An influential movement speaks beyond the confines of its origin, crosses tribal boundaries and touches people who might otherwise have no connection with each other. These communities do exist, they always have. But they are often hidden away and hard to track down.
Yoga for recovery recognizes the need to connect the story of the body with the reason of the mind. Often people abuse their bodies because they don't feel comfortable in their skins. Yoga can help change that.
When Adam Smith wrote "the prosperity, ...the splendour, and ... the duration of the empire," in 1754 (the source of my song title, "The Splendor of E...
I began working with NET for the sole purpose of finding out why I had been unable to remove and keep off my excess body weight. Essentially, what I found was that the repression of emotions is a survival mechanism held in place through addiction.
There is hope! The most important thing for families battling with substance abuse and mental health-related issues to have is hope and know they are not alone.
The Fifth Step represents a kind of baptism for people on the journey of recovery. It brings to mind the story in the Gospel of Mark of the baptism of Jesus by John.
For older adults, drinking too much and misusing medications are the major substance use problems, affecting as many as 20 percent of them.
The first season of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills was grand, opulent, and ostentatious. In the second season, though, the once-innocent fun is clouded by reports of abuse and suicide.
We now have an opportunity to shift the emphasis to the problem rather than the person. Let us correct our perception of those who abuse substances to reflect current understandings that support humane, non-judgmental and comprehensive treatment.
These are young people with a range of issues related to drinking who will all now embrace the one true 12-step philosophy, including that they can no longer control their own destinies when it comes to substance use.
Each year, nearly 450,000 Americans die from smoking related illnesses. So why do smokers continue to light up when statistics like these make it clear that they should quit?
With Winehouse's global notoriety, it is hoped that her death will not be in vain. Though she cannot be brought back, her story can be told, understood and used to help those who suffer from addictions and to facilitate awareness for those that love them.
My quitting strategy was to keep my mind and body busy all the time, in order to keep my thoughts of cigarettes at bay, but new science now suggests that the worst thing smokers can do is try not to think about cigarettes.
We have to find a way to keep people safe while still giving them hope, even if they aren't quite ready to quit using.
Drug abuse and addiction are tragic things, but they are not character traits. Just as depression is a no-fault mental illness, so is addiction.
Steven Serba wrote to me with a great example of the messiness of being directionally correct and still achieving a great personal outcome. His is a story of overcoming addiction and homelessness through the power of personal response-ability.