Isolation and Addiction – 3 BIG Reasons Folks With SUDs Isolate
I have a friend who tells a story about the final days of his isolation and active addiction. He says he was smoking then, and he was not allowed to light up in the house. So, he would take a bottle of Jack Daniels to the unheated garage behind his house, sit on a […]
Recovery Adventures Outdoors – 5 Favorites in Michigan
In April of 2020, Michigan had a spring snowstorm. I had been physically distancing since February, and somehow the surprise storm seemed like the last straw (icicle, snowdrift, chilblain?). Of course, there was more to come with COVID-19, but at the time I felt trapped. No adventures, working from home, and far from family […]
Thinking vs Acting – the First Steps to Recovery
Making changes to your alcohol habits is a massive undertaking. It can take months – years even – to get to the point where you actually stop drinking. And that’s okay, because transformation is a long process and it starts from deep within. Often things can be moving well along in the direction of change […]
Anxiety Disorder 2020 – What are the Signs?
During a family Zoom meeting last week, my son asked us a question his boss had posed in another Zoom meeting. The question was, “What new thing have you learned during the pandemic?” My son, who is clever as well as handsome, answered, “I built a table from scratch.” Another person said, “I learned to […]
Sober Curious: Does Moderation Management Work?
I promise I am not researching moderation management for myself. It’s been a while since the little guy in the red jumpsuit on my shoulder has whispered, “Who would it hurt if you had one glass of red wine with dinner?” In fact, he’s been too busy the past three months to bother me, convincing […]
A Thank You Note to My Sobriety in Uncertain Times
Many years ago, I co-owned an art gallery. Art is a business characterized by booze-laced openings. And if the truth be known, I kept a bottle of plonk in my desk drawer in our distressed-brick communal office for the “down times”. When I look back on the genesis of my active addiction, Spiller Vincenty Gallery […]
Hiking Michigan – This is your Brain on Nature
In the rafters of the historic home I live in, there is a bird’s nest which has provided a snapshot of nature in the past three months. While I sheltered at home, I studied the wren who built the nest through my bathroom window. She attempted to warm her eggs during the March drizzle […]
Alcohol Ruins Relationships and Marriages, Even Brad Pitt’s
In a spate of articles and talk show banter over the past few years, actor Brad Pitt has blamed his alcohol use for the demise of his marriage to Angelina Jolie. It seems there was a defining incident on a private plane when Brad was inappropriately rough with one of his children. I can […]
Virtual Addiction Treatment? Pros and Cons from Therapists
A need or problem encourages creative efforts to meet the need or solve the problem. Plato The cornerstone of addiction treatment has always been in-person connection and group therapy. But with the advent of COVID-19 and the stay-at-home directives, Sanford therapists have had to get inventive with Virtual Addiction Treatment. Because now more […]
Social Distancing, Isolation and Addiction Recovery COVID-19
As a person in recovery, I have been taught that isolation is bad for me. And that connection and community is good. In fact, everyone in recovery from a substance use disorder (SUD) has had this concept drummed into their heads for good reason. Folks with active SUDs isolate so they can protect their addiction. […]
