matter, it’s what I call myself. And as long as I am good with myself, I couldn’t care what everyone else says.”

Check out this film on ManyFaces1Voice, the Story of father and ex-basketball star, Chris Herren.

‘Chris Herren is man in long-term recovery from alcohol and other drugs since August of 2008.

Chris was a high school basketball legend from Fall River, Massachusetts, who realized his lifelong dream of playing in the NBA when he was drafted by the Denver Nuggets in 1999 and then was traded to his hometown team, the Boston Celtics in 2000.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: addiction, basketball, children, chris herren, manyfaces1voice, recovery, story, The Anonymous People

Recovery Rocks: Gavin Crosisca

January 26, 2014 by David Clark

A long overdue visit to Veronica Valli’s excellent blog Recovery Rocks, this time involving an Australian sportsperson.

‘Recovery Rocks this week with Australian rules footballer Gavin Crosisca. Gavin played 246 of Australian rules football with Collingwood before moving into coaching for over 25 years.

But despite his successful sporting career Gavin hid a 25 year drug problem from his teammates and fans.

He describes his addiction as being ‘a fire inside of him’ as it slowly destroyed his life, finances and family.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: 12-step, addiction, australian rules football, family, gavin crosisca, indigenous communities, recovery rocks, rock bottom

Barry Haslam – Addiction to Prescription Drugs

January 24, 2014 by David Clark

“Not only is it a national scandal, it is a political problem. And it needs a political solution. In fact, I’d go even further and say, it needs an independent public inquiry. We’ve had 50 years of prescribing these drugs which have addicted literally millions, certainly one and a half millions currently [in UK – DC] and they’ve injured, disabled, they’ve killed people…”

Here is a real courageous man, someone who has highlighted the problem of prescription drug addiction and tried to help people for years. You are a true hero, Barry! And you too, Sue!!

‘In conjunction with the imminent launch of our new service which we will be delivering in the new year, ‘ADS-Haslam Clinics for Prescribed Addiction’, we interviewed Barry Haslam, our partner and leading expert on the effects of prescription drugs.

During the interview Barry talks about his struggle with addiction to prescribed medicines and the devastating effects it’s had on himself and those around him. We also hear the story from a carers point of view from Barry’s wife Sue and collectively their resolve to make this national scandal understood.’

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: addiction, advocacy, barry haslam, heather ashton, prescription drugs, scandal, support, withdrawal

‘State of the New Recovery Advocacy Movement: Achievements, Part 2′ by Bill White

January 24, 2014 by David Clark

If you missed the the first part of my blogs focused on Bill White’s exciting new writing on the new recovery advocacy movemnet in the US, you can find it here. Here, I continue to look at the list of achievements of this movement:

‘Kinetic Ideas. As early as 2000, five simple ideas emerged from the very heart of the movement – ideas that were foundational and kinetic (capable of inspiring action).

Those five ideas were:

1. addiction recovery is a living reality for individuals, families, and communities,
2. there are many (religious, spiritual, secular) pathways to recovery, and all are cause for celebration,
3. recovery flourishes in supportive communities,
4. recovery is a voluntary process, and
5. recovering and recovered people are part of the solution: recovery gives back what addiction has taken from individuals, families, and communities.
Read More ➔

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: addiction, bill white, celebration, community, recovery advocacy movement, recovery pathways, representation, research

‘Could you ever ‘thank’ your addiction?’ by Matt Kay

January 22, 2014 by David Clark

Been a while since we had a Matt Kay blog from my old website Wired In To Recovery. So here goes:

‘Is this concept as far fetched as some of you may be thinking? How on earth can I ‘thank’ my addiction and how does it deserve a ‘thank you’. Bear with me here for a minute and let that thought mull around in your head while I tell you why I am asking it.

I asked this question a while back to some fellow recoverees with what could only be described as ‘mixed reactions’ and no-one seemed to grasp what I was aiming at. As we all know, anyone who has lived through active addiction will know that there isn’t anything positive that it brings.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: addiction, empathy, health, matt kay, orderly, personal interactions, recovery, self-esteem

‘New wave’ by Phil Hanlon

January 21, 2014 by David Clark

The second of a series of top-quality videos on the future of public health by Glasgow professor Phil Hanlon. Fascinating and bigger picture stuff from his Afternow website.

‘What’s next for the health of society? In this introductory video Phil Hanlon highlights a number of daunting challenges for public health in the 21st Century. He explains how what might be called the dominant mindset of the modern age can be characterised by its ability to understand, predict and control the natural world – an approach which was subsequently extended to the social world.

In Public Health, this ability led to a number of ‘waves’ of health improvement in the period since the Industrial Revolution, many of which remain with us and are important for health today, even though they peaked in effectiveness some time ago.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: addiction, industrial revolution, mental health, modernity, obesity, public health, scotland

ManyFaces1Voice: Carol McDaid

January 20, 2014 by David Clark

“You know, Americans love a good redemption story and recovery is a great one to tell.”

Check out the video of Carol McDaid on ManyFaces1Voice. She is a woman in long-term recovery since 1997 and is co-founder and Principal of Capitol Decisions Inc. Capitol Decisions focuses on federal policy, with a special emphasis on alcohol and other drug policy.

For over 15 years, Carol has worked with leading non-profit drug and alcohol treatment centers, addiction physicians, prevention and consumer organizations to refine public policy addressing alcohol and other drug addiction.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: addiction, advocate, carol mcdaid, FAVOR, manyfaces1voice, recovery, recovery award, The Anonymous People

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