We've normalized some addictions and stigmatized others. How many times have you said "I'm addicted to carbs" and then perhaps at other times judged someone for their smoking habit? We all have habits! Some can be health supportive, some destructive but they're all habits. To discuss the nuances of this often tricky subject, Jenn sits down with Jay Shifman of Choose Your Struggle. Discussing substance use, misuse and addiction, Jenn and Jay work to redefine addiction and what we think of as addicts as well as treatment. Do yourself a favor and listen to this one twice, first thinking of those around you and again, focusing on yourself. This is one to be shared! Let's change the conversation.  

Outline:

• Welcome back & intro today's topic
• Meet Jay Shifman, today's featured guest
• Jay's story - from ADHD diagnosis to Bipolar Disorder diagnosis, 2 suicide attempts, treatment center, checked himself out, eventually studied psychology, working in politics then became a public speaker and created Choose Your Struggle
• Choose your struggle's 2 main goals: ending stigma around substance misuse & mental health and providing honest education around drug use, addiction & mental health. 
• Second opinions - so common in some areas of health, rarely with mental health
• The BS story we've been told about drug use
• The problem with the concept "once an addict, always an addict"
• Why the anonymous component of treatment & recovery is so detrimental
• What's next? How do we rethink treatment?
• What to do if you or someone you know is struggling
• The 2 greatest indicators of an impending overdose
• Choosing a treatment center
• Addict vs addictive personality
• Working out
• Jay's mom's Diet Cherry Dr. Pepper
• The addict could be anyone, even you vs. it's science & brain chemistry
• We've normalized some addictions & stigmatized others
• Contributing factors
• Final thought from Jay
• Final thought from Jenn

Links:

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Quotes:

"Substance use, misuse and addiction are a spectrum, a very wide spectrum." - Jay Shifman

"Probably 4-6% of people who use substances struggle with addiction...we would think, from what we hear, it's 100%; not true, it's 4-6%." - Jay Shifman

"The three most harmful substances, based on the number of people who die each year because of them, are all legal. They are alcohol, nicotine and sugar."  - Jay Shifman

"My relationship to sugar is not that dissimilar to what my relationship was when I was struggling with drug addiction." - Jay Shifman

"We look down on those who struggle instead of seeing them like someone who has cancer, an issue that needs to be treated by a doctor, we see them as a moral failure, someone who needs to be fixed." - Jay Shifman

"Community is the most important thing you can have in recovery." - Jay Shifman

"If you have one parent who struggles with any kind of overt addiction, you are 5  times more likely to struggle yourself. If you have two parents, you are 9 times more likely." - Jay Shifman

"Not all use is misuse." - Jay Shifman