The Final Fix: an unflinching documentary investigating a radical, 49-year old technology that could change everything we know about addiction and recovery, with Director Norman Stone
If your son graduated from high school, was a nationally ranked tennis player, went to West Point, became an Army Ranger, served in Afghanistan, and went to law school, you might think all was good. But for Tripp Johnson, who achieved all of these markers of external success, life wasn't all good.
Tripp’s story takes us from sourcing drugs off the Dark Web to law school, a yoga mat, and ultimately, creating a whole-person focused treatment program for guys struggling with substance use.
human flourishing & unconventional recovery; finding personal fulfillment & challenging the status quo in addiction treatment, with Tripp Johnson
If your son graduated from high school, was a nationally ranked tennis player, went to West Point, became an Army Ranger, served in Afghanistan, and went to law school, you might think all was good. But for Tripp Johnson, who achieved all of these markers of external success, life wasn't all good.
Tripp’s story takes us from sourcing drugs off the Dark Web to law school, a yoga mat, and ultimately, creating a whole-person focused treatment program for guys struggling with substance use.
insurance coverage for substance use, addiction and mental health; parity, denials and tips for getting treatment covered, with Virginia Holleman
When Virginia Holleman's son finally entered in-patient treatment for his substance use, she thought things would get easier, especially since her company-sponsored insurance covered his treatment. Or so she thought. In this episode, you'll learn about the Federal Parity Act, what it means, how it's relevant to your situation, and what you can do to have the best chance at getting your child's treatment covered.
the importance of grief and grieving, and why we get it wrong most of the time, with Leslie Barber
Grief is right up there with politics, sex & religion as "things not to talk about" for a lot of people. And grief doesn't only apply to the impact of someone dying, it's much broader and impacts every single one of us...so why is it so taboo in our culture? Leslie Barber knows grief all too well after suddenly losing her husband to cancer, in this episode, shares thoughts for parents who are grieving the "normal" things that go along with raising teens when they veer off course and your now-normal looks very different from what you'd anticipated. Leslie also helps us understand what ambiguous and anticipatory grief is and why it's so relevant to parents of kids struggling with substance use.
hope for weary parents; from living in a park to helping re-build lives, with Mark Pepper
Parents of adult children who are living in active addiction are true warriors and if this describes you, this episode will give you hope and knowledge that people can and do recover - even if they're 39 years old, living in a park and eating from garbage cans. For parents of younger teens and adults, you will definitely want to hear what my guest, Mark Pepper, has to say about things his parents and family did that moved him toward recovery. They're things you can do no matter the age of your son or daughter or how long they've been using substances.
substance use, self-harm, anxiety, poor mental health: dangers of teens striving for perfection and achievement, with Stanford's Denise Pope, Ph.D.
To say that high school and college students today are under massive pressure to "succeed" would be an understatement and no one knows more about why that's true than Denise Pope, Ph.D., senior lecturer for Stanford's Graduate School of Education and co-founder of the non-profit, Challenge Success.
rethinking drinking when our kids struggle with substances; why and how you might consider a change, with Casey Davidson
This episode explores that sometimes uncomfortable topic of parents' drinking when they have a son or daughter struggling with substances, and provides non-judgemental information and ideas on how to make a change if you decide it’s right for you. It'll help you completely reframe how you think about alcohol's role in your life, and how this important change might be a big step in role-modeling healthy behavior and coping skills for your children.
a 2021 reality report from inside the walls of teen mental health and substance use treatment: are the kids ok?
The siblings. What's happening to our other kids when we have one struggling with lifestyle choices, substance use, or mental health issues? How are they being impacted? What do they know? What should they know, and when? I figured the best way to answer these questions would be to talk with my son, who watched his older brother go through "it" and share his thoughts; what he saw, how he felt, and the impact it's had on his life.
watching from the sidelines; a sibling's vantage point on his brother's risky lifestyle, drug use and recovery, with Marco Narciso
The siblings. What's happening to our other kids when we have one struggling with lifestyle choices, substance use, or mental health issues? How are they being impacted? What do they know? What should they know, and when? I figured the best way to answer these questions would be to talk with my son, who watched his older brother go through "it" and share his thoughts; what he saw, how he felt, and the impact it's had on his life.
shattering the youth treatment mold and getting real about drugs, alcohol and mental health, with Wes Robins & Zac Sweat of Eternal Strength
Wes Robins and Zac Sweat are passionate about helping young people heal and have opened a therapeutic healing center outside of Atlanta, GA to do just that. Eternal Strength Therapeutic Youth Center is an outpatient program without a program, where each client is met with a tailor-made set of activities and therapies that work best for them and their family.
what are CRAFT and harm reduction, and can they work with teens and young adults who are misusing drugs or alcohol, with Dee-Dee Stout
Dee-Dee Stout is a force to be reckoned with in the world of substance use treatment and specifically in the area of harm reduction. She’s in long-term recovery herself and is an author, coach, speaker and professor. In this episode, Dee-Dee shares much knowledge and wisdom from her work with families and organizations related to CRAFT, motivational interviewing and harm reduction. It’s a must-listen for parents who aren’t finding success with traditional treatment programs or who are just looking for ways to improve the communication between themselves and their child.
your child isn’t the patient: the role parents need to play when a teen or young adult is misusing drugs or alcohol, with Rebekah Tayebi
Rebekah Tayebi has been working with families in a variety of therapeutic settings for 18 years and has valuable insights for parents when they have a child who needs help with mental health issues or substance use. An important one is that your child isn't and shouldn't be identified as the "patient" or client. Listen in to hear why.
releasing trauma from your body; helping parents restore their health through trauma release exercise, with Ericka Thomas
You may not realize how much trauma your body is holding onto from the stress, anxiety, and fear you experience if your son or daughter is misusing substances or having mental health challenges. This episode takes a deep dive into what's happening in your body when you endure months, years, or even decades of trauma and how a very accessible exercise practice, TRE, can provide relief. My guest, Ericka Thomas introduces us to trauma release exercise in this deeply informative episode.
insider perspective, insights and harsh realities parents need to hear from a therapeutic educational consultant with Jennifer Taylor
In this direct, heart-to-heart discussion with Jennifer Taylor, a therapeutic educational consultant in the Bay Area, I ask the questions parents often have and get answers that can sometimes be difficult to hear. Jennifer helps families all over the country develop the right plan and placements that can help their children (teens and young adults) with everything from emotional and behavioral concerns to substance use. You may not like everything you hear, but it's critically important information as you work to help your child.
how can a therapist help parents when their child is misusing drugs or alcohol? every question you secretly want to ask, with Laura Richer, LMHCA CHt
Laura Richer is a therapist, coach, podcaster and lover of all things mental health. She spent time with me answering all the questions we have about whether or not having a therapist while our child is struggling with substance use or emotional issues will really help. We cover topics like trauma, EMDR, PTSD, marriage and relationships so it’ll be helpful to anyone curious about what a therapist might be able to help them with, without even having to see one.
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.
the Xanax episode: a critical conversation about the dangers of benzodiazepine abuse and addiction with Dr. Nzinga Harrison
Dr. Nzinga Harrison is back for another vitally important conversation, this time focusing on benzodiazepines and Xanax in particular. Parents who have a son or daughter who's experimenting with substances must listen to this eye-opening and informative episode where Dr. Harrison and I discuss all-things-benzo's.
Uprooting Addiction, Healing From The Ground Up: a film that explores the connection between trauma and addiction, with Hope Payson and Daryl McGraw
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.
how to help your other kids deal with their sibling's drug or alcohol use, with Nicole Kosanke, Ph.D. and Krissy Pozatek
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.
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.