Coming Up For Air - Families Speak To Families About Addiction

In today's episode of Coming Up for Air, Dominique Simon-Levine asks Laurie MacDougall to share with us what was going through her mind when she realized her son was struggling with an opiate disorder.  From being naive and thinking her family would never be affected by addiction, to finding help in peer support and relief in educating herself. From experiencing depression and PTSD, to getting her life back by hitting 90 meetings in 90 days. From finding CRAFT and Allies in Recovery, to dedicating her life to helping families feel empowered. From driving around all night looking for her son, to figuring out how to let the negative and obsessive feelings wash over her. In this episode, Laurie delivers a beautiful and powerful account of the trials and tribulations of a mother fighting to heal her son and heal herself. Join our Member Site today to take full advantage of Allies in Recovery’s program, including 8 video modules, three blogs, and dialogue with experts in the fields of treatment and recovery

Annie continues the discussion with DBT specialist Lisa Bond. Where does DBT come from? They look into the story of Dr. Marsha Linehan, who struggled with mental health, suicidal feelings, etc. After her full recovery, Linehan created DBT for people who needed more than therapy or medical treatment. DBT is a powerful, encouraging, validating process that can transform just about any life in upheaval. A membership at Allies in Recovery brings you into contact with experts in the fields of recovery and treatment for drug and alcohol issues. Our learning platform introduces you to CRAFT and guides you through the best techniques for unblocking the situation. Together we will move your loved one towards recovery. Learn more here: https://alliesinrecovery.net/

In this episode (Part 1 of a 2-part series), Annie Highwater speaks with Lisa Bond, RB and Dialectical Behavioral Therapy Specialist about the DBT method of treatment. DBT is found to be efficient and highly effective for those experiencing emotional distress, conflict issues, borderline personality, suicidal ideation, C-PTSD, trauma and addiction. Listen to this conversation to learn how DBT can help children, teens or adults, in all sorts of situations. Join our Member Site today to take full advantage of Allies in Recovery’s program, including 8 video learning modules, three blogs, and dialogue with experts in the field of treatment and recovery. Learn more here: https://alliesinrecovery.net/

Being successful with the CRAFT method, which is at the core of the Allies in Recovery member site, requires building your awareness around your loved one's substance use. Laurie MacDougall runs family groups with our Learning Modules and brings up some of the common questions families have about Module 3. We look into the "ABC’s of your loved one’s use"(Antecedents, Behaviors, Consequences) and why they're key to understand. Many families are surprised to realize that, in addition to the negative consequences they're so familiar with, there are also positive consequences of our loved one's use—everything is not black and white. Dominique Simon-Levine, Allies' founder, provides explanations and anecdotes to help you go deeper into this key module. Join our Member Site today to take full advantage of Allies in Recovery’s program, including 8 video modules, three blogs, and dialogue with experts in the fields of treatment and recovery. Learn more here. http://alliesinrecovery.net/#join

This podcast addresses the reality that so many families are living with: living in fear that our addicted loved one will die. Dominique Simon-Levine and Laurie MacDougall look at the CRAFT perspective On this understandable but destructive state of being. We so badly want to chain them to their beds until it's all over. Listen in to this conversation and let us give you a new perspective. Join our Member Site today to take full advantage of Allies in Recovery’s program, including 8 video modules, three blogs, and dialogue with experts in the fields of treatment and recovery. Learn more here: https://alliesinrecovery.net/

Sam Quiñones researched and wrote the book Dreamland: The True Tale of America's Opiate Epidemic. In this episode, Annie has the privilege of speaking with Sam, who shares his rich experiences writing the book - from researching Mexican cartel trafficking, to meeting dealers in prisons who were open and raw with their stories, to getting to know the family members impacted by a Loved One's addiction. Sam paints a vivid picture of how the closing of community pools such as Dreamland (the books namesake) in Portsmouth, Ohio contributed to the gathering storm of what has become our country's worst drug epidemic in history. Hearing Sam feels like listening to an old friend describe years of family and community stories that hit right to the heart of all of us. Dreamland is a book everyone should read, and this is an episode everyone should hear!! A membership at Allies in Recovery brings you into contact with experts in the fields of recovery and treatment for drug and alcohol issues. Our learning platform intro

Have we not all heard the phrase "You just need to detach" when it comes to navigating life in the midst of active addiction?  But...how exactly is this done?  Is detaching even the appropriate way to go about the relationship? Listen to this week's episode with Annie and Allies in Recovery's Founder Dominique Simon-Levine as they discuss the meaning of detaching, and how to ATTACH in healthy ways.  Annie shares true life examples from actual family members and readers, and Dominique gives some pretty amazing, expert CRAFT Method direction to each one; as if she were counseling them in person.  Great episode for ANY family!

In this episode of CUFA, Annie speaks with Dr. Dan Skinner, Assistant Professor of Health Policy at Ohio University’s Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine, Department of Social Medicine, on the Dublin, Ohio campus. Their conversation focuses on a topic that is daily making news in Ohio - Issue 1 - the Drug Amendment that has both sides divided. Listen in as Dr. Skinner gives us details on what Issue 1 involves and how it will affect families in the State of Ohio and corresponding states who may choose to follow suit. His compassion is refreshing and inspiring. Join our Member Site today to take full advantage of Allies in Recovery’s program, including 8 video modules, three blogs, and dialogue with experts in the fields of treatment and recovery. Learn more here: https://alliesinrecovery.net/

Cathy Taughinbaugh is a parent coach using the CRAFT method. In this interview, Cathy talks about her own experience with addiction in her family, addresses "Tough Love" and Al-Anon, and speaks about her work. For unlimited access to Allies in Recovery's online learning platform featuring our 8 Video Modules, join today. Learn more here: https://alliesinrecovery.net/#benefits

In this episode of CUFA, Annie and Laurie explain CRAFT method, what is is, how it works and what you can do to guide your Son, Daughter, Spouse, or other Loved One willingly into treatment.  Could tweaking your wording lead someone to choose recovery? What are some things you might try to influence another's behavior toward treatment and healing? And what are the ten types of distorted thinking that we all fall into from time to time? Lots of great direction, and hopeful information in today's show, this is an episode that every family needs to hear!! Join our Member Site today to take full advantage of Allies in Recovery’s program, including 8 video modules, three blogs, and dialogue with experts in the fields of treatment and recovery. Learn more here: https://alliesinrecovery.net/

When the first signs of addiction or substance abuse appear, our first reactions often revolve around denial, blame-shifting, shock. How do we as families, and a society, learn to see reality as it truly is? Why is it helpful to face the truth with clear eyes? How do we overcome or change these thoughts or beliefs on an individual, but also societal level? How can we be aware with out being paranoid or afraid? Laurie and Annie have both been there and have had time to look back and consider these important questions. Tune in for an interesting conversation... For unlimited access to Allies in Recovery's online learning platform featuring our 8 Video Modules, join today. Learn more here: https://alliesinrecovery.net/#benefits

Dominique Simon-Levine joins our hosts to provide a broader picture of what it looks and feels like when a loved one is using, or withdrawing. Gathering information and facts about your Loved One's substance use is one of the first steps that will allow you to apply the CRAFT method successfully. When you recognize signs of withdrawal/hangover, do you bring them soup? Help them to bed? Dominique Simon-Levine reminds us about the connections between moments of use, moments of withdrawal, and what CRAFT teaches the family to do. Annie also shares several real-life examples from families who have contacted her, wondering if what they were seeing were signs of use/relapse. Listen in for an information-filled, no-nonsense episode of Coming Up for Air! A membership at Allies in Recovery brings you into contact with experts in the fields of recovery and treatment for drug and alcohol issues. Our learning platform introduces you to CRAFT and guides you through the best techniques for unblocking the situation. Toge

Every family has secrets, but when secrets keep us stuck, in pain or operating out of a system of dysfunction, why do we keep them? When it comes to addiction, betrayal, mistreatment...why do those who are affected have a harder time talking about it than those in the grip of the behavior? Family—wives, partners, mothers, fathers, siblings etc.—tend to have a more difficult time being open about what is going on in the family than those afflicted, even though protecting the secret seems to be the barrier between healing and relief. Laurie and Annie deep dive into this subject. Laurie gives an example from her own childhood, of having tried to report unsettling behavior to a relative; rather than accepting and handling wrongful behavior, her aunt chose go silent, invalidating the truth of the story in order to avoid "rocking the boat" within the family. This pathology affects us all at some point. Listen in to this week's episode to hear some great thoughts to consider for living a shame-less, secret-free ex

Not only will you learn what Laurie hankers for that is both sweet and salty, or why other drivers are likely to honk at Annie in her car, but in this new podcast episode, you will hear your Coming Up for Air hosts as never before. You will learn more about their motivations for why they do the work they do, hear what they envisioned for their lives (or didn't) as children, and learn about their visions for a society that does a better job addressing the issues of addiction. You'll also hear an interesting exploration of self-care — why is there so much resistance across the board? Allies in Recovery's Content Editor, Isabel Cooney, invites Laurie MacDougall and Annie Highwater to spend half an hour in the guest seats! Join our Member Site today to take full advantage of Allies in Recovery’s program, including 8 video learning modules, three blogs, and dialogue with experts in the field of treatment and recovery. Learn more here. http://alliesinrecovery.net/#benefits

"I'm a college-educated white male. I'm the face of addiction!" declares Michael King. Addressing the way we speak about addiction, he explains "If we end the stories that we tell by just talking about the mess that addiction creates, we're doing a disservice to everybody out there who is looking for help.....I wanna shout from the rooftops that Guess What! We create mountains of mess and we can work through them and make amends for those things that we've done wrong...and then we have the ability to take that experience and try to use it to try to help other people..." This week's episode is full of hope and information as Laurie and Annie speak with Michael King, of Facing Addiction. Even offering his own contact information for families in need, Michael touches on his own descent into alcoholism, DUI's and professional embarrassment, and his own recovery. From his own recovery he moved into truly embracing the world of recovery, finding a newborn passion for helping others and extending the support system

When a Loved One suffers from addiction, part of the complicated web of emotions we experience involves feeling sorry for them. A Loved One struggling with the influence of drugs or alcohol is not in their "right mind," and can often play on those chords—inviting us to feel sorry for them, in order to extract from us what they need in that moment. As the family of a Loved One with SUD, we can also be vulnerable to feeling sorry for ourselves, given the high stress and heartache that are part of nearly every day. What are these feelings? Where do they come from? Is there anything to do about them, and can they be useful? Laurie and Annie dive into the topic with their usual passion and curiosity, giving examples from their own lives as well as helpful guidance. Tune in! A membership at Allies in Recovery brings you into contact with experts in the fields of recovery and treatment for drug and alcohol issues. Our learning platform introduces you to CRAFT and guides you through the best techniques for unblock

In today's episode Annie and Laurie touch on awareness being low when it comes to how many families are struggling with an addicted or chemically dependent Loved One. They discuss what to be aware of ahead of time versus becoming aware through a wake up call. From how addiction starts, what specific signs to look for, how each of them would have handled a few things different had they known a thing or two like they do now...and how to handle someone in your orbit, such as a coworker, neighbor, relative or friend, that may have this going on with their son, daughter or other Loved One.

In this week's podcast episode Annie and Laurie interview recently retired Judge Scott Vanderkarr, from Columbus, Ohio's Drug Court. Scott left the bench to spread the word about Drug Courts being needed in every court setting across the nation. With a background as a Prosecuting Attorney and his days as a judge, Scott did not expect to find himself affected by the opiate epidemic on a personal level. Tune in to hear his moving account of the close relationship he developed with a young man who later died of an overdose. Scott tells us about all he is currently doing to bring hope and change to families who are dealing with the crisis of addiction. A membership at Allies in Recovery brings you into contact with experts in the fields of recovery and treatment for drug and alcohol issues. Our learning platform introduces you to CRAFT and guides you through the best techniques for unblocking the situation. Together we will move your loved one towards recovery. Learn more here. http://alliesinrecovery.net/#benef

Your addicted loved one needs treatment. Motivation may not be great. You may have heard that the the family is powerless over the situation. Or you may be looking for a magic, instantaneous solution and fear that things are so dire that you don't have time to try anything "soft" or "gradual." Laurie and Annie, who have both successfully shepherded their loved ones into treatment, share how-to's for families facing this dilemma. Along with what worked well, they also point out what didn't. All the while acknowledging that different families need different solutions. Join the Allies in Recovery member site today for full, unlimited access to our e-learning platform, expert guidance, and the chance to connect with others in your situation. Learn more here. http://alliesinrecovery.net/#benefits

In this week's episode Laurie and Annie talk about those we know who seem content in misery, hanging pictures and inviting company down into their pit with them. Outside of being in the midst of trauma or grief, there are times we can decide not to see things negatively. Why do we return to situations we do nothing but complain about? This week's short podcast ends with a list from Psychology Today of symptoms and signs that one might be a "chronically unhappy person." Join our Member Site today to take full advantage of Allies in Recovery’s program, including 8 video modules, three blogs, and dialogue with experts in the fields of treatment and recovery. Learn more here. http://alliesinrecovery.net/#benefits