Michael Botticelli is a former Director of National Drug Control Policy, as well as a person in recovery from addiction and a gay man.  In this talk, Michael explains the paralells between the way society shamed and neglected gay men suffering with HIV/AIDs in the 1980 to the way society treats people struggling with addiction today.  In both cases, blame for the disease was placed on the person suffering instead of in a broader context of society and biology.  In both cases, the shame associ...

Studies show that rats placed in empty cages with the choice to drink drug-laced water or normal water will drink the drug-laced water until they kill themselves.  On the other hand, rats placed in cage with plenty of friends, potential mates, and an interesting play environment do not choose the drug-laced water.  This simple experimental finding has profound implications for how we think about and treat addictive disorders.  Like rats, humans are mammals with a deeply wired need for social...

Emotional ups and downs are a normal part of being human.  One of the most moving things for me as an addictions therapist is to be with our clients as they move through the ups and downs of life without the chemical filter of drugs or alcohol.  Clients are not used to tolerating, or “being with” their hard feelings.  In addiction, substances are used to medicate the “downs,” and tend to create a cycle of more extreme ups and downs.  In recovery, we learn skills to make the ups a...