‘An Intervention Gone Wrong’ by Bill White

June 23, 2021 by

I first spotted an earlier version of this article on Bill White’s website in 2013. The article really made me laugh so I couldn’t resist posting it. Since then, Bill has posted this version of the little gem (in 2017), so I decided to post it.

‘The most famous and controversial treatment for addiction in the 19th century was Dr. Leslie Keeley’s Bichloride of Gold Cure.  Dr. Keeley franchised his cure procedures through more than 120 Keeley Institutes scattered across North America and Europe.  These Institutes became the preferred drying out institutions for the rich and famous in the 1890s. But the problem then (as today) was this: Even where there are financial resources to pay for such treatment, how can the afflicted person be convinced to enter such a treatment institution?

Read More ➔

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: , ,

‘Recovery Stories from the 19th Century’ by Bill White

September 10, 2013 by

IntemperateCover (3)Here is a fascinating addition to Bill White’s website, a series of Recovery Stories from the 19th and beginning of the 20th century.

‘In the minds of the public and many helping professionals, the history of addiction recovery in the United States begins with the founding of Alcoholics Anonymous in the mid-1930s. 

That view, of course, obscures the long history of pre-AA recovery mutual aid. That earlier history spans the eighteenth century rise of abstinence-based religious and cultural revitalization movements (recovery circles) within Native American tribes and nineteenth century groups such as the Washingtonians, recovery-focused fraternal temperance societies, the Ribbon Reform Clubs and recovery support groups associated with early addiction treatment programs (the Ollapod Club, Godwin Association, Keeley Leagues).

Read More ➔

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: , , , , ,