Busting Addiction and Its Myths

In this podcast, we discuss the impossibility of escaping the here and now.We learn that:1. It’s common for people to be constantly thinking about something other than the reality of the present.2. There is a huge difference between planning for the future and living there. 3. There is ultimately much joy in living in the moment regardless of a person’s circumstances, but it ta

In this podcast, we examine why the truth is so elusive for family members of alcoholics and addicts.We discuss how people who have an addict or alcoholic in the family:1. Deny the very existence of the disease.2. Become too ashamed to admit the truth to themselves.3. Ultimately need to confront the truth in order to heal.

You’ve probably heard the term “enabler”. It’s one that’s often charged with judgment and stigma. That’s because one feels accused of aiding and abetting addictive behaviour and it doesn’t feel at all fair because you do what you do out of love. More than a role, enabling is a dynamic that arises in specific scenarios. People who engage in enabling behaviour behaviour

Love has this wonderful ripple effect, emanating its warmth and power from you to your family and well beyond, and it seems miraculous in its infinite ability to heal.Think for a moment about unconditional love: loving someone regardless of what they look like, what they do for a living, how much money they have, or whether or not they are doing what you want or expect them to do.T

When you are talking to a full-blown alcoholic or addict or one who is both - and the list of cross-addicted people is growing – you might not be too surprised to learn that they speak an entirely different language than you do.An example: an addict is confronted by his mum who says that he has a big problem. The addict doesn’t hear that. He thinks to himself that his mum is th

A well-known actress, comedienne and TV producer was once asked what made the essential difference in her highly successful life. For those old enough to remember Lucille Ball, she answered as follows: “All my young life, I was told I was a no-good show-off. My self-esteem hovered just above zero, until I was told by a good friend that my first job was to learn to love myself fir

It’s never too late to act, whether your loved one is now at the stage where an intervention is necessary, or you have a younger child who might fall prey to an addictive disorder and want to keep that kid safe. But you are not sure how.Shatterproof is an organisation 100% dedicated to preventing addiction, providing greater access to treatment, and educating the public and publi

A friend said to me the other day that she feels like everything we do is becoming pathological. We eat a lot, so we’re a candidate for Overeaters Anonymous. We have sex with more than one person, we should join Sex Addicts Anonymous. We got drunk, so we should join AA.If I choose to call an addiction “repetitive behaviour that causes you and those affected by your behaviour ma

There is still little understanding of the power of the substance fentanyl.Let’s start with some inconvenient facts. Drug overdoses claim more lives than breast cancer, gun violence or car accidents. Combined. They are the #1 cause of accidental death in the United States. According to the CDC, there were over 109,000 fatal overdoses in the 12-month period ending March 2022 (the

Very recently, my ex-fiancé called me in a panic and sobbed that her son, my stepson really, was a raging addict and she didn’t know what to do. He and his wife have a two-year-old son who deserves better, while my stepson – let’s call him Jimmy – is snorting and smoking and injecting who knows what. He’s applied for a medical discharge due to joint disabilities, and it