Now that an estimated 95 percent of the country's legal population will have healthcare coverage, we're likely to see a marked increase in the number of people seeking help for substance abuse.

What parents do and don't do, say and don't say, provide their children with the experiences that their children interpret into beliefs. Those beliefs affect their lives for better or for worse.

The Kids Are All Right is a joint memoir by four Welch children after their parents died in the 1980s. The book is spearheaded by the second eldest daughter, Liz, a journalist who now lives in Brooklyn.

If I ever started abusing substances again it will be because I have an irresistible and distorted urge to enjoy illicit substances 'recreationally,' 'without harm.' The sad thing is River, Heath, DJ AM and Brittany probably thought the same.

Relapse is common when the alcoholic/addict has not had enough recovery under their belt through 12-step meetings, sponsorship, counseling or their own personal determination to rely on an arsenal of "tools" to ward off the relapse demon.

I have compiled what I call The Pyramid of Change; 6 phases of the alcoholic/addict from the beginnings of irresponsible behavior to full blown wreckage.

How do you as a parent help give your kids the skills to do their best, which involves trying over and over and over?

More than 8 million Americans seriously consider suicide each year, according to a new government study. About 32,000 suicides occur in the United St...

As a professional family substance abuse counselor, I encourage my clients to attend Al-anon and find out if it is something they wish to incorporate in their recovery. Some swear by it, others are shunned.

To pretend this disease doesn't exist makes us as irresponsible as the alcoholic/addict. We can and are obligated do our part by using whatever means available to thwart the downward spiral.

Having an entire department of Mental Health professionals pounding everyday to convince me that I was wrong and I was simply a hopeless addict actually hindered my recovery by years. It made the mountain so much harder to climb.