Coming Up for Air — A Toolkit to Help with Your Loved One's Recovery from Addiction & Mental Illness

Though it seems intuitive and important to avoid black and white thinking, what do you do instead? There are shades of gray, but our host Elizabeth suggests that a rainbow spectrum is really where complexity can live, a world where color, acceptance, softening, connection, and recognition of micro-successes are the path leading away from the contraction and defensiveness of black and white thinking.

Visit Allies in Recovery to start your new path towards healing addiction in your family.  

The team weighs in definitively on the question, Is Everyone Creative? They share with us some key ways to get your creative juices flowing and move past blockages, and point to creative outlets you may not have considered.

The Families Speak team is comprised of mothers and fathers on a journey with an addicted loved one. These family members have encountered the same struggles as anyone else with substance use in the family, but the journey they’ve embarked on is exceptional. They generously share their experience and tools with us, along with their ongoing challenges.

One Families Speak family member recently referred to Allies in Recovery as “the Bible of Healing Ourselves.”

VisitAllies in Recovery today and see why.

⁠Suzanne Jarvie on spotify⁠ Song featured on part 2: "You Shall Not Pass"

Creativity has been a central element of healing for many of our Families Speak cohosts. For some, it arrived like a lifeline when their family was in crisis. For others, creativity remained frustratingly out of reach during the lowest point of crisis. The team dives into the countless ways we can access creative energy, and how it helped them. "Creativity is in everything if you're paying attention," affirms Allies in Recovery parent, Suzanne. (See below to find her music online)

The Families Speak team is comprised of mothers and fathers on a journey with an addicted Loved One. These family members have encountered the same struggles as anyone else with substance use in the family, but the journey they’ve embarked on is exceptional. They generously share their experience and tools with us, along with their ongoing challenges.

One Families Speak family member recently referred to Allies in Recovery as “the Bible of Healing Ourselves.”

Visit Allies in Recovery today and see why.

Suzanne Jarvie on spotify Song featured on part 1: Angel of Light

Kayla and Isabel speak with Mississippi native Jane Clair Tyner, Communications Manager of the dynamic education and advocacy organization, End It For Good. Jane Clair describes the "Thank God moment" she had when she first discovered the CRAFT method, albeit bittersweet: she had already lost her first-born son to drug-related complications. She weighs in on the current challenge faced by Allies in Recovery and so many other organizations who are losing their funding because of the current administration. Find out what Jane Clair Tyner sees as the best possible ways to shine light on the situation and move things forward. A beautiful and inspiring conversation.

End It For Good (founded by Christina Dent, who we've interviewed several times) promotes health-based alternatives to drugs, and fights against the criminalization of drug use. Learn more here: www.EndItForGood.com

At Allies in Recovery, we train, guide, and support families using the CRAFT method—an evidence-based approach that helps families shift the dynamic with a loved one struggling with addiction. Self-care is a cornerstone of this process, but for many, it’s something we have to learn from scratch. 

A membership at Allies in Recovery gives you unlimited access to: 
✔ Step-by-step CRAFT training through our online learning platform 
✔ Support groups and a community that understands what you're going through 
✔ A Q&A blog with expert guidance 
✔ And much more! 

Visit Allies in Recovery to start your new path towards healing addiction in your family.  

For these parents, behavior change started when they began coming to terms with not having control over their Loved One. Learn about the stages of behavior change that we all go through, and how to open to the challenge. Delve into this inspiring conversation and consider Kayla's affirmation that: "If I'm part of the problem, it means I'm also part of the solution!"Psychotherapist Kayla Solomon invites members from the support group she facilitates for Allies in Recovery to share their experiences navigating addiction in the family. These parents have faced similar struggles to so many others—but with Allies in Recovery, they’ve found a new way forward.

A membership at Allies in Recovery provides:

✔ A structured online platform to learn CRAFT skills step by step

✔ Support groups and a community that truly understands

✔ A Q&A blog with expert advice

✔ And much more!

Start today—visit Allies in Recovery to begin creating change in your family.

It’s human to make decisions that we later regret. Especially when addiction is present in our Loved Ones, fear and deep concern can often color our decision-making process. To see more clearly, we can take a step (or two) back and look at the situation through a new lens.

I’m used to considering my Loved One’s needs first, but where do I fit into the equation? What are my own needs right now and what/where are my boundaries? What can I live with and what can’t I? What are my core values and am I respecting them? Can I change my mind if I realize I’ve made a decision that might be unlivable for me? If you originally told your Loved One they could come home, but now you think that was a mistake and you need to let them know you’ve changed your mind, consider planning ahead: have a plan for what you’ll say, be ready to remove yourself if things get very tense or even dangerous.

Module 2 on safety is an essential one to watch. Module 4 on how to talk to your Loved One will also be very helpful here. Module 7 on navigating and regulating difficult emotions, is full of precious guidance.

And here is the episode Kenny mentions having listened to multiple times, that you might also appreciate: How Do You Negotiate When Your Loved One is Coming Home?

Our Families Speak series features a wonderful team of people navigating life with an addicted loved one. They are all members of Allies in Recovery, an online platform providing training, guidance, support and resources to families ready to shift the dynamic with their loved one struggling with substance use.

With grace, compassion, humility and deep generosity, the Families Speak team shares openly with Coming Up for Air listeners. We can thus benefit from their experience, their process, and the work they do with group facilitator and psychotherapist, Kayla Solomon.

Visit Allies in Recovery to learn about our membership options, read our blog posts, meet our team, and much more!

There's a science to identifying the ripest moments for talking with your Loved One and knowing how to navigate them. Find out the opening lines that are sure to shut the conversation down before it even starts. Find out how to approach your Loved One in a way that keeps communication lines open. And finally, find out what you should have in your back pocket in case a ripe moment arises.

A membership at Allies in Recovery gives you unlimited access to:

· Support groups for connection & guidance

· Our online learning platform to teach you through the CRAFT skillset step-by-step

· A Q&A blog where you can ask questions and receive tailored guidance

· And much more!

Visit alliesinrecovery.net to explore membership options, read our blog, meet our team, and start your journey today.

When we face uncertainty, especially in relation to a Loved One struggling with substances, we tend to catastrophize, and challenging emotions like fear and helplessness can take over. As one mother puts it, "I jump on the zipline to nowhere." Each of our Families Speak co-hosts brings nuggets of wisdom and hard-earned strategy to this super-relevant conversation.

Our Families Speak series features a wonderful team of people navigating life with an addicted loved one. They are all members of Allies in Recovery, an online platform providing training, guidance, support and resources to families ready to shift the dynamic with their loved one struggling with substance use.

With grace, compassion, humility and deep generosity, the Families Speak team shares openly with Coming Up for Air listeners. We can thus benefit from their experience, their process, and the work they do with group facilitator and psychotherapist, Kayla Solomon.

Visit ⁠alliesinrecovery.net⁠ to learn about our membership options, read our blog posts, meet our team, and much more!

Children are often present when a parent or other Loved One uses substances problematically. It can be complicated to know how much to say to them about the substance use, and they might not necessarily have the words to talk about it. Kayla and Isabel talk about ways to spare the children as much as possible, and even "use them" as leverage.

Partner CRAFT is the podcast series by Allies in Recovery that focuses on applying the CRAFT method with a romantic partner (or ex-partner) who struggles with addiction. Co-hosts Kayla Solomon (psychotherapist, IMAGO counselor and Group Facilitator for Allies in Recovery) speaks with Isabel Cooney (Allies in Recovery team member, and ex-partner of an addicted Loved One) about the ways the CRAFT approach can be different when your loved one is your partner, rather than your child.A membership at Allies in Recovery gives you unlimited access to:

• Support groups for connection & guidance
• Our online learning platform to teach you through the CRAFT skillset step-by-step
• A Q & A blog where you can ask questions and receive tailored guidance
• And much more!

Visit Allies in Recovery to explore membership options, read our blog, meet our team, and start your journey today.

Two sisters continue to look at their present-day relationship with a Dad with problematic drinking and mental illness. How have they changed the way they respond now as young adults, when they see him drinking? What observations do they have of CRAFT in action? Kayla weighs in with some inspired guidance for the girls, going forward.

The CRAFT method was designed for any family member to use with a Loved One suffering from addiction and/or mental health issues. Allies in Recovery guides you through the steps with videos, exercises, Q & A discussion blogs and live support groups. The toolkit you gain will benefit both you and your Loved One. Learn more here.