a ninja parenting tool for dramatically more calm and productive conversations with a child who’s misusing drugs or alcohol, with Brenda Zane
This is a lighter-than-usual episode to get you thinking about ways you can apply radical self-care and take control of events, people and things that cause friction in your life. If you have a child who's misusing substances, you probably spend too little time on yourself and have more than enough friction, so now's the time to change all that.
unapologetic, radical self-care to make life better when your child is misusing drugs or alcohol; a lighter episode, with Brenda Zane
This is a lighter-than-usual episode to get you thinking about ways you can apply radical self-care and take control of events, people and things that cause friction in your life. If you have a child who's misusing substances, you probably spend too little time on yourself and have more than enough friction, so now's the time to change all that.
my experience & relationship with stress, trauma, food, pain and healing; an interview on The Work IN podcast
I'm excited to share this episode of The Work IN podcast where I was fortunate enough to have a conversation with Erika Thomas, founder of Elemental Kinetics and talk about my experiences and relationship with stress, trauma, food, pain, An-Anon, family, triggers, exercise and more! We often find ourselves in physical pain, mentally exhausted, and generally unhealthy when we have a child misusing drugs or alcohol. At one point I wondered if I was just getting old or if there was really something medically wrong with me. It's confusing and you need to know it's normal - which is why taking care of yourself is one of the most important things you can do to help your child.
a special episode: in the grip
I believe it's important to humanize the faceless statistics you see in the news about those struggling with substance use and addiction - the people are real, the families are real, and each has its own distinct story. The impact is massive and is made up of millions of individual tragedies. While I take a short break I'm sharing this special project with you, a short collection of writings called "In The Grip." These are 20 short chapters that drop you directly into our lives, hospital rooms, and conversations during a 30 day period when my son experienced two (non-fatal) overdoses in 2017.
the 5 stages of why and how your child decides to change and what to do at each stage, with Brenda Zane
If you watch your child do harmful things and they don't see them as a problem, they waffle with ambivalence about what they're doing, start and stop behaviors over and over and also struggle with relapse, this is your episode
when life feels unfair: staying away from victim mentality when your child is misusing drugs or alcohol, with Brenda Zane
There's no doubt that life can feel very unfair when your days and nights become consumed with your child's substance use issues, whether they're just experimenting or in active addiction. We wonder what it would be like to not have a large portion of our hearts and heads filled with worry, doubt, concern and resentment.
This short, personal episode may help you reframe these feelings, while not discounting them or making you feel guilty for having them. You'll discover ways to honor the difficulties in your life while also keeping them in their place and finding joy and peace through the chaos.
dear friends and family, this is what i need you to know; a shareable episode to open conversations, with Brenda Zane
It can be really hard to tell friends, family members, and co-workers about your situation if you have a child who's misusing substances - first, you're too exhausted to talk about it, also, they probably won't really understand the nuances and depth of the confusion, fear, and helplessness you feel. I created this episode as one you can share with those people in your life who need to know what's going on but you're having a hard time getting the words out.
four counterintuitive things to do when you're overwhelmed by your child's substance use or emotional challenges, with Brenda Zane
In this solo episode, I share four counterintuitive things that can help when you get to the point where you don't know what to do and are paralyzed and feeling helpless. Getting yourself unstuck and encouraged is an important part of helping your son or daughter, so take a short break, dog walk or drive around the neighborhood and soak up some love and hope from today's show.
what to do with the guilt and regret when your child is experimenting with or addicted to drugs or alcohol, with Brenda Zane
There are some common emotions parents feel when they have a child who's misusing drugs or alcohol, and two of those are guilt and regret. This episode will provide you with a way to use these feelings to actually improve your current situation and your future. I'll share three steps to take when you're carrying the heavy burden of the past so you don't have to drag it around anymore.
everything you need to know about medications like Suboxone, methadone and Vivitrol for opioid addiction treatment, with Lauren Hoffman, Ph.D.
Who's confused about using medication to treat opioid addiction? For parents who have an adolescent or young adult child struggling with opioid use, medication could be a viable option but there's confusion around it and information can be hard to find. In a deep-dive conversation, Dr. Lauren Hoffman and I covered a lot of ground to answer all the questions.
why your child’s substance use makes perfect sense and four helpful strategies when they’re not open to change, with Brenda Zane
This episode will give you an alternative view to your child's substance use that might create more space for empathy and an understanding of why they continue in high-risk behaviors. I'll share four helpful things you can do when your child isn't showing signs of wanting to change what they're doing and you're pulling your hair out.
getting kids un-stuck from failure to launch mode with Mark McConville, Ph.D., author
If you're nodding your head at the term "failure to launch" this is the episode for you. Dr. Mark McConville is a psychologist and author of THE book "Failure to Launch, Why Your 20-Something Hasn't Grown Up and What To Do About It." His work over the course of 30 years has shown him that there are some common themes and traits that cause kids to stall or skid out as they move toward becoming independent, healthy, and well-adjusted young adults.
the hidden goldmine of help for parents of kids with substance use disorder with The Partnership to End Addiction's Denise Mariano
As the mom of a son who struggled with addiction, including eight relapses, Denise Mariano can empathize with parents at every step on the spectrum of having a child who's misusing drugs and alcohol. She’s the Director of Family Support and Advocacy at The Partnership to End Addiction where she and her team help tens of thousands of families each year with services like a parent help-line, online learning curriculum, in-depth guides and kits, parent-coaching, and online parent support groups. And did I mention it's all FREE?
three formulas to neutralize negativity and foster motivation in teens with substance use issues, with Brenda Zane
You've probably been there - that moment when something unexpected or horrible happens and you feel yourself reacting in a highly emotional way. It might be finding the stash of weed or empty vodka bottles - whatever it is, it sets you into panic mode and you're not sure what to do. This episode is a short but practical one to help you in those exact moments when the "thing" has happened and you need to handle it, but don't know how.
a quick way to gain control when crisis hits with Brenda Zane
You've probably been there - that moment when something unexpected or horrible happens and you feel yourself reacting in a highly emotional way. It might be finding the stash of weed or empty vodka bottles - whatever it is, it sets you into panic mode and you're not sure what to do. This episode is a short but practical one to help you in those exact moments when the "thing" has happened and you need to handle it, but don't know how.
a simple parenting tool that helped save my sanity and influenced my addicted son with Brenda Zane
Every once in a while something comes along and works, and you're shocked because life can feel like an endless series of failures when your teen or young adult child is misusing substances. When I found the CRAFT method of parenting a child in addiction, I was skeptical because it seemed too simple - but sometimes simple is what you need. This episode will introduce you to one of the tools in the CRAFT method toolbox which is incredibly simple to incorporate into your day to day life and can significantly improve the overall tone and relationship with your son or daughter.
golden nuggets from 2020: a wrap-up of wisdom, insights and emotion from 41 episodes with Brenda Zane
Welcome to a wrap of 2020! This episode features snippets from 11 guests who, over the course of 2020 shared their knowledge, wisdom and stories for us to learn from. It's a long one so grab a cup of something warm and cozy and listen in to these amazing golden nuggets from Hopestream's first season
re-building communication with a child misusing drugs or alcohol: words matter, with Brenda Zane
If the communication with your son or daughter who's misusing drugs or alcohol has broken down significantly, or if you're just trying to understand them better and are getting shut down with your attempts at talking, this is your episode. Because our kids are stressing us out and living a dangerous lifestyle, we tend to focus all our communication on their problems and on trying to get them to change. Unfortunately, without some careful intention, we can actually shut down the chance that we'll have a healthy, productive conversation at all.
when your sibling has substance use issues; finding sanity and practicing self-care, with Tina Jayes
I think one of the most important things is you have to talk about these things as much as you can, whether it's to a therapist, whether it's to each other. I mean, when you carry this stuff around, it just is a big heavy burden and you don't even know what it is. But if it was happening to my family now, I would hope to talk to the siblings and give them some information and give them coping tools because that would have been really helpful instead of acting like nothing was happening.