Virtual Treatment Gets the Job Done
Time for your treatment group meeting? Plop down in your favorite spot at home, get on Zoom, and you’re there. Virtual counseling for people in non-residential addiction treatment is the current norm and will likely be commonplace even when COVID-19 is tamed. This at-home treatment option has plenty of benefits, according to both patients and …
My Step One Story
Frost lined the edges of the porch windows one morning in February, 1996. My daughter had left for school. As I put milk back in the refrigerator, I noticed ice had built up on the coils again. The refrigerator was an older model and needed to be defrosted the old-fashioned way. I’d just done that …
What Do You Know About Dope?
The following is part one in a series from author, George Lewis. Opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily the views of The Phoenix Spirit. The country now called the United States of America was originally not a country but thirteen colonies, ruled by British law, policy and politics. The American Revolutionary War, which …
Recovery Month in the Time of COVID-19
September is National Recovery Month, a time for us at the Department of Human Services (DHS) to celebrate people’s journey to recovery from substance use disorder and mental illness. There’s a lot for us to celebrate. Most people who enter chemical dependency treatment complete it and show considerable improvement, according to the National Institute on …
Looking on the Brighter Side of Things: It’ll Likely Save Your Life
“It’s not things but how we think of things that makes us happy.” — Epictetus (Greek Philosopher, 50-135 AD) Let’s suppose you are struggling with a significant life challenge. Perhaps you’re thinking about finishing your college degree and going back to school, are in the grips of an addiction and contemplating getting help for your …
Ask the Expert: George Lewis of Motivational Consulting, Inc.
We’ll feature an expert in the mental health and substance use disorder field to answer questions Q: What does “bami soro” mean, and how can it be helpful for people in recovery? In the Yoruba language of the West African ancestors of many Black Americans, bami soro means “talk to me,” in a way that’s …
Connecting and Reconnecting
“We are like islands in the sea, separate on the surface but connected in the deep.” William James I sit on my porch, morning coffee in hand, watching light expand as the sun rises above the horizon. In those first rays I catch the glint of fresh spiderwebs. They connect marigolds to basil in porch …
Maybe When You’re Angry, You’re Not Really Angry
Something very humbling happened to me this past week. It’s really shaken me. Our son, Isaac, periodically has meltdowns at school that seem to come out of the blue. He swears and yells at other kids over innocuous things and can’t calm down. As a result, he loses friends and is often on the outside …
Recovering Artists Hit the Street
Two active artists in recent protests tell of mixing painting with addiction recovery. For years, Cybin was deep into heroin and coke. He felt all their effects. On a wintry day, he was on the verge of suicide. He imagined his body slamming onto the ice below the Lake Street bridge. Eventually Cybin got clean, …
To Love Than be Loved
When I was ten years old, my mother gave birth to my youngest sister. Afterwards, she was dead for about eight minutes until the doctors brought her back to life. I was there for my sister’s birth and there afterwards, through all the pain and frantic decisions my parents made following that day. When I …