The Addicted Mind Podcast

On today’s episode of The Addicted Mind Podcast, Duane speaks to Tyler Farnham about his skydiving accident and his subsequent journey through addiction and recovery.Tyler says that having goals and making active decisions about who is in your circle can change your life.Originally from Cocoa Beach, Tyler now lives in Bali. Even before his accident, Tyler had already dabbled a little with pain pills in the form of 20mg Percocets.After becoming somewhat dependent on them, Tyler found it harder and harder to get off of them. In a leadership position as a lifeguard, he felt the call to give up the pain pills. It was around this time that Tyler realized that the company he kept mattered.Calming The Addicted Mind - 6 Day Mindfulness Email Seriestheaddictedmind.com/mindfulnessWhen he was 18, Tyler started jumping out of airplanes. He jokes about being addicted to it, but in some ways, he feels he really was addicted to the rush, anyway. In the crash, he shattered his right femur and they almost had to amputate.His left femur broke. He shattered his jaw, fractured his skull, and lost nine teeth. He was placed in a five-day medically-induced coma, and he woke up on his 26th birthday.On a morphine drip and in excruciating pain, Tyler was confined to a wheelchair and even had to attend speech therapy during his recovery. He had to have his mouth wired shut.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>Depression set in and it started to feel impossible to see the hope in his situation. Tyler started to journal as a means of keeping up hope. It helped him to track his progress and feel some sort of hope and motivation.Having something to do that’s physically active helped Tyler to overcome the dependency. The natural endorphins you encounter can boost your positivity. He encourages others to find the same.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/96Tyler shares a story about how his inability to refill a script affected his mood so severely that he felt he couldn't even do his job. Because he didn't want to hurt people, he decided to try to find a solution. This is when he decided to seek treatment.Put on Suboxone initially, Tyler started to work toward changing his life. Tyler’s message to someone struggling with addiction now: reach out to someone. And write things down.The importance of this cannot be overstated. These are small promises to yourself. Keeping them can give you the motivation to keep moving forward.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

On today’s episode of The Addicted Mind Podcast, Duane speaks to sex coach and educator Stacie Ysidro about addiction and healing your sexuality during the recovery process. Stacie has studied virtually every corner of addictive sexuality and has focused her career on helping people navigate sober sexuality once they’ve recovered. She has something of a passion for sexology and the relationship between sexuality and spirituality. She realized that people need coaching around their sexuality in recovery.Calming The Addicted Mind - 6 Day Mindfulness Email Seriestheaddictedmind.com/mindfulnessStacie discusses how sex is typically seen through the lens of people-pleasing and not through an honoring one. When not using a substance to escape, you have to more or less face your real sexual self. And yet it’s hard to honor yourself after trauma. Because sexuality is so vulnerable, it gives you access to every other part of yourself.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>Duane and Stacie talk about the link between vulnerability and sex with regard to treatment programs, our relationships, and the broader culture. Part of this process deals in releasing ourselves from shame and forgiving ourselves. Stacie uses something called a Sexual Values System to help assess where people are. The system has people scrutinize their own values, beliefs, and even definitions surrounding their own sexuality, including desires and expectations. Doing this work in a shame-free environment allows people to find new words, change their understanding, and set and realize goals.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/95Stacie’s work helps people to see their own worth. She encourages people that are curious about healing their sexuality to start asking questions about their own sex lives to try to better understand their attitudes about sex. To come into presence with your body is the only way to authentically step into pleasure, free from judgment. And to do this is to ultimately unite our spirits with our sexuality. As Stacie says, “pleasure is our divine right.”Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

On today’s episode of The Addicted Mind Podcast, Duane speaks with author Carder Stout about his book, Lost in Ghost Town, the story of his addiction and recovery. Duane also addresses the difficulty of the ongoing COVID-19 situation by starting a campaign of stories trying to spread hope in a time of darkness.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>Carder grew up in Georgetown, where his father constantly worked and his mother was an alcoholic. From an early age, he had feelings of disillusionment and worthlessness. By the time he was 11, his parents had divorced, securing the disarray in his home. By twenty, he’d already gone through eating disorders and was living on cocaine in New York. He thought that moving to Los Angeles would help him distance himself from the people he knew and his addiction, but in Venice, the epicenter of crack at the time, Carder’s addiction spiraled. Carder meets a drug dealer in Venice named Flynn, who, with his grandmother Beatrice, actually showed Carder the familial love that he never received from his actual family. Calming The Addicted Mind - 6 Day Mindfulness Email Seriestheaddictedmind.com/mindfulnessAs a child, Carder experimented with drugs and alcohol as early as age 7. By age ten, he was regularly smoking weed, bein altogether unsupervised. He talks about receiving visions, for lack of a better term, from his grandmother, as frightening as that is. His grandmother, who was a clairvoyant in her life, ultimately became something of a spirit guide for him while he was high. While in the midst of dealing drugs, Carder talks specifically about being surrounded by guns in the culture. In the middle of a lot of psychological pain, he says that he could not stop the “loop” of obsession and compulsion, the things that kept his addiction rolling. In a lot of ways, Flynn became the person that loved him through the cycle of addiction. In Santa Fe, Carder is accepted into a psychology school after getting out of in-patient care. He worked 2 or 3 jobs for almost ten years working on his degree. Now, he’s a practicing psychologist in Los Angeles. Part of his platform is pushing the idea that developing a sense of purpose is one of the first steps people can take toward a successful recovery program. Forgiveness also plays a vital role in recovery. Carder talks about forgiving his family and forgiving himself, and how that opens the door to freedom.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/94Carder carved out 4 hours a day, three days a week and set a goal to write. He found some hope in the writing process, which allowed him to tell his story and materialize healing. A publisher under Simon & Schuster picked up his book and he was able to do a reading before an audience before the COVID-19 outbreak. In his sobriety, he married and had two children, and he points to his life as living proof that addicts can recover. There is hope for those who actively seek support.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Today's guest is Dr. Don Wood, from the Inspired Performance Institute, and he will be talking to us about trauma and how to heal from it. Don helps people reprocess their trauma so that they're no longer in a state of hyper-vigilance and responding to their past trauma in the present moment.Our traumas can either take us down or inspire us. Don believes that every individual who is dealing with addiction has had trauma. He has been very successful in treating addiction as well as trauma. In the past, he used to find that people were finding ways to live with trauma by learning how to manage it and cope with its effects. Trauma, however, creates glitches and error messages in the way that our minds work and so Don has subsequently discovered that it is possible to eliminate trauma so that we no longer need to deal with any of its effects. Our subconscious mind operates in the present, so ninety-five percent of our brain is always present, just like the mind of an animal is always present. But because our minds experience trauma on a looping basis, we can't shut off the loop of information, and so we continue to re-experience the past trauma in the present moment. Our traumatic events and experiences are recorded in our memories differently from our regular experiences. Experiences that are neither threatening nor disturbing are recorded and stored in memory as fairly low-resolution files. Threatening or disturbing experiences, however, are recorded and stored differently by the mind. Our senses are heightened and intensified with those experiences, so they are stored in our minds in high definition. And this is where the glitch comes in.If our mind goes back into memory, and it sees the stored images of those traumatic events, it perceives those events to be happening right now, in the present moment. So although there is nothing threatening happening in the present moment, the mind still creates a response to the memory of the threat. Your mind will do anything to try to protect you and avoid pain. So at the Inspired Performance Institute, they start with the premise that there's nothing wrong with anybody, or with anybody's mind. They understand that our minds are being affected by events and experiences throughout our lifetime. And this is constantly activating our nervous systems. So, if you have high-resolution data stored, and your mind is activating it, you will create a response. And the response could be to take a drink or to use a drug. There can be both high-level and low-level traumas. To fix things, the mind needs to stop looping. At the Inspired Performance Institute, they have developed a series of techniques to reduce and eliminate PTSD, panic attacks, and anxiety attacks in a four-hour session. They do this by providing a counter-frequency for the memory. Then, the mind takes on the new frequency and changes it to the lower state. After that, the mind stops responding to the previously traumatic memory. People are often shocked at how fast the trauma has been eliminated!The mind and body are designed to heal. All you need are the tools to do it with.Links and resources:If you need help or some support, reach out to us at www.theaddictedmind.com/helpThe Inspired Performance Institute - https://www.inspiredperformanceinstitute.com/To get the first chapter of Don's book, You Must Be Out of Your Mind, or to contact Don, go to https://www.inspiredperformanceinstitute.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Due to the worldwide situation with the Coronavirus pandemic, and everything else that goes along with that, we're bringing you a special episode today. The current situation has left most of us with very intense emotions that can be quite difficult to cope with.So Suzie Wolfer, who was our guest on a previous episode of The Addicted Mind podcast, (Episode 53) decided to join us today, to share some of her insight about emotion regulation, distress tolerance, and somatic experiencing, to help us cope with the feelings that this pandemic has brought up. Episode link>>>>www.theaddictedmind.com/special-episodeSuzie Wolfer, LCSW, SEP, is a therapist specializing in Somatic Experiencing®, a powerful system for healing trauma and addiction at their core, and for completing trauma so that it lets go of you.Suzie has noticed recently that almost all her clients are experiencing the signs of freeze, and often, they are experiencing anxiety along with that too. She points out that we all have within our bodies certain superpowers, that have come to us through millions of years of evolution, that will allow us to move easily through this very frightening time. So today, she will be talking about those superpowers, and she will explain how to use them to move through this difficult time with a little more ease and, hopefully, a lot less freeze. Freeze makes our bodies go rigid, feel numb, and get ready to bolt. Suzie always used to experience this at the thought of going to see the dentist. What she realized, after getting some training in Somatic Experiencing, was that she had the superpowers of fight, flight, and freeze. So, the next time that she had to visit the dentist, she tried using these things, rather than letting them control her. She began to practice noticing, welcoming and allowing the feelings of freeze, rather than fighting them off and letting them frighten her. She became aware that the feelings that she was experiencing were like a wild animal's response to a threat, so she imagined what she would do to the animal attacking her if her body was that of a wild animal. The image that came to her mind was that she would punch the attacking animal in the face with her super-powerful fist and then she would run away to a safe place, where she would relax. While imaging the wild animal scenario, she became aware of her body shaking. She allowed the shaking, which was coming from her autonomic nervous system, to continue, and then things started calming down. After getting up from the dentist's chair, and walking to her car, she noticed that it had been the first time that she had ever been able to function normally after a dental appointment. She realized that this is something that we need to complete, and completing something is very different from managing anxiety and freeze.We call freeze a superpower because it allows us to become invisible by holding ourselves very still. Predators detect their prey from the carbon dioxide in their exhalation, so holding very still, breathing very shallowly, and keeping ourselves hunched over with our eyes down are the same things that wild animals do to keep themselves safe from threat. But people do tend to become scared when their bodies do these things without them realizing what is happening.Currently, we are all experiencing an existential, invisible threat. We can't fight it or outrun it, but we can freeze. Our physical biology can invoke the very smart superpower to hunker down. However, along with that comes fear, so we also need to do something to overcome that and develop within ourselves an ease for readiness. There are some techniques that we can use, with our friends and our children, to enable us to respond in a manageable way to our current, frightening situation. Firstly, tune into your body and become aware of where you are holding tension right now. Notice, and welcome whatever is going on in your body. Don't try to make your feelings go away. Simply notice them with curiosity. Taking a deep breath naturally, is a sign that your autonomic nervous system has hit the reset button. It means that you're present and that things are returning to normal in your body. Let your eyes go wherever they want to, in the outer world. Notice what they are looking at. This will bring yourself into the present moment, through your senses. Notice how your body is responding to whatever it is looking at. Remember that even a one percent shift towards ease is the beginning of a process. Ask yourself four questions: 1) Are you safe right now? (Yes or no?) If the answer is "no", ask yourself if you truly are not safe, or if you just don't feel safe. The reality is that most of us are safe.2) Using your five senses, affirm that your body truly is safe right now. As mammals, we often take safety cues from one another, so looking into someone else's eyes can help us to feel safe.3) Bring your attention back inside yourself and notice how your body responds when y

Today, Rebecca Williams joins us. Rebecca is a licensed psychologist, who lived and worked in beautiful San Diego, California for twenty-five years. She recently relocated to Savannah, Georgia to be close to the wildlife and the natural beauty of the area. Rebecca's path into addiction opened up through her family's struggles with addiction. Especially those of her late mother.Episode link>>>>www.theaddictedmind.com/92Growing up in this way, Rebecca wanted to learn as much as she could about addiction so she got her Master's degree in Counseling Psychology, followed by her Ph.D. at the University of California, Santa Barbara. One of Rebecca's specialties is mindfulness. She has been working on it for the last twenty years and she has found it paramount to her self-healing and also to her capabilities as a psychologist. She discovered mindfulness through yoga when she started teaching it in the eighties before mindfulness became cool.Mindfulness helped Rebecca to quieten her anxious mind. It's also a tool that has been very helpful to her, in her profession, to help a lot of other people with anxiety, depression, and other issues relating to mental health.Mindfulness, as a practice, is a way through anxiety. Jon Kabat-Zinn described mindfulness as being in the present moment, on purpose, and without judgment. Being in the present moment is a challenge, and doing it on purpose takes work. Letting go of judgment can be difficult, but like everything, with practice, it gets easier.Although it can take a lot to rid yourself of judgment, Rebecca explains that when you get used to not judging anymore, your brain starts to re-calibrate itself. And new, smoother neural pathways start opening up. Rebecca believes that it all starts with the simple step of finding a quiet place where you won't be disturbed for a while. Then close your eyes for five minutes, and focus something like a sound or your breathing. If you do this every single day, you will become calmer and more focused over time.There's no right way to meditate. It's just about permitting yourself to take the time to do it. Rebecca tends to struggle with her mind jumping around, so she concentrates on her breathing to help still her mind. She advises people to keep it uncomplicated, and as simple and as possible. Rebecca also suggests doing a walking meditation. To do that, you can simply count the colors of green that you see while you're out walking. Or, if you're in the city, you can count all the different shades of grey you come across. The main thing is to permit yourself to be okay with any anxious thoughts that may arise because they are normal. And remember that the mind is designed to think so you can simply be grateful for that and keep going. Links and resources:Rebecca's website: www.mindfulnessworkbook.comBooks mentioned: Full Catastrophe Living: Using the Wisdom of Your Body and Mind to Face Stress, Pain, and Illness by Jon Kabat-ZinnGift of Recovery: 52 Mindful Ways To Live Joyfully Beyond Addiction by Rebecca Williams and Julie S KraftThe Mindfulness Workbook for Addiction: A Guide to Coping with the Grief, Stress and Anger that Trigger Addictive Behaviors by Rebecca Williams and Julie S Kraft Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Anita Abdul-Karim is our guest for today. Anita is a registered dietician and she has written a book called Bad Bitches Don't Diet. Today, she will be sharing her journey and talking to us about her book. Anita is from the Middle East. She struggled to fit in while growing up because there weren't many other Middle Eastern people at her school. She was also chubby, and not the smartest kid in the class, so, although her parents did the best they could under the circumstances, all of that added to the social pressure that Anita was experiencing.Anita was overweight, and that impacted on her socially, and also within her family. So she tried to take matters into her own hands while growing up. Having a scientific mind, she gravitated towards any available information about diets and nutrition. Episode link>>>>www.theaddictedmind.com/91Anita lost a lot of weight in the seventh and eighth grades. However, in her senior year of high school, a lot was going on, and she gained thirty pounds in one month. It was a very dramatic situation.Although Anita's weight fluctuated a lot, she was always aware of being overweight. And although she binged from time to time, she still knew that she wanted to become a dietician, and study nutrition.Anita has always wanted to understand and move towards the truth. So she enrolled in an excellent program and learned about the science of nutrition. Then she came across a book called Intuitive Eating, written by two dieticians, Elyse Resch and Evelyn Tribole, and that took a huge weight off her shoulders and changed her entire life.The philosophy behind eating intuitively is all about learning to trust your body to tell you what it needs. Unfortunately, however, most people grow up being taught not to trust themselves. This can cause a lot of misery and even lead people towards addictions because the further you push away from yourself, the more miserable you become.Anita continued to suffer a lot of social pressure while she was studying because she was still overweight and people often made nasty comments about her being large and studying nutrition. So although she was still suffering the misery of trying to figure out her body, she started learning how to come back to herself and block the opinions of others. She soon learned how to be completely still and surrender to the point of being okay with herself and with everything happening in the present moment. She realized that any deviation from that kind of thinking could lead her towards an addiction.Coming from a background as a health educator, Anita found that asking her patients questions inevitably led to better outcomes for their lives. That is because asking people questions empowers them and informs them subconsciously that they have the answers to most of their ailments. Many people don't consider food to be their medicine. Nor do they consider food to be something that can cause them to feel something immediately like medication does. Links and resources:Anita’s InstagramBooks mentioned: Bad Bitches Don't Diet: A True Philosophy About Food by Anita Abdul-Karim Intuitive Eating: A Revolutionary Program That Works by Elyse Resch and Evelyn Tribole Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Today, our guest is Julie Hall. Julie is the author of The Narcissist In Your Life: Recognizing the Patterns and Learning to Break Free, which was released in December 2019. In today's episode, she will be talking to us about what narcissism is and what it's like growing up with a narcissistic parent or parents.Julie comes from a narcissistic family, so she describes herself as a survivor. She is an educational writer, poet, and journalist. While working on her memoirs, she came to realize that narcissism had been a major theme throughout her life, so she shifted gears and began to write specifically about narcissism. This became part of Julie's healing process.Episode link>>>>www.theaddictedmind.com/90Julie has a popular blog called The Narcissist Family Files, and you can find the articles that she writes regularly in Psychology Today. She also has articles in The HuffPost and various other places on the internet. Narcissism is a personality disorder and there has been a lot of talk about it recently. Julie's book is about narcissistic personality disorder and how it affects the people close to the person with the disorder. Everyone has a level of healthy narcissism, in that we all see things through our lens to some degree. The narcissist, however, has pathological levels of self-involvement and he or she experiences fundamental developmental deficits, early on in life.In a family in which one or both of the parents are narcissistic, the family is structured in such a way that the needs of the children are secondary to the needs of the parents.With narcissists, there's an underlying sense of profound vulnerability, shame, inferiority, and worthlessness. Narcissism is a defensive coping structure and children who develop this kind of coping structure tend to repress their feelings of vulnerability and shame and they build an exterior persona to mask their overwhelming feelings. They develop a false grandiose and superior personality, often becoming domineering and competitive. They are out of touch with their inner, emotional world and so they don't actively engage with people on an emotional level. The narcissistic personality avoids self-reflection at all costs and it learns to mimic certain behaviors that look like intimacy. Narcissists tend to see themselves and others as either worthless or wonderful. When they see themselves (or others) as perfect, they need to stay that way in order not to feel worthless. They seem to be in a state that is disconnected from other people.A major loss could sometime cause narcissists to look for help. This can be difficult for them and their process of recovery takes a long time, possibly seven to ten years.It's devastating to be around a narcissist regularly. Especially for children, who suffer from a lot of pain, confusion, and complex trauma as a result.Addiction is a part of the narcissistic family system. As well as a pattern of depression, anger, confusion, family rifts, and alienation, with no awareness of what the core issue is, or naming the personality disorder that is driving the dysfunction within the family system. Denial is a big obstacle for the children of narcissists to overcome. They tend to move through all the stages of grief for a very long time. The therapists who can best help the children of narcissists have usually gone through the same kind of experience themselves, like children. Becoming educated about narcissism is very important for people who grew up with narcissistic parents. It's very easy to do today because there is so much information available.Links and Resources:Julie's website and blog: www.narcissistfamilyfiles.com Books Mentioned: The Narcissist In Your Life, Recognizing the Patterns and Learning to Break Free by Julie HallThe Narcissistic Family:Diagnosis and Treatment by Robert M. Pressman and Stephanie Donaldson-PressmanSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We have Kenneth Anderson, from HAMS (Harm Reduction Abstinence and Moderation Support) and the Harm Reduction Network with us today. He will be talking about harm reduction, what that means, how that differs from traditional forms of treatment (like twelve-step abstinence models), and the way that the harm reduction model can help people who are not yet ready for, or not willing to practice total abstinence, but would still like to change their drinking habits.Kenneth is the founder and CEO of the HAMS Harm Reduction Network, a free-of-charge support group for people who want to make any kind of positive change to their drinking habits, from safer drinking to reduced drinking, to quitting altogether. There are seventeen elements to the HAMS program, which are all optional and can be done in any order. Although HAMS is an alcohol-focused group, they don't stop anyone from talking about any other addictions or problems that they may have.Episode link>>>>www.theaddictedmind.com/89HAMS has a handbook, called How To Change Your Drinking, which was written by Kenneth. The book was published ten years ago and about 22 000 copies have been sold on Amazon.Kenneth used to drink a lot and he was getting into trouble as a result. He tried turning to several different groups, Alcoholics Annonymous included, for help but they did not work for him. He tried Moderation Management for a while, and while he was there, he developed the Harm Reduction approach. He was fascinated by the concept of harm reduction and began volunteering at the Needle Exchange Program in Minneapolis. There, he learned a lot and it completely changed his perspective. He realized the importance of encouraging every positive change.The problem with abstinence models is that they are perfectionistic. So any improvement that anyone makes, apart from abstaining entirely, is not deemed to have any value whatsoever.The Harm Reduction Model is about every positive change and it is a very pragmatic model in the United States. It was started in Holland, when drug users decided to do something to help themselves, and decided to start handing out clean needles to prevent their friends from dying. This model used to be illegal in the United States and it is still illegal in many places.Harm Reduction encourages people to pick a goal that fits them. A goal that is do-able and right for them. Many people who come to Harm Reduction eventually choose to abstain completely.Generally, about 85% of all the alcoholics who recover do it on their own. It sometimes takes a long time, but recovery from alcoholism through controlled behavior does happen.Early on, there were a great number of approaches to addiction treatment. Kenneth is currently writing a history of addiction treatments in America. Aversion Therapy was big in the US until the 1980s. There was a chain of about 25 Aversion Therapy hospitals, using conditioned taste aversion, or electric shocks, and there were no alternative treatments available at the time. What sets the Harm Reduction Network apart from all other recovery programs is that they are willing to welcome and support anyone who wants to make any kind of positive change to their drinking habits. They have online groups and a forum on their website so that you can do all the work yourself, for free. They also have a very popular Facebook group. Better Is Better is one of HAMS's most popular models.Links and resources:The HAMS website - www.hams.ccThe National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions (NESARC) Waves 1 and 2: Review and summary of findings - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4618096/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Josh Rychert joins us today. He will be talking about the recovery community called Recovery Dharma, in Boise, Idaho. Josh shares his personal story and explains how mindfulness, Buddhism, and learning to understand his dharma assisted him and can assist others too, by bringing the elements of peace and calmness into their lives and their recovery process. Episode Link>>>>>www.theaddictedmind.com/88Josh is in Boise, Idaho, where he has been involved in the recovery community since 2014. Recovery Dharma, under that name, only came into being last year. Recovery Dharma in Boise started as Refuge Recovery, with small groups and alliances with other similar groups through an online presence. Recovery Dharma is an addiction recovery peer support group, with meetings all over the nation. It uses Buddhism, with the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path, as a way to structure recovery for individuals.Josh's recovery began in 1995. After having had issues with an alcohol use disorder, he became involved with Twelve Step groups. And after many years of recovery, Josh eventually found himself moving away from the Twelve Steps and developing an interest in meditation, to help his depression. Eventually, he rediscovered his need for a recovery community, and he fell into the Buddhist addiction recovery path, under the name of Refuge Recovery.Buddhism was something that recognized Josh's capacity to have a life where compulsions and addictions were not the primary focus. It offered him an opportunity to identify with a recovery path that didn't identify with his addiction. He could, however, still recognize the risk of compulsions and addictions in his life. The kind of present moment experience that Josh wanted from Buddhism was the experience of seeing the world clearly, being able to participate in life, and simply being alive and happy. While recognizing, at the same time, that he had certain risks to his wellness.For most people in recovery, options are not offered to them in the beginning. People with addictions are usually referred directly to Twelve-Step-based recovery programs, although many people don't resonate with that. Having Buddhism as an option is valuable because it recognizes a modern incarnation of our knowledge of recovery and it does not require reliance on a Higher Power.Mindfulness has been scientifically validated. With cravings, mindfulness helps people to be with the discomfort, and sit through it. Also, when the cravings have lessened, mindfulness helps people to thrive, in the moment.Recovery Dharma is broken down into some general categories. There is the practice of meditation, there are recovery meetings, and there is the study of Buddhism.Dharma is often the word used to describe the teachings of Buddhism. More broadly, it describes a sense of truth, or a clear understanding of reality, or the wise teachings that bring about in people a sense of well-being and an ability to connect with the world. It allows people to share their wisdom and it offers them a sense of togetherness.The Recovery Dharma meetings facilitate a sharing of wisdom through engaging in a practice to build a sense of calm and equanimity.Recovery Dharma is a branch of Refuge Recovery and it addresses the underlying causes of people's addictions. There's a recognition within the professional community today, that Recovery Dharma, and the practice of meditation, are very valuable to people on the path of recovery. Links and resources:https://www.meetup.com/recoverydharmaboise/ Recovery Dharma's Facebook page - https://www.facebook.com/groups/recovery.dharma/The Addicted Mind Website - www.theaddictedmind.com For more info about Novus Mindful Life Institute, go to www.theaddictedmind.com/helpJoin our Facebook group. Go to www.facebook.com, type in The Addicted Mind, and click 'join'.Book: The Mindful Way Through Depression by Mark Williams, John Teasdale, Zindel Segal, and Jon Kabat-Zinn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Today's guest is Alex Katehakis. Alex is a Clinical Sexologist with a doctorate in human sexuality. She's also the Clinical Director of the Center For Healthy Sex in Los Angeles, California.Alex has written several books - Sex Addiction As Affect Dysregulation, Erotic Intelligence, and Mirror Of Intimacy. Episode link>>>>www.theaddictedmind.com/87In today's episode, she shares her wisdom and insight about recovery and we have a great conversation about the root causes of the addictive process. We focus on the early developmental trauma and the way that it affects the ability to regulate our affect, and how addictive substances or processes are used to escape from those feelings. Alex has always been fascinated by human sexuality. After practicing as a licensed marriage/family therapist for twenty-five years, she decided to dive deeper into human sexuality, rather than psychology.Talking about affect is referring to emotions. These emotions live deep within the body, and they only come forward when they are registered by the brain as feelings. When a person is dysregulated and stressed out, their affect becomes dysregulated. When a child feels threatened, perhaps from an alcoholic, raging, shut down, or mean parent, their affect becomes dysregulated and they will always find themselves looking for something to make them feel better. In their waking life, a dysregulated person will feel anxious, depressed, dead internally, or dull. There's a general lack of feeling vitality in the body.Dysregulated people say they don't feel joy states, or they are super anxious, so they have to drink to make the anxiety go away. They may use sex to make themselves feel powerful or good about themselves.Anything that we're doing outside of ourselves to make ourselves feel 'right internally' speaks to affect dysregulation. Someone who is securely attached, and has a good heart-rate variability in general, doesn't have to reach for anything to change their internal state or mood. Love addicts, and some sex addicts, learned very early on that they had to get their needs met by themselves, so they used fantasy, which is a form of mild to moderate dissociation. This makes it difficult for them to connect to another person, as an adult, and to have intimacy or closeness. People often don't know this about themselves until their lives become unmanageable. Change is possible, however, it takes time. Willpower is difficult for people experiencing a lot of stress. It's not the best way to change long-standing patterns that people have developed over time.Long-term psychotherapy can help people feel into their bodies, and it allows them to feel the things they could not feel, as a child. Twelve-step programs help people change because they are inclusive and non-judgmental. As humans, we all need other people to survive. In her book, Sex Addiction As Affect Dysregulation, Alex looks at the underlying mechanism that drives problematic behavior. It helps people to see sex addiction in a new way, and it offers hope for the people who are struggling with it. Sex addiction is being recognized more and more by the scientific community as a bone fide problem. It was first recognized in about 1978, although people were talking about it as an affliction as early as in the 1800s. In 2011, the American Society of Addiction Medicine made a public policy statement, in which they included sex as an addiction. In 2018, a proposed diagnosis of compulsive sexual behavior disorder was established for the international coding book, the ICD.Remember, it's never too late to take a step in the direction of health!Links and resources:To find out more, go to www.thecenterforhealthysex.com Alex also has a Youtube channel with hundreds of videos from sex-experts around the world. Alex's books: Sex Addiction As Affect Dysregulation Erotic Intelligence Mirror Of Intimacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

David Fawcett is our guest for today and he will be talking about chemsex addiction. He will explain what it is and how people recover when they fuse a drug addiction and a sex addiction. Episode Link>>>>>www.theaddictedmind.com/86David is a licensed clinical social worker and a sexologist (sex therapist). For the last twenty years, he has been working with men who have sex with men who use methamphetamine, other drugs, and high-risk sex. He has now developed an interest in what has become known as chemsex. For years, people were coming to David, as a sexologist, with their sexual problems. By looking at their history, he noticed that the sexual problems were being caused by methamphetamine. And he realized that people were often seeking help for their sex problems rather than for their drug problems. This led to David's discovery of the fusion between sexual behavior and drug use. And the devastation that it caused for the affected individuals. People simultaneously using drugs and sex causes a fusion, or bonding, of neuropathways in the brain. This brings about a specific set of behaviors, making it necessary for them to deal simultaneously with both their sex and their substance addictions. People's sex lives become so set by the super-stimulation of sex and drugs that nothing normal is appealing anymore. Sex and porn addiction play out similarly and the brain has to reboot in recovery. There is even a state, called anhedonia, where people are no longer able to experience any pleasure and life feels grey and depressing. This is often due to the brain shedding its receptors. People who were a year or eighteen months clean were coming to see David. They had virtually no sexual desire because sex been so fused with their drug use that when they gave up the drugs, the sex went with it. This happens because of Dopamine, one of the neurotransmitters in the brain, that bonds actions and rewards together. With chemsex, there is a high-level volume of stimulation coming into the brain. So the brain sheds its Dopamine receptors to control the level of stimulation that it is receiving. This can lead to depression. Methamphetamine is neurotoxic. This means that it consumes and destroys the receptors in the brain. It can take several years in recovery for the neuropathways to recover. Recovery from chemsex involves working with both the chemical and the sex sides of the addiction. David uses an abstinence-across-the-board model, combined with recovery plans for sex and substance addictions. One of David's goals is to re-integrate healthy sexuality back into people's lives. Anything that gets people into their bodies and out of their heads speeds up the process. Peer support is really valuable for recovery from chemsex addiction. Recovery is possible! Links and resources:David's email - [email protected]'s websites - www.seekingintegrity.com www.sexandrelationshipshealing.comSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Kathleen Oh is our guest for today. We have a great conversation with her about breathwork, facilitating change, and non-ordinary experiences. Episode Link>>>>www.theaddictedmind.com/85Kathleen is an Integration Coach, and her work started three years ago, in the foundation of her addiction, and her recovery. She had plenty of help from some great mentors and teachers along the way, however, it was ultimately the tools that she acquired for herself, in her journey out of her addiction, that got her to where she is today.Kathleen has a food addiction. This was very hard for her, and although her addiction wasn't obvious to others, it was clear to her that there was something profoundly wrong with her brain because she saw how she was continuously cycling through addictions with cigarettes, alcohol, and food. She was a binge-eater who used to eat secretly. She was obese, and her appetite for refined foods was insatiable, so she knew she had an issue with food but she did not realize at the time that it was an addiction. She thought it was an emotional need that she was trying to fulfill.The specific foods that Kathleen cannot tolerate are refined. Due to their molecular structure, her brain takes in refined foods as if they are drugs like heroin or cocaine. It was a huge eye-opener for her when she discovered that by removing refined foods from her diet, she was able to access the non-ordinary experiences of a spiritual awakening.Breathwork has resulted in some of the most profound experiences that Kathleen has ever had. She started her relationship with breathwork about twenty years ago, when she encountered Breath Therapy for the first time, and her facilitator became her mentor. Breathwork has allowed Kathleen to feel safe to be in her body. This connection to herself has given her something wonderful that she has never experienced before. Breathwork supported Kathleen in a way that she could accept the difficult moments in her life and power through them. Breathwork became a place of surrender for her, and this became the foundation for her recovery.Although the method that Kathleen's breathwork facilitator used was initially very challenging for her, it became the primary breath that Kathleen used at the time. It involves a sharp intake of breath, into the top third of the lungs, and the sound it makes can create a shocking feeling and cause one to re-experience past traumas that have been stored in the body. Holotropic Breathwork is probably the most effective and best-researched breathing technique. It was developed in the 1960s by a psychiatrist called Stanislav Grof, who came to the US to do LSD research. When his research into LSD was terminated in the late 1960s, he continued looking for ways to bring about the non-ordinary state. He found that breathwork was as effective as LSD, and using yogic breath practices, shamanic journeys, and loud cultural music and drumming, he developed the Holotropic Breathwork system.The breathwork that Kathleen coaches and facilitates is intuitive and unguided. One of its premises is to inhale a lot more breath than you exhale, to build up CO2 in the body. This shuts down the default mechanism in the brain and allows people to connect with parts of themselves that have previously been inaccessible on a day-to-day basis. This technique works very well for addictions because it allows people to access their inner truth, and see themselves in a different light. They can then work with their experiences with more resources than they had when the initial incident occurred.Breath is our life source. Kathleen believes that breathwork is our highest power and something that everybody needs because it connects us to something greater and more powerful than we are. By practicing breathwork, we are creating a better version of ourselves which will ultimately benefit everyone. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Today, our guest is German Lopez. German a writer and he is currently doing a project called The Rehab Racket, which involves looking into addiction treatment, exploring some of the issues associated with it, and bringing them to light. This challenges the addiction treatment community to provide the very best care for people who are suffering from addictions.German is a senior correspondent at Vox.com. Before, he was writing mostly about drug policy and criminal justice issues, but for the past few months, his focus has been on The Rehab Racket project, which was created to investigate the cost and quality of the treatment that is available for addictions in the United States. At this point, German has received more than 1100 submissions from patients and their families.For the last few years, German has been researching and writing about the opioid epidemic. He saw that policy-makers had been making an effort to put more money into addiction treatment, which is something that activists had been calling for, for quite some time. This information initially seemed contradictory to him because addiction is hard to treat, and there was a general understanding out there that much of the available treatment was inadequate, not evidence-based, and not really helping a lot of people. German wanted to make sure that the money being poured into addiction treatment was indeed going towards something worthwhile and effective. So he started talking to families, to ascertain whether or not he was onto something. This is how The Rehab Racket project came about.It seems that the idea that people who use drugs and go through addiction treatment are under-represented overall in the conversation, has changed in recent years, particularly with the opioid epidemic. This is what motivated German to want to hear directly from the affected people.Hearing from people who found a treatment that worked for their addiction, and got them into recovery, who had spent thousands, and sometimes even tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars on that treatment was alarming for German. The American health insurance system is supposed to protect people from these catastrophic costs, and in a lot of cases, the insurance is not doing that due to the many barriers that are involved.For a long time, society neglected this particular area of health care. There were initially no places that provided treatment for addictions, so that forced all the assistance to come from community groups, like AA and other twelve-step groups.Treatment for addiction is still a relatively young field, it takes good research to make a good change, and we are still learning about the most effective ways to help people who are struggling with addictions. However, many treatment facilities don't track their outcomes and many of the surveys that are done around addiction and recovery are of very poor quality, so it's difficult, at this stage, to know what kind of treatment is the most effective. But, based on the data that's available from the federal survey of treatment facilities, there seems to be more push lately to find out more about this particular field of health care.People with addictions need support. However, there's still a stigma with addictions, so people who struggle with them often get treated badly, with a lack of compassion. German has seen that even doctors, nurses, and other people who have been trained to deal with the suffering, tend to be prejudiced towards people with addictions. He would like to see this change and see the people in authority and policy-makers realizing that people with addictions need to be treated kindly, with compassion and care. He points out that this could be one of our society's main lines of defense against the current drug crisis. Links:German's Reporting on Vox - www.vox.com/rehabGerman on twitter - @germanrlopez Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Today, we have a great conversation with Jen Sugermeyer. She shares her story of addiction and recovery, and she talks to us about overcoming her shame and her fear of reaching out, and how she managed to change her relationship with herself. Jen's addiction started at the age of twelve, with an eating disorder. At the time, she did not realize that she was paving the way for her brain to become accustomed to satisfying her reward system. When she reached her mid-thirties, she was an alcoholic and she had been trying to get sober for more than a decade. Looking back, Jen could see her pattern of gaining control of one addiction, and then that leading to another one. Jen was living an extremely chaotic life, running in and out of jails and hospitals, and then straight into work. She was trying to keep the two parts of herself separate and it was eating her up inside. She even became suicidal towards the end, from living such an unmanageable lifestyle. She kept trying to fix her symptoms when she was the problem. She couldn't get a hold on her addictions, and she knew that at some point, she would have to come to terms with the fact that she needed to work on herself. Although Jen really wanted people close to her, she could never get too close to anyone because she only wanted people to see one part of who she was. And she was working in Corporate America, where there was a stigma around having any kind of mental health issue. So there was a constant battle raging within her between the two aspects of herself, and she felt very alone because there was nobody that she felt she could talk to. It was around this time that she became suicidal because it seemed the easiest way out. It was only when she was about twenty-five that Jen admitted that she had an addiction problem. And it took at least another five years before she could admit to being an alcoholic, even though she had to acknowledge before that, that there were things about her behavior that didn't line up. From the age of twenty-five, she was in and out of AA for about ten years.Jen had to learn to love herself. This became abundantly clear to her when the man she was dating told her so and it was his words that finally launched her into sobriety. This was the first time that she understood what she needed to do. Coming out and talking about everything has been an interesting road for Jen. She has been well-received and she's found the experience more liberating than she imagined. However, she realizes that there's still a lot of work to be done. Although Jen gave herself an entire year to work on her recovery, she knows that will have to continue working on herself every day, after that. Because, since she was twelve, she has never really felt her emotions and she has always been suppressing her feelings.About five years ago, Jen finally started admitting to her alcoholism. She got sober and began wrapping her head around the recovery process. Although it took a long time for her to find her sobriety, she's okay with it because she doesn't think that she would be the person she is today if she had found her sobriety at the age of eighteen.There is a whole lot of forgiving that goes with recovery. Not just for others, but yourself as well. Jen knows that she would not have been where she is today without having learned to let go. Jen has written a book, called RESET (Recognize, Eliminate, Standardize, Elevate, and Transform). She started writing it on the first anniversary of her sobriety. It's about what she went through, and how to claim the life that you deserve. It will be coming out in the spring of 2020. You can sign up on her website for the VIP launch, to get a copy of her book for only 99 cents.Jen also has a 101 coaching program that will be coming out in 2020.Links:Jen's website - www.jensugermeyer.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Today, Dr. Faye Mandell is with us to talk about spirituality, connection, and how being in the present moment and looking at our reality from a quantum perspective can help us find more joy and happiness. Dr. Mandell is a practicing Awareness Coach. Although she has a Ph.D. in psychology, she does not use the old paradigm psychological framework that she learned in graduate school. Dr. Mandell wanted to continue educating herself so she went to the Cambridge Adult Education building in Massachusetts and decided to randomly choose a course. At the time, she did not yet know that random was the order of the universe. She had never studied anything to do with physics, before, and by chance, the course that her finger landed on was called Quantum Physics In The Face of God.The course was given by Fred Allen Wolfe and it completely re-oriented Dr.Mandell's life and changed the way that she interacted with people from then on. She started to see things clearly and understand that reality is not what it seems. You cannot solve a problem with the same information that you used to create it. Thought moves you in time, so when you're thinking you cannot be in the present moment. When you are in the present moment, however, the mind is quiet and the information from your body becomes what you focus on, and what's intelligent for you. This is because the body has superior intelligence.All our cells have memories, and memories are intelligent. They can sense what is good for us and what is bad. And we're getting information from all our cells continuously, moment by moment. This kind of information is known as natural codes and it does not require any input from the mind. The function of the mind is to create and innovate ways to connect with the present moment.Our feelings are the information from the body to ourselves. Built into each feeling is the right action to perform to recalibrate ourselves to come back to the present. So, to get the body to use its superior intelligence, we need to pay attention to our feelings. This is the exact opposite of what our culture tells us to do. Anxiety and frustration are examples of the type of feelings that give us information.Feelings lead to thoughts and negative emotions are feelings plus thoughts. We need to learn how to separate the feeling from the thought so that we can stop pulling lower emotions back into ourselves. We want to listen to how the thought is structured, rather than the content of the thought, so that we can find out where we are in time and space.Our experiences create forms that then become our belief systems. This locks us into a false belief about what reality is and it can make us lose our creative ability. Dr. Mandell calls this being in the matrix. She helps people by reframing things for them so that they can see them from a different perspective.To get people off their addiction to listening to their stories, and to move their attention to the structure of their thoughts rather than the content, is the challenge of awareness.Addiction to thoughts is as powerful as an addiction to a substance. Shifting your focus is the key to your freedom. When you are free from addiction, you become able to make choices and become driven by the wonderful six drivers of behavior. They are service, compassion, integrity, accountability, courage, and gratitude. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Steve Rio, Founder of the Nature of Work is our guest today. Today, we’re talking about work and recovery and what affects the recovery process. In a quest to live our best lives, we want Steve to share his take on how we can optimize our lives and live in a way that fulfills us.Episode Link>>www.theaddictedmind.com/81Steve is a futurist, technologist and researcher born in Vancouver BC, Canada. Steve is founder and CEO of Briteweb, an international social impact agency delivering strategy, branding and digital, and the Founder of Nature of Work, helping people be more productive, creative and happy in their work and their lives. Steve thrives at the intersection of social impact, culture and technology and is an expert in exponential organizations, remote and distributed teams and workforce wellness and performance. He has real world experience leading remote and distributed digital teams as well as implementing technology and systems for over a decade. It’s through the lens as a freelancer turned business owner and entrepreneur that he thinks about performance for modern workers. Social media has invaded our daily lives and because we are engaging with technology in such a persuasive way, we now have one of the most addictive devices in our pockets at all times. It’s hard to separate ourselves from social media because we feel like it is a way to engage with our friends. However, we forget that social media platforms have been engineered to be addictive. Steve founded Nature of Work out of his own need. He wanted a quiet space, close to nature, where he could do his deepest and best work. Despite his best efforts, he still could not calm his mind and focus in the way he expected. Because many of us have complicated relationships with work and technology, we can’t just control our external environment to get a productive outcome - we have to look internally as well. Our time, attention and focus are pulled in a million directions each day, and the technology we use to accomplish our work, is also what causes us the biggest distractions and the lowest productivity. We are in the information age, and our tools can be used across multiple platforms to accomplish various tasks. In previous times, the tools used for work could only accomplish the task we were working on - think about a shovel. You wouldn’t be able to check Facebook on a shovel, so you could have long periods of attention and focus in order to accomplish the task. Steve advocates optimizing your work so that you can be more productive, but also so that you can have a higher quality of life and an increased level of fulfillment. We work ourselves to burnout level without taking into consideration the quality of our lives. When we get back to basics with our daily routines and practices, we can begin to see profound changes. Our time and attention are the 2 greatest assets that we have. They are non-renewable and determine the quality of the experience of our life. Resources: Nature of Work Steve on Instagram Steve’s Podcast - Now with Steve RioSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Recovery from addiction is a particularly challenging process for women, who are also mothers, to go through. Emily Lynn Paulson, author of the book, Highlight Real: Finding Honesty and Recovery Beyond the Filtered Life, is our guest for today's show. She shares the story of her addiction and her journey along the path of the process of recovery and healing. Emily used to dislike herself a lot. She had difficulty with being honest, both with herself and with others. From a very young age, she used to tell white lies to cover up the things she didn't like about herself and to make up for the things she thought she lacked. When Emily started drinking, it helped her to cover up, and make up, for the things she didn't like about herself or that she thought she lacked. The first time she ever drank alcohol, she realized that it affected her differently to the way it affected her peers. Rather than just having fun, when she drank, she felt that she was finally the person she was always meant to be. This theme wove its way into different areas of her life and followed her until she found recovery.As an adult, Emily had five children and she didn't drink while she was pregnant. So she continued denying her problem for quite some time until the consequences of her drinking finally started outweighing what she thought she was getting out of it.Emily didn't believe she was an alcoholic at first because she thought she could stop drinking. She made several attempts to stop but she always started again. Deep down, she knew that she had a problem but she was not willing to let it go forever. That is alcoholic-thinking, and it is very common. Eventually, it got to the point where Emily could no longer deny her alcoholism. All the dishonesty, secrecy, and lies of omission can make addiction a soul-crushing condition. Other people are often not fully aware of what is going on, so they don't step in and offer to help.Although Emily came to realize that dishonesty didn't work, it was still very hard for her to become fully honest. She found that coming out with her sobriety, and also writing her book, helped her to make the connection and become truthful about who she was, and about the things she still needed to deal with. She knew that she could not start afresh without first dealing with everything that had come before.It's very easy to give a false impression of what is going on in our lives with social media. And many people fall into the social media "comparison-trap". Having to confront her kids with her alcoholism was the most difficult part of recovery for Emily but it was also her biggest blessing because it brought about some very necessary conversations. Alcohol is not something that women have to do to survive their kids. For Emily, her book is an important message to women, telling them how necessary it is, to tell the truth to other women about what alcohol does to mothers. Since Emily started putting her sobriety first, she has been able to be there for her family in a way that she has never known before. Her life has become so much better. She's not perfect now, but her best day when she was drinking was always way worse than her worst day, sober. Links and resources:Emily's website - www.emilylynnpaulson.com Emily on Instagram - @highlight real recoveryYou can find Emily's book on Amazon Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Today's guest is Maureen Stanton, the author of the memoir, Body Leaping Backwards, Memoir of a Delinquent Girlhood. Maureen spent about forty years writing her book but she kept avoiding taking it to the point of getting published because there was shame in it for her. So she only started writing the book seriously in 2014, once her dad had passed away. He had done the very best he could for her so she wouldn't have wanted him to feel ashamed of her. Episode Link>>www.theaddictedmind.com/79Maureen wanted to tell the story of what happened with her so long ago because she believes that it is still relevant and that it will still resonate with teenagers today, even though the specifics are different. Maureen's teenage years were a time of great anxiousness, sadness, and confusion. She felt that she wanted to disappear. She had feelings of self-doubt and she lacked self-confidence to the point of self-loathing. So she turned to drugs to self-medicate. She started using Angel Dust, a dissociative anesthetic that was a very prominent drug in the 1970s. It numbed her, helped her to escape from the emotional pain that she felt as a teenager, and allowed her to stop thinking about her insecurities and sadness. Maureen is now in her late 50s. She kept all her diaries from before she was using, and from the time when she began feeling a sense of despair and started doing drugs. Reading through the diaries as an adult, she was able to remember just how she had felt then, so she was able to convey that very clearly in her book.A lot of kids start using drugs or drinking during their fraught teenage years while crossing the bridge over the treacherous terrain from childhood to adulthood. Children who are suffering from psychic pain, and don't have guidance, are more likely to start using drugs and alcohol. Maureen started with alcohol and marijuana. Her friend's older brother then introduced her to Angel Dust. As it was smoked in a joint, it seemed to Maureen to be very similar to marijuana, and there were no warnings at the time about the dangers of using this terrible drug. There was still a part of her, however, that realized that it would cause damage to her brain cells. Mauren believes that essential loneliness and discomfort are felt by teenagers because they don't yet know who they are. Maureen feels shame about her terrible, delinquent behavior while she was using drugs. She does, however, feel extremely fortunate that there was no lasting harm, that she knows of, done to anyone. Who we are, as individuals, is defined by our passions and our interests. Maureen gave all of that up for getting high. She progressively stopped doing the things she loved as she slid deeper into her addiction. So although the drugs helped her escape and provided some relief, she continued to erase herself. She eventually became so empty and despairing that she knew she had to ask for help. Her mother arranged for her to see a counselor and Maureen paid for her counseling herself with the money she earned working for a gas station. Maureen believes that the culture of a society impresses itself on teenagers in a way that they don't necessarily understand. In the 1970's the American culture was a bit lost, and there was a sense of despair, due to immoral leadership, the Vietnam war, and Watergate, and Maureen's journey seemed to mirror that to some extent.Looking back, Maureen realizes that some of the things she had to face were very hard, but she wanted to give something back and touch the hearts and minds of other teenagers. Her book is a public confession and she has written it in the hope of helping other people.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guests for today are Mark Sheeran and Michelle Dunbar of the Baldwin Research Group. They have a thought-provoking conversation about The Freedom Model of addiction treatment, which is a non-Twelve Step, and non-disease model of treatment.Mark is 49-years old. He is the chairman of Baldwin Research and he is one of the authors of The Freedom Model. Mark co-founded the Saint Jude Retreat, which is where The Freedom Model is taught.Episode Link>>>>www.theaddictedmind.com/78Mark was involved in a serious drunk-driving accident thirty years ago, at the age of nineteen. This made him realize that he needed to change his life. He was mandated into treatment and found that he disagreed vehemently with what they were teaching him because he did not believe that he would be an alcoholic forever. His treatment experience was so bad that he knew there had to be a better way. After completing eighteen months of treatment he decided to figure out a better way for people. Within one year, he coined the phrase "non-Twelve Step”.Mark spent the next twelve years, doing research. He then met Michelle and they continued doing the research together, along with some others. Together, they developed the skeleton of what was to become The Freedom Model. The model was perfected over the next twenty years.Michelle is the Executive Director of Baldwin Research. She is also one of the co-authors of The Freedom Model. Michelle is the Director of the Saint Jude Retreat and she teaches the program.Mark and Michelle spent the first twelve years of the thirty that they were doing their research in AA, trying desperately to make it work and become more effective. But they were heretics at the same time. Where AA was saying that you never get over the problem, they were saying that you most certainly do.Mark went to over 3000 AA meetings. First, as a member, then as a skeptical member, then as a researcher, then as a researcher that was fairly anti-AA when he got to truly understand the facts.According to Mark's research, people do move on from their addictions. Over 90% of drug addicts, alcoholics, and heavy substance abusers move past the problem as they get older, whether they treat it or not.With The Freedom Model, you have to undo the mythologies so that you become free to move on.As a young person, the idea that you are going to struggle with your "disease" forever can be very daunting.The Freedom Model debunks 23 of the grand myths that people are told about addiction so that people can make the choice as to the benefits of their using. Because people use because they like it.The Freedom Model helps people question why they make decisions and why they are motivated to use, based on their behavior, their belief systems, and the myths by which they may be living their lives.It is more natural to move on from addiction than it is to keep one. And it is much more natural for a human being to change than it is to remain static in a behavior. The key to recovery is to move the locus of control to the self.Shame sits in the way of recovery.At their residential retreats, people spend four weeks attending classes where they work with the 450 page Freedom Model curriculum. They don't take away people's cellphones and laptops or treat them like babies or criminals. It is a very conducive, quiet, learning environment. By the time that everyone leaves, the myths have been undone, they know that they can be free, and they have usually chosen either moderation or abstinence. Life in recovery doesn't have to be a daily struggle.It all comes down to a choice that we make to deal with difficult experiences. Mark and Michelle help people by challenging their beliefs that a substance will help them to deal with stressful situations. Links and resources:The Baldwin Research Group - https://www.baldwinresearch.com/Website for retreats - www.soberforever.netWebsite for the book and all services - www.thefreedommodel.org Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Today, Dave Jansa, of We Face It Together, talks about how he helps people get through a part of addiction treatment that sometimes tends to be overlooked. There are some people who suffer from addiction who have not necessarily hit their rock bottom. So, although they realize they have a problem, they have often not yet suffered the all big consequences of their addiction. Dave offers coaching, to help these people change their thinking about addiction and to help them change their addictive process before they have to face the deep consequences that are normally associated with addiction. Sixty-four-year-old Dave was born and raised in South Dakota. He comes from a big family where addiction was rife. Currently, five of the eight siblings in Dave's family are abstinent from drugs and alcohol. Dave started drinking alcohol when he was in high school. He also became a heavy marijuana smoker at the time. This curtailed his education because he quit college after his first semester and he went back to work full-time. Dave stopped using marijuana in his early thirties, after many attempts at moderation, and he is currently thirty-two years alcohol-free.During his mid-forties, Dave began to become intensely curious. With the advent of the internet, his curiosity led him to immerse himself in the very confusing landscape of the issues of addiction that he and his brothers had gone through. As a result, he retired early from his very good and long-term sales position and threw himself into the world of addiction.Dave started volunteering for a local community organization, which eventually became a very innovative organization that was doing things differently and breaking down barriers. He was a great fit for the organization and has been with them ever since then.Addiction is known to be a chronic disease. The pillars of chronic disease management are to detect it early and to deal with it as quickly as possible. This makes chronic diseases easier to treat but most people don't think of doing this with addictions.Dave firmly believes that people, who are clearly showing signs of what he refers to as 'pre-addiction', would do well to have a non-judgmental conversation with a health practitioner in a clinical environment.At Face It Together, they offer non-judgmental peer coaching. They never tell people what to do. They rather make suggestions. They often initially assist people towards a harm-reduction protocol, which is on the way to recognizing and dealing fully with their problems of addiction. Sometimes people with addictions simply need to recognize that it's normal to first want to cut back on using, before going for complete abstinence. At Face It Together, they knew that peer conversations were powerful. They employed science and embraced harm reduction and motivational interviewing. They also expanded on this and developed a tool called Recovery Capital Index, with which they can accurately measure someone's addiction wellness. This tool has been validated as an instrument, by Sanford Research, in South Dakota. This has been published in the South Dakota Journal of Medicine. Addiction wellness is measured way more in terms of how an individual is fitting into the world, and less in terms of how much drug they are using. At Face It Together, they work hard on people's behaviors and they have conversations with people about their journey. The Recovery Capital Index shows them where people are doing well and where they are not doing well. Today, Dave feels exponentially better than he did during the sixteen years that he was quitting alcohol.Links:We Face It Together's website - www.wefaceittogether.org Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Today's guest is Gregg Champion and he will be talking about hitting rock bottom, what that means, and the significance of finding ourselves sitting at the crossroads of wanting to change from a life of addiction to one of recovery. Gregg also discusses his rock bottom, and he tells us his recovery story.Episode Link: www.theaddictedmind.com/76Gregg is the co-founder of START UP RECOVERY, located in the Pacific Palisades. START UP RECOVERY is a transformational residence that supports people through career, passion, and what Gregg refers to as a recovery play-book. Their four cornerstones are a community, accountability, education, and love. They also provide for their residents the unique service of mentorship for long-term sobriety and long-term success.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>Gregg got sober 25-years ago when he was in his mid-twenties. He has managed to retain his sobriety by remaining willing to be willing. He maintains a mindset of life as a continuous journey going forward. In his first year of recovery, he did everything the old-school AA way, and over time, he began adding breath work, sound bath, and then Al-Anon to his play-book. He found that every time he became distressed in his disease, someone would show up with a new tool for him to try. He gets through all of life's painful problems with sobriety and with the support of the whole recovery network. He is always looking for ways to continue healing and growing.Living a counseled and supported life during the years of recovery is essential because, when left to our own devices, our ego will show up. And with pride and ego involved, we tend to make bad decisions, even when we're sober. One addict helping another really works! Rock bottom is choosing to do the same thing over again, knowing that the result is going to be bad. It can happen as a result of many different things, like childhood trauma, divorce, or addiction. At rock bottom, people often find themselves doing things that they said they would never do. It's the point when people begin to realize that they are powerless and their lives have become unmanageable. Having the compassionate support of others at this time is crucial.Developing joy in life, and shifting from addiction to passion are parts of the process of recovering from rock bottom. This does not happen overnight. It happens one day at a time and it can result in people becoming addicted to a life of recovery.For Gregg, it is important to help people to reach their rock bottom by showing them, rather than telling them, what he has done in his life to maintain his sobriety. He refers to this as co-piloting people through their recovery process. Life is difficult. So Gregg believes that the Twelve-Steps would be a very helpful tool to incorporate into the school system. He suggests introducing it to children in the fourth grade, before they have reached puberty, and before they have discovered drugs and alcohol. With this process, they could develop the essential skills necessary for living joyful and passionate lives.Recovery is a life-time process. Gregg encourages everyone to unpack their backpack of shame sooner rather than later because the longer it is carried, the heavier it gets, and the more it will weigh you down. To be tuned-in to recovery, he recommends being spiritually sound, sober, hard-working, diligent, and seriously honest.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Today's guest is Dr. Sonya Lott, a licensed psychologist with advanced training from Columbia University's Center for Complicated Grief. Sonya runs a private practice in Pennsylvania and she hosts the Reflections on Multicultural Competence Podcast. She is the founder and CEO of Cempsych LLC, a company offering continuing education for licensed mental health professionals. Today, Sonya talks to us about grief and loss, which is intertwined in many ways with the addictive process. She explains that living is about connection but, ironically, the more loss we experience, the greater the likelihood becomes that we will actually fear connection. Still, it is very important to acknowledge the need for connection.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>Sonya explains that what we think and feel has a direct and immediate influence on what's happening with the neurotransmitters in our brain. This has a long-term impact on the way that hormones are released in the body. Over time, these reactions become chronic and cyclical, and they have an impact on every part of the body, including the immune system, making us more susceptible to illnesses.Episode Link:www.theaddictedmind.com/75Processing loss is important and we need to grieve to do it. Many people, however, don't frame their adverse experiences in terms of loss, even though their bodies and their hearts take it in as such. Often, people end up being diagnosed with depression or anxiety without having addressed the root cause, which is usually a painful loss of connection or secure attachment from their early childhood. It's important to frame any kind of loss and grieve for it because that awareness allows people to heal in a different and deeper way. This is crucial to the recovery process and it lessens the suffering.Losing a child is particularly challenging for parents because it goes against the natural order of things. Losing a child to an addiction is a bit like losing a loved one to suicide. It comes with a great sense of helplessness, so this type of loss could easily set someone up for complicated grief. Therapists who are well-informed about grief and addiction can be very helpful for finding meaning in life and establishing a new identity in terms of recovery from addiction. Self-help groups or groups like AA (Alcoholics Anonymous) and NA (Narcotics Anonymous) also provide support for individuals who are able to recognize their experiences of loss.Links and resources:Dr. Lott's website - https://drsonyalott.com/Cempsych website - www.cempsych.com Reflections on Multicultural Competence Podcast - https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/reflections-on-multicultural-competenceSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Today, Erin Miller shares her story of losing her son, Chad, to heroin addiction. She talks very frankly about her painful process of grief and loss, and she explains how she's managed to find meaning and purpose in what she's been through, by using Chad's story to help others.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>Five years have passed since Chad's death. During this time, Erin has gained a lot of insight and wisdom, and her current perspective is completely different from how it was at the time of his death. Being able to help others has made the whole experience worthwhile for her. Erin explains that addiction has become an epidemic. It is on the rise and it is destroying families and people's lives. She believes that there's one kind of addiction or another running in virtually every household because both street drugs and prescription medication are so very easily available today. This is why she advocates strongly for mental well-being and helps people to find ways, other than medication, to cope with their inner pain.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/74Erin advises parents to be open with their kids and let them know that having an addiction is not something to be judged. And as a parent, it is important to know that your child's addiction is not your fault if you have done your best. Erin has written a book, Miller Strong Rewrite Your Story - Take a Stand and Turn Your Past Into Your Superpower, which is due to be launched soon. She spent five years interviewing thousands of addicts and people in recovery and this taught her that nobody likes to own up to their faults or to admit that they are not in control.Erin started a foundation, called Miller Strong Seventeen Foundation. It is all about purpose because most people tend to lose their purpose somewhere in their lives. Erin explains that sharing our stories is very important because for every story shared someone is needing to hear that exact story. Erin believes that we should provide help for those who need it, and lean on each other, especially on the darkest days.Erin found God with the help of a spiritual healer in Indonesia.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this episode, Mike Collins talks to us about sugar addiction. Mike is the chairman of the Food Addiction Institute, a non-profit which has been around since 2005. Their stated goal is to get chronic sugar use elevated to a substance use disorder. Mike found recovery from his drug and alcohol addiction a little more than 34 years ago when he was 28. Over the years, he got married and had a normal career and business life. Yet, as he progressed with his sobriety, he started to recognize that his patterns with sugar were almost identical to his using patterns with drugs and alcohol. If he didn't have it he suffered withdrawals and became anxious, and irritable. Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>In his intensive studies of addiction over the last five years, Mike has noticed that the sugar cravings in recovery seemed to revolve around the brain's reward system. He saw that many people, in their first year of recovery, would gain huge amounts of weight and he realized that they were getting an alternative dopamine rush from sugar. Sugar is an easy way to make ourselves feel better, so it often becomes a substitute for other addictive substances. And although sugar is a powerful psychoactive, it gets no respect as an addictive drug because it is a habit that we've had since we were children. It's freely available, so instead of dealing with the pain and discomfort of the withdrawals, most of us simply reach for more sugar. With its continued use, life becomes only about fighting off withdrawals, so all of us need to connect the dots and realize how sugar affects the brain. Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/73Mike has been off sugar, flour, and caffeine for the last thirty years. It was a drawn-out and lonely struggle for him in the beginning, and it took a while to get off them, but once he managed to do it, he stuck to it. Mike has never seen anyone go for 90 days without sugar and then go back to it.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest on this episode of The Addicted Mind podcast is Eli Nash, founder of the Mic Drop public speaking training program whose purpose is to help people articulate their stories. Eli has recently gained recognition from his TEDx video about escaping his porn addiction, and he hopes the Mic Drop program provides a platform for others to find connections through being vulnerable enough to speak their truth.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>At a young age, Eli started scouring through his family’s mail to find any catalogs with a lingerie section and hiding those catalogs in secret stash places all around his house. When his family got a computer, his secret stashes became hidden computer folders containing pornographic images, and even when he knew he needed to stop this behavior, he simply couldn’t stop. This demoralizing process of wanting but failing to stop consuming this content just fed into the downward spiral, necessitating retreating back into porn even more.Calming The Addicted Mind - 6 Day Mindfulness Email Seriestheaddictedmind.com/mindfulnessWhen Eli finally hit his emotional rock bottom, he reached out to his therapist for 5 years and finally came clean about the behavior that he had been hiding in shame for most of his life. His therapist put him in touch with another one of his clients who was having a similar struggle with porn addiction, and Eli became a part of his new friend’s 12-step support group. Through this group, he was finally able to break the shame cycle and realize that he was not alone in his struggles. Brené Brown defines shame as “the fear of not being worthy of connection,” and Eli found this definition to be completely accurate in his own life. When he started to feel worthy of connection, his shame started to break down, and while it was not an overnight change, it was not as overwhelming.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/72Through this support group, he learned that telling his story brought him some freedom and connection that he had not known for so long. He realized that other people had similar stories and struggles that they had been hiding as well. In 2018, Eli launched Mic Drop as a resource for training people to tell their stories in a way that could aid their recovery journeys from the traumas or addictions in their past and also potentially use them as a jumping-off point for those listening who have similar struggles. Everyone has a story, but we will never know how alike we are until we are open about sharing what we have gone through.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Dr. Ellie Katz has spent the past 35 years working in the area of addiction treatment, using her holistic approach and real talk with compassion to work with her clients. She joins us on this episode of the Addicted Mind podcast to discuss her experiences and observations about the field and about human nature.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>Ellie has been living in Israel for 40+ years and she began her career in psychological linguistics, but she always had a desire to help people directly. Even as an adolescent, people recognized her deep intuition about those around her, calling her the Earth Mother and coming to her for advice and guidance. Ever since she transitioned to helping people with their addiction treatment, her focus has been on helping her clients and their families sort through the irresistible urges that had been ruling the addicts’ bodies.Calming The Addicted Mind - 6 Day Mindfulness Email Seriestheaddictedmind.com/mindfulnessEllie went through a traumatic surgical procedure when she was 5 years old, which caused her to develop an addiction to food that her mother did not know how to handle. Having experienced these psychological ramifications of eating for several years, she can recognize where the addicts that come to her treatment facility are struggling. Patients spend between 7-12 months in the therapeutic rehab community where Ellie works, and she teaches them how to interact with each other and do the internal work necessary to heal the impacts of their addictions.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/71She created a model that she calls “The Six Essentials”, which are building blocks for personal success: Some of them are good mood, love, and kindness, discipline, flexibility, and forgiveness.Ellie is not afraid to call her clients out when she sees them say or do something that they said they wouldn’t say or do and she provides them with the support to help them change. She believes in caring for everyone without judgment because she recognizes that it could have just as easily been her struggling with the addiction. She wants the best for her clients who are really just wounded people in need of someone to help them pick themselves up and head in the right direction.Ellie wants everyone to know that as long as you are drawing breath, change is possible. Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest on this episode of The Addicted Mind podcast is Leslie Cole, an addiction medicine physician at a clinic outside of Nashville, Tennessee, and author of the book “Quit Pain Pills.” Leslie spent the first 20 years of her medical career as an internist. The journey of self-discovery stemming from realizing she had been struggling with an eating disorder led her down a different path. She found hope and healing through recovery literature during that time. When an addiction clinic called her out of the blue to offer her a job, she knew that she had found her sweet spot, helping others find hope and healing.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>Leslie is a firm believer in providing an environment to patients where they feel welcomed, accepted, loved, and safe. People struggling with addiction are used to the shame heaped onto them from themselves and others, but they are not used to a provider listening to them without judgment. As a part of her clinic’s program, patients fill out an Adverse Childhood Event questionnaire, which is likely to indicate that they experienced Traumas (big T) and traumas (little t) as they were growing up that they had just accepted as normal. This experience at Leslie’s clinic may be the first time they realize how these traumatic events continue to impact them even in adulthood.Calming The Addicted Mind - 6 Day Mindfulness Email Seriestheaddictedmind.com/mindfulnessDuring Leslie’s recovery from an eating disorder, her therapist pointed out to her that the most important relationship in all of life is your relationship with yourself. This colors how to interact with others and with the world. This realization is the basis for Leslie’s approach with patients at the clinic because they probably don’t know how impactful this primary relationship is in their own life and recovery journey.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/70In 2017, Leslie was diagnosed with breast cancer, which resulted in chemotherapy and a mastectomy. She found that during her battle with cancer, she received so much support and encouragement from those around her. When she went back to work at the clinic, she was struck by the stark contrast between how she had been treated as a cancer patient and how addiction patients are treated. This contrast prompted her to write her book, “Quit Pain Pills,” to provide hope without judgment and helpful resources to anyone struggling with addiction who has never been greeted with optimism by their family members, friends, or healthcare providers.Leslie wants to make sure that everyone knows that you are not beyond help. You can always make a change, so give yourself every possible chance.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Cynthia Schmit is an advocate for medication-assisted treatment of addictions who would love to see healthcare providers informing their patients of all of the options for treating their addictions. On this episode of The Addicted Mind podcast, Cynthia talks with us about the physiology of addiction and the need for education regarding medication-assisted treatment.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>In her early 20’s, Cynthia found herself using every recreational drug that someone put into her hand, quickly progressing from marijuana to heroin and beyond. She found herself wanting to quit often, attempting to detox on her own at least 5 times before she completed a 28-day methadone detox and a 6-month 12-step recovery program. During her time in rehab, the knee-jerk reaction of providers was “you don’t treat drug addiction with drugs,.” Medication-assisted treatment was not presented as an option to her. She got married a few years into her recovery.Calming The Addicted Mind - 6 Day Mindfulness Email Seriestheaddictedmind.com/mindfulnessShe then moved to the east coast where she completed her bachelor’s degree in behavioral science and her master’s in social work at Columbia. While at Columbia, she started volunteering at the buprenorphine program, of which she eventually became the managing director. With her experience working with treatment providers and drug manufacturers, Cynthia came to understand precisely how drugs like buprenorphine and methadone can assist in treating drug addictions.Physiologically, consuming drugs is tied to the rewards circuitry of the brain, which was intended to support behaviors that support survival, such as eating. Drugs, of course, do not promote survival, but since they are tied to the rewards center of the brain, the brain develops a belief that they are necessary for survival, which is why withdrawals are so difficult and painful.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/69This is why medication-assisted treatment can be so effective in immediately providing moments of clarity to individuals who are addicted as well as helpful in avoiding potential relapses. Every person is different, and Cynthia’s goal is to have every healthcare provider and treatment center educated about all of the options available for individuals’ treatment plans so they can make the best decisions and recommendations for each patient. This involves the proper way to use medications like buprenorphine as well as how to effectively get off of those medications if and when the time comes.Cynthia wants everyone to know that there is hope. Advocate for yourself by being well-informed and committing to putting in the work necessary to get into and remain in recovery. You are worth recovery.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

On this episode of The Addicted Mind podcast, Duane interviews Dr. Ursula Whiteside, a clinician, researcher, and trainer in the area of suicide prevention. Ursula struggled with her suicidal thoughts throughout her life, and in 1999, she moved to Washington state to learn from Marsha Linehan, the creator of DBT (dialectical behavior therapy). Suicide is the 2nd leading cause of death in some age groups and is more prevalent than car accidents, homicides, and breast cancer. Beyond these statistics, it is estimated that 10 million Americans every year have suicidal ideation.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>The exciting thing is that this overwhelming emotional crisis that can lead to suicidal ideation is not sustainable in the brain for more than 48 hours. So while people are within this timeframe, it often feels like things will always be this bad and that there is no hope. While it might not be helpful for them to think that they might feel this way for a couple of days, it might be beneficial for them to know that they will only feel this way for a couple of days at most. When Ursula talks with someone amid their suicidal ideation, she tells them to wait until this suicidal period passes before deciding to act on their ideation.Calming The Addicted Mind - 6 Day Mindfulness Email Seriestheaddictedmind.com/mindfulnessThere are a few simple things that someone in an overwhelming emotional crisis can do: (1) try to describe what is happening, (2) practice mindfulness by being in touch with your emotions, and (3) submerge your face in cold water for 20 seconds at a time for 3-5 minutes. For friends and family members, it can be helpful to know how to respond to their loved one’s thoughts and feelings. The best way to support them is by listening to them, taking care of them, and just being there for them. Suicidal thoughts are not uncommon, especially during adolescence, and in addition to DBT and ongoing conversations with your physician, the Now Matters Now website is an excellent resource for learning how to cope with difficult emotions and how to get through an overwhelming emotional crisis step-by-step.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/68Ursula wants everyone struggling with suicidal thoughts that you can make plans for things to be different. You don’t have to believe your thoughts, and you can reach out for help in navigating these. Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest on this episode of the Addicted Mind podcast is Maureen Cavanagh, author, and founder of Magnolia New Beginnings. Maureen’s family had a long history of addiction, but since she was not personally prone to addiction, she thought that she knew the formula to help keep her kids away from addiction as well. However, her world was suddenly shaken when one of her daughters came to her to admit that she had been experimenting with heroin.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>Even living in an upper-middle-class neighborhood, opioids were not difficult for her daughter to find, and once she tried heroin for the first time, the road to sobriety and recovery proved to be steep. Just when Maureen thought her daughter had a handle on her addiction, it would rear its ugly head again, and she would see just how much of a hold it had on her precious child, who was now an adult. Maureen did what she believed any good parent would do: she dropped everything and rushed to her daughter’s aid, providing her with whatever she needed and paying for her to get into a treatment center again.She found out that her daughter had a “friend” who was providing her with the drugs, protecting her from her family when they came looking for her, and reviving her if and when she overdosed. Even with this barrier between them, Maureen knows of 13 times when her daughter was admitted to the hospital after an overdose, and at least 40 separate stints at treatment centers before something finally clicked.Calming The Addicted Mind - 6 Day Mindfulness Email Seriestheaddictedmind.com/mindfulnessMaureen realized that she was on her journey during this time, which was intended to be separate from her daughter’s journey. The more Maureen tried to hold on and help her daughter get out of whatever situation she was in at the time, the farther away her daughter seemed to drift. However, when Maureen was able to let go and provide her daughter with some space, not jumping to her rescue but rather empowering her daughter to rescue herself, that was the moment when her daughter started getting better.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/67Somewhere after treatment center #40, the rehab took, and for the past two years her daughter has been sober with the help of her family, her therapist, her recovery coach, and her community. Maureen went against her instinct to keep family business private when she was approached by a publishing agent about sharing her story, and the hundreds of people who have messaged her since the book came out are proof that the world needed to hear the truth about what it is like to be the parent of an addict. In addition to her book, Maureen provides resources and support groups through her non-profit, Magnolia New Beginnings, which is impacting tens of thousands of people.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest on this episode of The Addicted Mind podcast is Tim Sitt, a clinician at the Freedom to Move Group who shares Duane’s appreciation of Virginia Satir’s work. Virginia Satir was cutting-edge in the 1960s when she moved away from the “traditional” psychoanalytic model and practices that perpetuated the hierarchical narrative that had become the norm in therapy. Her work is still revolutionary in that clinicians using her techniques bring in all of the pertinent members of the person’s family to address every member as having equal value and potentially remove the risk of redacting progress made with the individual during a session when they go back to their home environment, which may have caused them to turn to coping in the first place.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>People struggling with addiction often feel shame and no sense of self-worth, but this model aims to bring dignity to the person rather than harping on their behavior or pattern leading them to addiction. This could be the first safe space where they have been encouraged to explain themselves and evaluate why they are doing what they are doing. It gets down to the roots of the self, life, energy, and value. Perhaps pain or trauma in their past has led them to develop this inner dialogue of disconnection to self because they believe they are worthless. Satir’s work set up a system where the person realizes that they are not the problem and they can feel hopeful in connecting to their true self in the present moment.Calming The Addicted Mind - 6 Day Mindfulness Email Seriestheaddictedmind.com/mindfulnessOften, people react to circumstances with “I am…” statements that ultimately draw conclusions from the external stimuli about who the person is. This is frequently very unhealthy and the cause of many underlying issues that lead to addiction or other coping mechanisms. It ultimately comes down to these two questions: What do you believe about yourself? What do you believe about relationships? The way the individual answers these questions shed a lot of light on the presence or lack of self-connection. It is important to create a space between the identity and the behavior in order to truly begin the self-connection journey.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/66Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest on this episode of The Addicted Mind podcast is Dr. Michael Steuer of the Pacific Ketamine Institute in Los Angeles. Dr. Steuer’s training and practice have mainly been in the areas of anesthesia and pain management, but for the past 5+ years, he has shifted his focus somewhat to the use of ketamine to treat depression, mood disorders, addiction, and chronic pain.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>Before 2013, when the effectiveness of ketamine for these purposes was discovered, the main drugs to treat depression and mood disorders such as PTSD were SSRIs and SNRIs (Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors and Serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors). While these medications were effective in temporarily treating the symptoms of depression and mood disorders, they often took weeks or months for patients to feel their effects and they often came with unpleasant side effects.Calming The Addicted Mind - 6 Day Mindfulness Email Seriestheaddictedmind.com/mindfulnessWhile ketamine has been abused by people for its hallucinogenic properties in high doses, it has been found that lower doses have minimal short-term side effects and patients typically begin feeling relief from their symptoms during the infusion or shortly thereafter. Even patients with “treatment-resistant” depression or chronic pain feel better almost immediately, and these feelings are sustained for weeks or months after each infusion. It is recommended that patients have 6 infusions over 2 weeks in order to jump-start their recovery and most patients continue to receive one infusion per month to maintain their results.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/65In the case of chronic pain, many people are prescribed narcotics or opioids, which essentially intercept the messages being sent from the body to the NMDA receptor of the brain which regulates mood and pain and the drugs themselves have addictive potential. Ketamine has proven to be more effective in modulating pain as well as addictive impulses, depression, and mood because it heightens the brain’s ability to recognize the signals being sent. This property causes ketamine to treat the root cause of the pain, rather than masking it like many opioids do. There are no known addictive properties of ketamine, making it safe for use in prescribed doses and frequencies, which may differ from person to person.Dr. Steuer’s message to listeners who are struggling with depression is that you don’t have to be alone or feel like you want to give up. Reach out, because there are people who want to help.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

On this episode, Duane interviews Jacob Jones, author of the book “Recovered” and former opioid addict. Jacob has had a very turbulent but not uncommon path from addiction to recovery, and his insights into what drove his attitudes and behaviors over the years are eye-opening to anyone who has never personally experienced addiction.Jacob grew up in Alabama, the son of a University of Alabama football player who spent several years playing professional football, so the desire to perform well athletically was instilled in Jacob at a young age. When he started playing football in 7th grade, it was clear that he had genuine talent, and the desire for acceptance and affirmation through achievement essentially became his first addiction. He was given the scholarship to play at the University of Alabama – a dream come true – and before he even took the field for his first practice, he was already dreaming of playing in the NFL.During his sophomore year, he had to take a medical release from football, essentially ending his football career and any hopes of playing professionally. He got pneumonia that year and became addicted to the hydrocodone cough syrup he was prescribed.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/64The confluence of all of these factors led to Jacob’s compulsive behavior of getting his hands on as many opiates as possible just to feel ok. He realized that he had a problem when he tried to stop taking the pills, and he experienced withdrawals. That day, he called his mom and told her everything. He went home and went through a 30-day rehab program, emerging with a renewed resolve to not get into drugs again. He justified increasing his drinking habit by saying that it wasn’t drugs, but before long, he found himself clutching opiates again.He was arrested for possession and went through a year of drug court, never convinced to stop doing drugs but rather convinced not to get caught again. As soon as his drug court was over, his addiction quickly became all-consuming, and he began to burn relationships with his friends and family in pursuit of getting his next fix.When he reached this breaking point, he gave all of his drugs to his parents and tried to break his addiction cold turkey. He suffered a psychotic break and was admitted to the CCU due to his dangerously high heart rate. He was then sent to the psych ward where he “came to” and realized how out of control things had gotten. After significant advocacy from his parents, the doctors finally released him after 3 weeks there. Just 4 months later, he took a job as a manager of a restaurant, and due to the intense stress and detrimental environment, he ended up getting wrapped up in opiates once again.At this point, his family had been trying to help him for 8-10 years, and despite their unconditional love for him, it was becoming unhealthy for them to continue supporting him. Jacob remembers being shaken to the core when his aunt told him that his family was not always going to be there unless something changed. He immediately went to a rehab facility in Florida, overcoming his fear of admitting he had a problem and reaching out for help.Now, Jacob is 3 years sober, and he is dedicating to helping others who are struggling with addiction by sharing his story. While he would never wish his situation on anyone, Jacob recognizes his journey as the biggest blessing imaginable because he can relate to so many people and share hope with them. He is now very involved in his church and participates in mission trips where he can share his story and just gain perspective on the world.To anyone struggling with addiction, Jacob’s message is: You are valuable and worthy. Your life right now might seem unfair and hopeless, but you can make the choice today to reach out for help. Your worst day can become your best day. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Harry Derbitsky, President of Advanced Coaches Training Inc. and author of “Evolution of Addiction Recovery”, joins us on this episode of The Addicted Mind. While Harry himself has never been addicted to a substance, he recognizes that there are addictive behavior patterns in every person, and he has committed his life to help reorient the minds of those affected by addiction.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>During his time working with the indigenous people of Vancouver, Harry has found some common patterns: people want to leave their addiction, but they do not know how, many of the common strategies focus on personal effort, and working with clients on their internal condition first brings much more significant results. Harry uses a three principles model which includes mind, though, and consciousness and combines mental health and spiritual wisdom. With this model, the primary goal is to guide the client to find the answers within themselves, connecting to the spiritual and having their moment of insight, rather than continually trying to take in anything they are being taught. In this place, they will finally feel the relief that they have been trying to find through their addiction all this time. But now, they have experienced it in authenticity and satisfaction, and they will want to stay there rather than going back to the patterns of thinking and behavior that lead them away.Calming The Addicted Mind - 6 Day Mindfulness Email Seriestheaddictedmind.com/mindfulnessFrom the therapist’s standpoint, it is most useful to give them the space to find what they need internally and help them process what they are experiencing, perhaps sharing some of your own experiences of what you have seen. It is also essential to understand and remember that thought creates feeling and feeling creates form. This process is one of the driving forces of addiction, but it can also be the golden ticket out of the addictive behavior pattern. You should focus on talking about their health rather than something being “wrong with them” and recognize that even though the topic is severe, you don’t have to be serious about it.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/63Harry encourages people who want more information about the three principles or other aspects of his philosophy towards addiction treatment to visit his website.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest on this episode of The Addicted Mind podcast is Samantha Arsenault, Director of National Treatment Quality Initiatives at Shatterproof. Shatterproof is a nonprofit organization on a mission to improve addiction treatment through prevention, treatment, education, and advocacy. It was founded in 2014 by Gary Mendell, a businessman who lost his son to the disease of addiction and became passionate about helping other families navigate the broken addiction treatment system.Calming The Addicted Mind - 6 Day Mindfulness Email Seriestheaddictedmind.com/mindfulnessThe work of Shatterproof was additionally spurred on by the 2016 Surgeon General’s report that showed empirical evidence that substance use disorders and other addictions can be treated effectively, but there is a significant gap in care available. In response, Shatterproof established their National Principles of Care (https://www.shatterproof.org/shatterproof-national-principles-care) to provide individuals and families affected by addiction with some helpful guidelines about what to look for in an effective treatment program. In fact, they are using these National Principles of Care along with treatment program surveys, insurance claims data, and information about the consumer experience to create a rating system of treatment centers in certain states by 2020.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>This rating system will be a treasure trove of critical information for those seeking treatment and a motivator for treatment centers to improve their best practices in order to best serve their clients. Sam gives the example of someone coming into the hospital for their initial diagnosis and treatment of diabetes. The hospital would not manage their medications, food intake, and activities for 28 days and then send them back home with no resources, treatment plans, or follow up. The same should be true for those being treated for addiction. They should receive individualized treatment based on their specific needs, access to medications, and ongoing support.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/62Shatterproof sees a world where this is the nature of substance use disorder and addiction treatment and they are excited about the prospect of this type of treatment becoming a reality for everyone who needs it. For more information about the work of Shatterproof and resources to help you in your journey, visit their website.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

On this episode of the Addicted Mind Podcast, our guest is Kyle Ferroly, a specialist in the area of psychophysiology. Kyle is passionate about spreading his message about the connections between mind, brain, and body and the untapped potential of integrating brain mapping with physical and mental health practices. Calming The Addicted Mind - 6 Day Mindfulness Email Seriestheaddictedmind.com/mindfulnessMost people, even those in the medical field, do not realize the depth of knowledge that can be gained through the analysis of a brain scan. An electroencephalogram (EEG) simultaneously measures 19 channels of brain activity and speaks volumes about electrical imbalances in the brain that contribute to varying levels of connectivity, coherence, phase, and speed and impact the mind as well as behaviors. This test can reveal certain brain patterns that predispose people to addictions or anxiety and provide doctors with a whole picture of what is going on in the body. Without this psychophysiological aspect, it is difficult to get an accurate representation of why you do, think, and feel the things that you do in response to external stimuli.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>Everyone can benefit from understanding how to regulate their nervous system and brain activity, but many people do not know about brain mapping or the connection between their body and their brain. Did you know that misfirings or imbalances in the brain can lead to physical tension, headaches, and breathing improperly? In order to truly thrive and gain or maintain your holistic health, it is imperative to understand what is really happening on all levels.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/61When it comes to the fight or flight response, many people have lived in this high state of stress for so long that they don’t even realize it, which makes it impossible for them to achieve normal functioning. Self-awareness is the first step in addressing any issues that may be uncovered during this process, and many mental health clinicians are beginning to integrate psychophysiological elements into clients’ treatment plans.Kyle is in the final stages of writing his book entitled “Check Your Blind Spot”, which outlines the 6 main blind spots that people have in looking at their overall health (body, mind, and brain). For more information go to theaddictedmind.com/61Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

On this episode of The Addicted Mind podcast, Duane is joined by two practitioners in and advocates for recovery high schools. Michael Durchslag leads PEASE Academy in Minneapolis and Andy Finch is an academic researcher in the field of recovery schools at Vanderbilt University and co-founder of the Association of Recovery Schools.Calming The Addicted Mind - 6 Day Mindfulness Email Seriestheaddictedmind.com/mindfulnessRecovery schools have been around since the late 1970s, but their growth has really started climbing in the past 20 years and there are currently 45 recovery schools in the US. Recovery schools provide a high school education and significant recovery support to students who are in recovery for a substance use disorder. Adolescents leaving rehab often find it difficult to maintain their sobriety when they return to the same home environment and school situation, so recovery schools are a great resource for students to learn and be specifically supported.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>These students have likely not dealt with heightened emotional reactions that are normal for teenage development without turning to a coping mechanism, so recovery schools are set up to provide adequate resources to help them process what is going on without turning to their old habits. Additionally, since research has shown that adolescents are mainly motivated by their peers, it is ideal for students in recovery to also be surrounded by others who are on the same page, rather than those who may be a bad influence on them. This is a built-in form of accountability, but there are additional programs and structures within recovery schools that further support the students’ journeys.Recovery schools are typically day schools, so it is good for these students to have peers like them that they can spend their time outside of school with as well. There are also usually family support or community groups for the parents of the students to be involved in as well, since this journey is so impactful on the parents. In fact, many parents refer other families to recovery schools based on their positive experiences and the progress they have seen in their own children.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/60Mike and Andy have both seen incredible results from recovery schools and believe in this as the best option for the continuation of recovery care during the high school years. In fact, going through a recovery school sets students up for a great transition to one of the more than 100 collegiate recovery programs as they continue their education. For more information about recovery schools or to start the process of advocacy for a school in your area, check out the recoveryschools.org website or reach out to Mike and Andy through their contact methods below.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

On this episode of The Addicted Mind podcast, we are joined by Glenn Livingston, a psychologist, marketing consultant, and former binge eater. Glenn’s issues with food began during his childhood and continued progressing through adolescence until he developed very serious health problems and his doctors told him that he needed to make a change. Coming from a family full of psychologists, he started out going the psychological route, but he didn’t break through until he had a couple of realizations that led him to create an unconventional road to recovery.Calming The Addicted Mind - 6 Day Mindfulness Email Seriestheaddictedmind.com/mindfulnessThe first thing he realized was that people gravitate towards binging different types of foods based on their mental state. He organized a study with 40,000 responses that described the connection between foods and circumstances: chocolate is the drug of choice for people who are lonely or brokenhearted, salty and crunchy foods appeal to people who have stress at work, and chewy and starchy foods are relatable to people who have stress at home. Through this study, he realized that the emotions people were experiencing were not the problem, but they were the justification for their binge eating.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>The second realization in Glenn’s journey was that the food industry was scientifically developing highly palatable foods and stripping out the nutrients, almost guaranteeing that their products would be addictive without the consumer ever feeling satisfied. This solidified in Glenn’s mind the fact that he would have to take charge of his own eating habits because the industry was not doing him any favors.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/59Glenn’s commitment to taking charge led him to a practice that may be frowned upon by some in the psychological community, but it delivered exactly the results that he was striving for because he was in the driver’s seat. He began keeping a journal that contained an inner dialogue between Glenn and the “pig” inside him that squealed for the pig slop it wanted to eat. He made clear rules for himself about what foods he would and would not eat and when he would and would not eat them. This removed the opportunity for slip-ups because he had made his own decisions about foods that were off-limits ahead of time. Using this method, he lost 80 pounds, and when he shared this method with one of his colleagues, his colleague lost 80+ pounds as well. That was when they decided they needed to publish the “Never Binge Again” book, which has over 600,000 downloads to date. Glenn provides this and other resources such as food plan starter templates, sample rules, and testimonials for free on his website.Finally, he encourages listeners to take charge of their own situations and come up with creative solutions to get where you want to be.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest on this episode of the Addicted Mind podcast is Laura Kelly, health reporter for the Washington Times. In early January 2017, Laura wrote an article for the Times about the increasing rate of teen nicotine addiction due to e-cigarettes and vaping. Over the past 6 years, e-cigarettes have become increasingly popular, more technologically advanced, and more discrete.Calming The Addicted Mind - 6 Day Mindfulness Email Seriestheaddictedmind.com/mindfulnessOne particular brand – Juul – has risen to the top, and they are using their elevated status to target teens and young adults. The vaping liquid or pods that Juul produces contain a salt-based formula that comes in attractive flavors containing nicotine, which causes it to be absorbed differently than the nicotine in cigarettes. Because pods are not tobacco-based, the e-cigarette/vaping industry is not currently regulated by the FDA, meaning that companies can sell to almost anyone who wants to buy and they are actively advertising their products on social media and through radio ads.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>It is surprising to learn that while 4% of the adult population use vaping devices, 13% of teens are becoming increasingly dependent on and addicted to the trendy nicotine vehicle. Since vaping is such a new phenomenon, not much research has been done on the addictive nature or the difficulty of breaking the addiction, which is scary and dangerous for our society. Additionally, vaping is an expensive hobby, and teens are likely spending everything they have to pursue it.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/58While teens are vaping to “fit in” and to relieve stress, the adverse effects – in addition to the addiction overall – are memory loss, difficulty concentrating, lack of sleep, and mood swings. Because Juul devices have a very minimal vapor cloud after inhalation, many teens are “hitting the Juul” during class, contributing to the frequency of their hits. Many teens have admitted that when they first started vaping, they were going through one pod - equivalent in potency to one pack of cigarettes – in a week, they quickly progressed to a pod per day. A nicotine addiction also opens individuals up to other future addictions when they find that the “high” they initially felt while vaping isn’t so high anymore.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest on this episode of the Addicted Mind podcast is Lacy Bentley, a recovery mentor, and coach in the areas of love and sex addictions for women.Calming The Addicted Mind - 6 Day Mindfulness Email Seriestheaddictedmind.com/mindfulnessAt age 13, Lacy found herself consuming erotic novels and pornographic anime called hentai. She didn’t realize it until much later in life, but her involvement with those types of pornography had created an addiction to the fantasy that affected all of her relationships into adulthood. She developed a pattern of escape and avoidance related to any intense emotion – positive or negative – that was affecting her marriage and her relationship with her children as well.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>Once she realized her own issues, she realized that there had to be other women out there who were struggling as well, but no one was willing to talk about women having problems with pornography. Since so much of pornography involves the subjugation and abuse of women, there is a “girl code trauma” associated with women being aroused by the terrible things that are portrayed happening to other women.Lacy has found in her work to help women find the freedom and recovery that they so desperately need that once a woman is willing to admit her addiction, she is usually all-in to do whatever needs to be done to heal. They need to go through a period of raw and unfiltered honesty about what has happened, then move past the shame that they have been living with for too long, and find their way to reconnecting with their partner healthily and intimately. One of the keys to a successful recovery is opening up and walking through your struggles with your partner, talking about what happened, what works, what doesn’t work, and so on.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/57Women who are struggling with love, sex, or porn addictions need to know that they are not alone. That they are worth recovery and that they have the right to be empowered to be themselves and have the courage to face their problems head-on. Lacy is a strong advocate of the concept of regaining your integrity because integrity is a big part of what is lost during an addiction.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

On this episode of The Addicted Mind podcast, we are joined by Peter Grinspoon, a primary care physician in the Boston area who is an advocate of medical cannabis.Calming The Addicted Mind - 6 Day Mindfulness Email Seriestheaddictedmind.com/mindfulnessDuring medical school, Peter and a few of his classmates decided to try a sample of Vicodin to see if they could experience the euphoric side effects. While his friends tried it that once and never felt compelled to try it again, Peter immediately felt the need to find another high. This feeling was exacerbated by the stress of the medical profession and the easy accessibility of medications, and throughout 10 years, he battled an opioid addiction. Ultimately, this addiction led him to trouble with the law, a 90-day rehab program, and a few relapses, but 3.5 years later, Peter had progressed in his recovery enough to get his medical license back. He credits his successful recovery to the support he received from his family, friends, and Physician Health Program.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>Peter is an advocate of medical cannabis treatment as an alternative to help avoid and treat opioid addictions. Cannabis can effectively be used to treat chronic pain either in conjunction with or in the place of opioids. Baby Boomers are particularly open to trying this treatment and Peter anticipates that more people will be willing once the US government legitimizes its uses and changes the classification.Contrary to what people may think, medical cannabis does not have to be smoked and does not have to give the user a high because different chemicals within the marijuana plant can be isolated to be used in treatment.There is a hurtful stigma within the recovery community that insinuates that medically-assisted treatment is not adherence to the “zero tolerance” rule. Peter says that rehab programs that do not recognize the values of medically-assisted treatments are becoming irrelevant as a result of this stigma and he hopes that they will learn to adapt to the times.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/56He also emphasizes the significance and importance to an addict of the love and support from family and friends. Even though they may have given up on themselves, it could mean all the difference for them to know that you will not give up on them.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest on this episode of the Addicted Mind podcast is Joshua Shea, who joins us to tell his story of addictions to alcohol and pornography and the past 4 years of recovery. Joshua was first introduced to porn around age 11 and alcohol at age 15, and looking back, he recognizes that he was addicted from Day 1. Even at a young age, he began to use alcohol and porn as an escape from life and a way to soothe whatever emotions or pain he was experiencing, seeking the element of power or control over his circumstances that he didn’t have in the real world. He leaned on the notion that alcohol and porn were never going to let him down or tell him he wasn’t good enough, and this mentality became a crutch for him.Calming The Addicted Mind - 6 Day Mindfulness Email Seriestheaddictedmind.com/mindfulnessJoshua remembers that things began spinning out of control when he was struggling to keep up with work and his public service, so he took himself off of his medications for bipolar disorder to have more time and perceived clarity. Instead, his consumption of alcohol and porn exploded and became uncontrollable, which magnified the unmanageability of his life situation. He had learned during his 20+ years of addiction how to get away with things, but he knew at this point that something was going to get him. He began to have dreams about childhood memories that he had repressed about abuse and trauma that he had endured.Join The Addicted Mind Podcast Facebook Group>>>On March 20, 2014, the Maine State Police knocked on Joshua’s door and arrested him for child pornography. Apparently one of the women that he had engaged in a porn chatroom was, in fact, an underage girl. He was immediately fired from his job, which he saw as a removal from one of the stressful situations in his life and was the beginning of his “clean slate.” He met with his lawyer after his arrest and finally realized that he had a problem with alcohol and porn. Although his life had been spinning out of control and he was mostly estranged from his wife and children, he had not recognized that he was an addict. He sees now that he would not have been receptive to anything less than getting into trouble with the law regarding confrontations, interventions, or conversations about his behavior.He entered a rehab program at the recommendation of his lawyer with low expectations, but he was utterly amazed by the content of the program and his progress along the way, and he ended up staying in alcohol rehab for 10 weeks instead of the original 4. He began seeing a therapist regularly, which unearthed the repressed childhood traumas and allowed him to process them and how those memories had been affecting him for decades since. Finally, 22 months after his arrest, Joshua was sentenced to 6 months in jail. At this point, he had already completed rehab and began a new life, committed to recovering, so he spent those 6 months writing the first draft of his book. He also went through 7 weeks of rehab for pornography and then began working as a freelance writer, which allowed him the time flexibility to focus on his health and recovery.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/55Now, Joshua is 4+ years sober and lives a much simpler life than before, focused on his family and not on the judgments of others. He has committed to remaining sober and has set up safeguards and tools that aid him in staying away from alcohol and porn. He is an advocate of addicts going through rehab programs if they have the resources, but the most important thing is to just reach out for help. Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest on this episode of The Addicted Mind podcast is Mari Lee, a licensed marriage and family and certified sex addiction therapist supervisor, consultant, coach, speaker, author, and founder of Growth Counseling Services in Glendora, CA. Mari is a firm believer in the power of group therapy in conjunction with individual therapy and 12-step sessions to aid in the recovery process, especially with sex and porn addictions. Addiction thrives in secrecy and isolation, and could often be triggered by boredom and loneliness, so an excellent way to progress in the recovery process is to have a confidential group of individuals who know what you are going through and can support you along the way. The members of this group could, in fact, be the first healthy relationships they have each experienced.Sign Up For our 6 Day Mindfulness Email Seriestheaddictedmind.com/mindfulnessGroup therapy, when facilitated the right way, can provide the individuals with shame reduction practices, a community with the other members, structure, consistency, inclusion, focused discussions, and accountability. The connections between the group members are often viewed as a brotherhood or sisterhood and provide a foundation for each member as they engage with their life circumstances outside of the group as well. It is common for individuals in the group to have trauma from their families of origin, and these traumas and unhealthy familial roles typically play a part in these group therapy sessions.Group therapy members are also encouraged to attend 12-step programs to support their individual recovery as well since these programs are more systematic and structured, providing each individual with a sponsor for accountability. However, 12-step programs do not have the flexibility of group therapy when it comes to cross-talk between group members, feedback, and deep conversations.Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/54Mari encourages anyone out there who is considering joining a group therapy session to go ahead and give it a shot. Be sure to do a pre-group interview with your therapist to determine which group might be best for you and be open to being referred to a group in another therapist’s practice if that one is the best fit. Find out the logistics of when the group meets and how a session typically looks, so you are as prepared as possible for your initial meeting. Be open to the process and commit to the group for your own healing.Therapy in their practices, Mari recommends reaching out to a consultant who can help you come up with curriculum, client standards, policies, forms, standards of care, and a general roadmap for conducting and facilitating your group.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

On this episode of The Addicted Mind podcast, our guest is Suzie Wolfer, LCSW, SEP a therapist specializing in Somatic Experiencing®, a powerful system of healing trauma and addiction at it’s core and for completing trauma so that it’s let go of you.Sign Up For our 6 Day Mindfulness Email Seriestheaddictedmind.com/mindfulnessSomatic means “of the body,” which includes the sensations we feel when we experience different emotions and thoughts. Trauma and stress are stored in the body, causing behaviors, patterns or responses arising from implicit memory system or the unconscious.Our initial reaction to the uncomfortable feelings that are associated with trauma and stress is to stabilize these feelings by managing them from the “top down,” striving to suppress, control, or make the feelings go away. This desire to manage troubling thoughts and emotions, though useful in the short term, keeps us from healing the underlying stuck patterns, that show up as chronic Fight, Flight or Freeze behaviors or a combination of these.With somatic therapy, we help your body remember how to complete stuck Fight, Flight or Freeze patterns We call this re-negotiation. Instead of trying to get rid of scary, infuriating or numbing feelings and thoughts, you learn to watch them, especially in how your body expresses them.Imagine a roller coaster. It can be scary and exhilarating to feel the car taking you up, up, up to tower over the precipice, wondering if the little wheels will keep you safely on the rails. Challenging emotions, even pleasure, can start to feel scary, and it’s easy to use substances or compulsive behaviors to try to manage or outrun the sense of threat they pose, of “going off the rails.” The closer we get to the top of the roller coaster, the more energy builds inside us, including excitement.When you are able to observe what’s happening inside, especially observe your body sensations associated with thoughts and emotions, these emotional messengers can deliver their message and let go of you. When that happens, like when the roller coaster car comes back to the platform, you may feel a good feeling, a smile on your face, as you get off on level ground and go on to the next thing. Maybe even a little more confident in your ability of face challenges!Episode Linktheaddictedmind.com/53In the past decade of supporting her patients with Somatic Experiencing® Therapy, Suzie has found that this gentle approach helps people not only feel better, but get better, a little at a time, and in every session. Like a caboose on a train, the thinking process is sometimes the last to know!Here’s a little 3-step process you can try at home: Are you safe? Yes or no. Notice that feeling safe and being safe in this moment are two different things. Using your 5 senses, notice signals or data are you getting from the world outside you, which confirm that you are safe. What are these signals? Next, notice what happens in your body when you confirm that you are safe in this moment. Perhaps savor what you discover. If you could take one thing from this podcast, here’s what Suzie would like you to know: “That you may discover that you are not broken. Your body is simply trying to solve a different problem than your mind. Collaborating with your biology will help you heal and release stored trauma and feel like yourself again.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

On this episode of The Addicted Mind, we are joined by Michael Hobbes, a writer for The Huffington Post and co-host of the You’re Wrong About… podcast. Michael wrote an article entitled “Everything You Know About Obesity is Wrong” for HuffPost in September 2018 which has gotten a lot of attention in the psychology community as well as the culture at large. There are 160 million Americans that are classified as overweight or obese based on the BMI scale, but even though these individuals constitute 30% of the population, they are treated as a marginalized minority who are somehow tainted or inferior to the rest of Americans.During the interviews that Michael conducted for his article, he encountered countless people who felt guilt, shame, hurt, anger, and sadness based on the way they have been treated or the projections of what they want to look and feel like instead of the way they do right now. There seems to be a prevailing attitude that overweight or obese people are lazy and that if they would just exercise some self-control, they would suddenly shrink down to “normal.” There is not much tolerance for the overweight and obese community, making those individuals feel less than human and live in a constant state of stress about their weight and others’ perceptions of them, even if they are trying their best to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Michael hopes that his article advocates for this community to have their voices heard and be accepted for who they are, just the way they are. The mental toll that unsolicited advice and diet suggestions have on overweight individuals can put them in a cycle of stress that exacerbates any issues they may have and can even make them suicidal.Michael emphasizes the importance of stigma resistance, which gives overweight individuals a voice to express their needs and stand up for themselves in environments where they have never been heard before. It should not be a big deal for someone to ask for a bigger chair at a work meeting or to be seated at a table instead of a booth at a restaurant if needed. Fat shaming has no place in our society and can only be stopped if we realize that we are all equal and deserving of courteous behavior.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

On this episode of the Addicted Mind podcast, our guest is Tom Horvath, founder of Practical Recovery and co-founder of Smart Recovery. Smart Recovery is a non-12-step approach to addictive behavior problems that provides an alternative to programs like Alcoholics Anonymous. While both methods provide new communities and relationships to build on as well as specific examples of individuals who are models of success, AA is based on the idea that you must give yourself up to a higher power because “you are powerless” and must rely on your sponsor and meetings in order to recover.12-step programs can be helpful to some, but they can be ineffective for others, so the demand for alternative programs is continuing to increase. Smart Recovery integrates any methods that have been supported by scientific evidence, are self-empowering and are applicable in a mutual help group, including CBT, DBT, and ACT. They recognize that there are multiple pathways to recovery and that great results occur in a community.Smart Recovery takes a self-empowering approach to recovery, relying on the individual to set their own limits and establishing a 4-point program for people to work through: Maintaining motivation Coping with craving Identifying and resolving other problems Achieving a greater lifestyle balance Smart Recovery emphasizes “ideal” recovery, rather than “real” recovery as is expected in 12-step programs. Ideal recovery may not be complete abstinence, but rather staying within the limits that each person sets (and potentially changes along the way) for themselves, which is the point of the accountability of attending meetings.Tom encourages those struggling with addictive behaviors or searching for a recovery group to be persistent in finding what works for you. Most people are able to resolve their problems with treatment, so just don’t give up.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest on this episode of The Addicted Mind podcast is Dr. Ken Adams, a therapist specializing in the area of parental enmeshment and its connection to compulsive behaviors such as porn and sex addiction. All families are defined by the balance of closeness and separate between the members. Enmeshed families overemphasize their closeness, resulting in the parents controlling the decisions of their children, demanding their loyalty, prohibiting them from becoming involved with friends or activities outside of the family, and using guilt as a punishment for trying to separate any part of their lives from their parents. It is not uncommon for the parents in these types of families to treat the children as a surrogate husband or wife, expecting the child to fulfill their emotional needs.As a result of experiencing this lifestyle throughout childhood, adults usually find themselves struggling to live their own lives, even if they are geographically separated from each other. The enmeshment mentality can make them feel smothered, engulfed, or trapped by their parents, while remaining staunchly loyal to them, perhaps even at the cost of their marriage or other relationships. Living with this burden often leads to addictive behavior in the porn or sexual realm, with the affected adult child seeking freedom that does not come with any commitments. In every other area of their life, they feel stifled under the weight of others’ expectations, and compulsive behaviors give them the short-term release that they feel like they need.When Dr. Adams sees adult children affected by enmeshment for therapy, the first step is to move them from their pre-contemplative state of considering that they may have an issue with enmeshment and possibly a related addiction. Perhaps they have done some self-education by listening to podcasts, reading books or articles, or viewing videos on the topic, and they feel that they can identify with the feelings and behaviors being described. The next step a therapist takes is to delicately shift their internal entanglements and beliefs and help them establish external boundaries for themselves and their parents. He conducts intensive therapeutic workshops to help individuals through this process.If you think you or someone you know is struggling with parental enmeshment, remember that there are resources out there to help you gain the separation that is so crucial to thriving in your own life. Reach out and consider reading one of Dr. Adams’ books to learn more about taking the necessary steps toward true freedom.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Ricky Santiago, a specialist in adventure therapy, joined us for this episode of The Addicted Mind podcast. He uses specially planned and designed activities such as kayaking, snorkeling, and ropes courses in his adventure therapy sessions. Experiential therapy like adventure therapy maximizes the benefits of group therapy by building self-esteem, utilizing metaphors, and providing an arena to practice coping skills and process emotions. Ricky and his colleagues have often found more success through one experiential therapy session than through several talk therapy sessions because clients are not able to hide their true selves when they are participating in an activity that is challenging to them mentally, emotionally, or physically.Since the therapist is participating in the activity as well, the clients see how the therapist handles their emotions and difficulties they come across, and clients can more easily open up about fears or challenges in their own lives or experiences. Though the timing of the formal “processing” aspect of the therapy session differs depending on the activity and the group, this is a crucial step for clients to take as they draw parallels from the adventure activity to their own lives, perhaps realizing things that they never had or being willing to share a trauma that they had never voiced. The effects of the treatment are ongoing, as the client will continually draw on their experience as they approach the problems in their lives and take steps to resolve the situation, just as they had been taught.Ricky encourages everyone to remember that recovery is possible and pursuing the treatment you need can change the trajectory of your entire family if you show up motivated and ready to work toward healing.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

On this episode of The Addicted Mind podcast, our guest is Anne Fletcher, author of 8 books including “Sober for Good” and “Inside Rehab.” Anne felt the need to write “Inside Rehab” after consulting with several experts, one of which posited that people usually spend more time picking out their next vacuum cleaner than they would finding the right addiction treatment facility. Driven by the notions that treatment should help people avoid hitting rock bottom and that their treatment should emphasize the benefits of sobriety over the pitfalls of addiction, she spent 4 years studying 15 different treatment centers across the country to see what was working and what wasn’t working for their patients.She was somewhat shocked to discover that most inpatient and outpatient treatment facilities heavily employ group-based treatment, 12-step methods such as AA, and counselors without medical or psychological expertise in their limited one-on-one sessions. As she expected, she heard stories of programs that worked for some people and not others, helpful and hurtful methods, and discrepancies between quality and cost. In fact, one of the facilities she studied had an on-site barber shop, cafeteria, radio station, and college level educational courses to help equip their patients with transferable skills that they could use to get a job after their treatment was concluded.Overall, Anne sees a lot of hope and opportunity in the future of addiction treatment facilities if they treat each patient as an individual and personalize their treatment to their background and situation, keeping in mind that therapeutic alliance between the patient and therapist is crucial to the patient’s recovery and success. She hopes to continue to see alternative methods to AA popping up across the country, because AA’s process does not work for everyone, but a vast majority of treatment programs rely on it to help their patients. She is a firm believer that treatment centers will change certain things that may not be working if consumers express their concerns and desires.Anne’s advice to those who may need addiction treatment is to start by receiving an assessment from an individual therapist who is not associated with a treatment center. They will be able to give you their professional opinion about what kind of treatment you might need and can point you in the right direction. Also, keep in mind that inpatient treatment is not always the most effective unless the patient is in danger of self-harm or needs a period of detox. Be persistent in finding the right treatment for you; you are not alone, and you do not have to continue to live with this substance use disorder.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-addicted-mind-podcast/donations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.