Veterans and First Responders Exclusive Programming – JOHN Opening October 27, 2025
JOHN Executive Director Matt VanLiere has waited patiently for an exclusive first responders and Veterans program at Sanford Behavioral Health. He first raised the idea nearly four years ago, after joining Sanford to build its safety team. Matt has a BA in Criminal Justice and 29 years of experience in law enforcement. He also has […]
Why Veterans and First Responders Only Treatment? 4 Questions for Executive Director Matthew VanLiere
Matthew (Matt) VanLiere has a BA in Criminal Justice and 29 years of experience in law enforcement. Matt worked with the Ottawa County Sheriff’s Department in narcotics investigations (undercover work), bench warrant enforcement, general road patrol, and crisis negotiation. He was an honor guard member for his entire law enforcement career. During his years of […]
9 Things Parents Teach Children to Prevent Eating Disorders
According to the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA), “Starting at a young age, we begin to internalize messages that can lead to negative body image. Having a healthier body image is an important part of mental wellbeing and eating disorders prevention.” Body image begins at home, and at Sanford Comprehensive Treatment for Eating Disorders, our […]
Addiction Defenses: Denial, Justification, Deception, Manipulation
I wrote the complete series on people’s dynamics and defenses as they develop a substance use disorder (SUD) for the Sanford Behavioral Health Family Program. The primary defenses used as addiction progresses are denial, justification, deception, and manipulation. Denial, Justification, Deception, Manipulation For the family members of an individual developing an SUD, these defenses […]
Toxic Masculinity, Trauma and the Elusive Emotions of Men
Toxic masculinity refers to masculine norms emphasizing toughness and discouraging vulnerable emotions in boys and men. It is correlated with increased mental health conditions (e.g., substance use disorders, depression, and stress). The residential programs at Sanford House at John Street for Men address these conditions in an atmosphere of camaraderie and trust. Clinicians specialize in […]
Trauma and Eating Disorders with Dr. Anna Flores
How are trauma and eating disorders related, and how does trauma-informed care integrate into eating disorder treatment? Dr. Anna Flores sat down with Sanford Comprehensive Treatment for Eating Disorders (SCTED) clinical manager Justyne Ortquist to discuss this in a new episode of The Recovery Tea podcast. The 55-minute podcast covers topics such as: […]
High-Risk Recovery Situations – What Should I DO?
The National Council of Drug Abuse (NIDA) defines high-risk recovery situations as “those that threaten your recovery or trigger a strong craving to use substances.” One of the easiest ways to identify risk is by categorizing situations as people, places, or things. People, Places, or Things People may be those you have used […]
Addressing Trauma with Alternative Therapy
Trauma is an event or circumstance that results in emotional, physical, and life threatening harm. It is important to note that trauma is highly individualized. This means, we all respond to events differently. How we respond is largely based on prior experience. For this reason, one person may demonstrate resilience after an event while another […]
Happiness in Recovery – Reset Your Day!
It has been a long winter, and some of us may be feeling a bit down lately. To be sure, there’s nothing wrong with feeling down. Happiness is not a prerequisite of recovery for our clients at Sanford Behavioral Health. However, we do teach coping skills to help our clients move through the rough patches: […]
A New Look at 10 Addiction Relapse Triggers
You are new to recovery and innocently pushing your cart down the aisle at the local Fresh Market. Let’s say it’s a gloomy Sunday afternoon. You round the corner, and there in front of you is the alcohol aisle. Aisles more like it, all shapes and sizes of beer and wine stacked and displayed artfully. […]
