With addiction, pleasure and enjoyment become deeply linked with the drug or behavior of choice. Once a client stops the behavior they often feel that “something is missing,†or that they do not know how to enjoy life to the fullest. I’d like to share some of my approaches to working with the “discovery†phase of recovery because I think that they can help anyone live a more enjoyable and creative life....

Three, easy to remember, words that basically sum up “coping skills.†Try this out next time you are feeling upset or dissatisfied in any way. Aware – We have to have enough distance from what’s happening to be aware of it. If we are “mindlessly†doing something, or impulsively doing something, we are not aware. Accept – Not accepting reality can take many forms: a vague irritability, righteous anger, feeli...

Many people use music to help regulate their mood – a certain type to energize for a workout, another type for focusing at work, and yet another for winding down after a long day.  We know from experience that sound has a powerful impact on how we feel.  Sound is simply pressure waves traveling through the air.  We call it “sound” when the frequency of the waves is in the range that can be picked up by our ears.Â...

As a mental health clinician working in the addiction recovery field, I highly recommend Gabor Mate’s exceptionally well-written book on addiction, In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction.  Mate, a psychiatrist, has worked for 12 years with severely addicted people on skid row in Vancouver.  In the first half of the book, he weaves together stories of his patients with the story of his own “high status...

“Why don’t you just stop?†“I wish I could change but I don’t know where to start!†How many times have you heard this from yourself or a loved one? Change sounds easy—just stop, do it differently, try another way, etc. They sound like good suggestions but carrying them out is a different issue entirely. Many people really don’t know how to stop because they d...

  One of the core elements of our program at Welwynn is mindfulness: being aware of the present moment in a non-judgmental way. Mindfulness is the first step towards any change in behavior or belief. If we don’t realize what’s happening, or are too wrapped up in judgments, we cannot our response.  In mindfulness practice, we set aside a few minutes to practice tuning into the present.  This time of focused practice makes it easier to be mindful as we move throughout the day. I...

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. Â&nbs...

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 wit...