Marion’s parents knew how important a good education was for her. Despite racism, set-backs and a low confidence, Marion kept pushing forward.
William Glasser Memorial
September 2, 2013 by
I was sorry to hear that we lost a special psychiatrist, Dr William Glasser, last Friday. William was also an education reformer and prolific author. His obituary appeared in the Los Angeles Times, Washington Post and other newspapers. I include a copy of his Memorial:
‘The word “genius” has never fitted Bill Glasser well – not because he wasn’t one having been well recognised as such around the world – but because he was that and so much more. Bill was a genius and a man of courage and a person of wonderful humanity.
As a young man he had wandered through academia looking for a niche for himself. He had studied engineering and psychology and medicine and then, still restless, talked his way into psychiatry.
Changing Education Paradigms: Animate from Sir Ken Robinson
August 29, 2013 by
Although you might think this film is not strictly related to addiction recovery, I assure you that it is. Education plays a key role in recovery, as does the way we are taught to think.
I love this talk, as well as the use of the animate. Sir Ken is a leader in the education field and you can find a number of videos of his talks on YouTube. I agree with him wholeheartedly that we need to change the way we educate young people (and old!)
And there are some interesting facts about the prescribing of drugs in the treatment of ADHD.
‘The Work of Recovery’ by Bill White
August 27, 2013 by
I missed this very important recent posting on Bill White’s website which is well worth reading.
‘Research on addiction recovery is quite scant compared to the volumes of research on addiction-related pathologies and clinical interventions. Additionally, some of the most important research on addiction recovery is buried in academic journals, rarely if ever read by the people who need it most – addiction treatment professionals and people needing, seeking or in recovery. Such is the case of studies on the role of work in addiction recovery.
In 2011, Dieter Henkel of the Institute for Addiction Research at the University of Applied Sciences in Frankfurt, Germany, conducted a comprehensive review of international studies on the relationship between substance use and employment that was published in Current Drug Abuse Reviews (4, 4-27). Henkel drew the following conclusions from his review of more than 130 scientific studies:
Strategies to Face Adversity: Education
August 26, 2013 by
Many participants spoke of education as power and how having an education certainly empowered them as individuals.
‘A Personal Story’ by Wee Willie Winkie
June 29, 2013 by
‘I’m 33 years old. I started taking drugs from ten years old and, apart from a three and a half year stint in the army, took them continuously right up to the age of 30. This included 11 years as a heroin addict.
During this time, I felt totally isolated and alone in the world, and completely worthless. After a few years I was desperate. I’d overdosed a couple of times and, at this point in my life, I’d have welcomed death with open arms. It never came, so I decided to help it along a bit.
Luckily, it didn’t work but at the time I just didn’t know what to do. Eventually, I decided that this was my life and to try make the best of it I could. I ended up living in the woods for a year. I could never see myself living in shop doorways.
Descent into heroin addiction
June 15, 2013 by
There are a multitude of different journeys that people take in to and out of addiction. However, despite this multitude of experiences, involving people of wide-ranging personalities and social backgrounds, there are a number of common themes that resonate about the way that people become addicted to substances, live out their addiction, and find the path to recovery.
I am writing a series of “Journeys” articles, which focus on: a) common themes that resonate about people’s journeys into and out of heroin addiction, and b) common factors that influence these journeys. I have used heroin users’ own accounts of their lives, since these are the people that can best educate us about recovery from addiction.
If you have time, why not check out my first article, Descent Into Addiction?
Reflections on Kevan’s Story (Part 2)
May 28, 2013 by
In yesterday’s blog, we looked at how Kevan’s thinking started to change in the early stages of his recovery after 25 years problematic drinking – and eight years in and out of psychiatric hospital.
After a chance discussion with a vicar, he ‘realised’ that he was in mourning for his friend alcohol. He missed his friend so much, even though he knew he was much better off without it.
Most importantly, Kevan began to understand that he was responsible for his addiction to alcohol and was also responsible for overcoming his problem.
After nine months without drinking (and still on Antabuse), Kevan’s thinking was becoming clearer and he was coping with things easier. He was now developing a hatred for alcohol!
