Is you or someone you love struggling with getting into a detox or rehab for alcohol use? Have you felt like you've been getting the run around? Does it seem like people who are entering treatment for other substances have an easier time getting in? Not to go too conspiracy theory on you, but we have Charlie on to talk about the problems people face when trying to gain access to treatment for alcohol use disorder. Spoiler alert: it all comes down to profit, money, and capitalism. Listen in and share your thoughts and experiences with us. 

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Episodes mentioned:

Mommy and Me

AA vs NA

Legal Action Center Webinar

Ever heard of mommy and me housing? Or a mommy and me program? What comes to mind when you think of a service like that? Do you think of people that you've known who were in mommy and me housing? Is it safe to have kids with their newly recovering mothers? What supports are present to help the new moms in recovery? We talk with Sarah Jo about her time in the mommy and me house and what to expect if you are going there. Listen in and share your thoughts with us. 

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Episodes mentioned:

Mothers

What do you do when meetings stop working? Conventional 12 step wisdom says it's not the meetings that are the problem, it's the individual, who isn't doing enough, trying enough, or looking at it the right way. And if you don't hit meetings, you'll use and die. But we explore the options in case that's not true. What do you do when meetings stop hitting the spot? What need was it that meetings used to fill for you? Have you found another way to get that need met? We explore what to do when it does not feel like going to meetings has any value to it currently. Listen in and share your thoughts with us. 

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Episodes mentioned:

Mothers

Willingness

Self-Discipline

We explore the spiritual principle of self-discipline. Is self-discipline different than self-control? Are both of these also different than willpower? What actually is self-discipline? How does it work? Do we train ourselves to get better at sticking to a plan? Do we actively find ways to calm our nervous system over time so that we are more capable of sticking to a set routine or schedule? Can you increase self-discipline and how? We talk all about how self-discipline can help you in life, where it comes from, and what we believe can help you develop more of it. Listen in and share your thoughts with us!

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Episodes mentioned:

Polyvagal Theory

ACEs

Do you have boundaries? In today's episode we explore the world of personal boundaries. We talk about why personal boundaries are important to your life. We look at signs that might show up in your life if you are needing to set some boundaries. We explain some of what we understand about why we suffer from struggling to set boundaries, as it's related to our childhoods. We explore the myths about boundary setting. We talk about the benefits you might experience from having set boundaries. Finally, we walk through some practices that could help you explore where your boundaries might need to be, and how to put them in place. Dive into boundary setting with us and then tell us what you've learned about setting your personal boundaries. 

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Episodes mentioned:

Shutting Down Someone Sharing

Polyvagal Theory

Packet we used for this episode:

Boundaries Packet

You know when you are in a meeting and THAT person shares? Yeah, that one. Do we ask people to stop sharing? Or shut down their share? If someone is clearly talking about a mode of recovery that is not the 12 step approach, is there benefit to stopping their share? We tend to think about keeping the integrity of the program intact, or about the atmosphere of recovery, but what about for the individual that gets asked to stop speaking, is there any benefit to them? Or harm? We explore what types of things can be shared at meetings that might invite a home group member to ask someone to stop sharing, and also possible best practices of taking that action. Listen in and then share your experience with us. 

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Episodes mentioned:

Clean Time Counting

Traditions

Clean time seems to be held as the end all, be all of the recovery world. Yet, we already know that the word "clean," which evolved from urinalysis results, is a stigmatizing word. Because that means those who aren't clean, are dirty. And what about the modern research and science that has proven more effectiveness with other forms of recovery? Are people following the science in their recovery shunned away because they can't participate in clean time? And while counting your time personally might be an effective tool for some, what about the way the 12 step fellowships use clean time as some sort of Purity Test? Listen in as we debate whether the concept of counting time of abstinence is more helpful or more harmful, and share your thoughts with us. 

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Episodes mentioned:

What Does Being Clean Mean

Family Members

Fentanyl Dispensary

Gamanon

Changing Sponsors

Forgiveness

Abstinence

Chronic Illness

Articles use in this discussion:

Healthline Article

What do you know about forgiveness as a spiritual principle? It is suggested we practice forgiveness, but how? Is forgiveness only accepting and letting it go, or does it involve ultimately wishing well the purpose you needed to forgive. Does forgiveness mean there must be reconciliation of the relationship? Why is forgiveness important? Are there health benefits from practicing forgiveness? Is forgiveness related to self-compassion somehow? Is there a strategy or steps to practice when desiring to forgive? Listen in as we talk about all these questions and more. Then reach out and share with us how forgiveness has helped you, or how you learned to practice forgiveness. 

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Episodes mentioned:

Compassion

Polyvagal Theory

Spiritual Bypassing

Articles use in this discussion:

Forgiveness article 1

Forgiveness article 2

Have you encountered a family member at a 12 step meeting? I think it's generally common practice at an anniversary, but what about at another meeting? Did you feel like they didn't belong there, or were bothered by their presence? Did the non-program member feel like they hindered the meeting process in any way? Or have you always thought of family members attending as a positive, a family that wanted to be involved. We talk with a mom who attends meetings with her daughter about why mom goes, what mom has gained from attending meetings with her daughter, and how the family system can help support recovery. Listen in as Brook joins us to help us explore family members in meetings. 

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Episodes mentioned:

Polyvagal Theory

Al-Anon

Principles

Ever heard of a fentanyl dispensary? In Vancouver, Canada, they now have a maintenance program that dispenses fentanyl instead of alternative medications. There are a lot of feelings about this, positive and negative. We talk about whether this is a good idea, if the implementation seems to be ina  useful way, and how this could impact the struggle with opioid use disorder. We also mention how many people are confused by the idea that this is a treatment for "addiction," which it is not. Further, we address some of the concerns around giving people drugs, taxpayer costs, etc. Listen in as we explore ideas around harm reduction by talking about a pilot program that gives people fentanyl. Listen in and share your thoughts with us. 

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Episodes mentioned:

Compassion

Moms in Recovery

Marriage

Spiritual Bypassing

Big Book Update

Voices of the Abstinence Movement

Alcoholism vs Addiction

Chronic Pain

Article used for this episode: New York Times