Monthly Archives: July 2008

The Man I Never Met

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Somebody special came my way a long time ago and I’m now realizing, again, how special he was. I had noticed him several times before, but on this particular night, at this not-too-particular AA meeting, he appeared different to me and different from others present. An aura of peace seemed to surround him — offering up the appearance of a man at one with his God.

I had been attending this meeting most Wednesday nights for over a year, and this was to be the last time. I was relocating out of state the following Saturday and I had already started making up my mind that when I moved, I would cut back my meetings to one or two a week, maybe just one, instead of the four or five I had been attending in this, my first year in AA. I had yet to let my sponsor know, if indeed I would. After all, he wasn’t moving with me. … AA Grapevine Current Issue

Cuts for Drug Treatment

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Letter – Cuts for Drug Treatment – Letter – NYTimes.com

Gov. Rod Blagojevich of Illinois recently cut $55 million for state substance abuse treatment and prevention programs. That amount, with the resulting loss of federal matching money, represents half of the state’s treatment and prevention budget.

Given that only 10 percent of teenagers who need drug treatment receive it, cuts like these mean that thousands more adolescents will have no place to go for treatment.

Cocaine addiction linked to cellular memory

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UCSF News Office – Cocaine addiction linked to voluntary drug use and cellular memory, UCSF study shows

“We know that environmental cues are significant in many addictions, including tobacco and alcohol, and contribute to relapses,” Bonci said. “This study identifies the specific neuronal process involved and helps explain relapse even after rehabilitative therapy or long-term abstinence.”

Oxford House Provides A Safe Place For Recovery

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Lopez, 45, has alienated family members, lost jobs, been evicted from homes and wound up in a hospital detox unit. Along the way, he’s had stints of sobriety lasting as long as a year.

“I’ve been in the recovery process for about 10 1 /2 years, which is another way of saying I’ve been relapsing for about that long,” Lopez said. “The difference this time is what I’m willing to do.”

ADDICTION: Finding refuge for recovery | NewsOK.com

Well, maybe…

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I’d have been more impressed if they’d mentioned the names of the herbs…

After spending 27 years as a drug addict, Tang Ngoc San stumbled upon a natural remedy that helped him, and later others, end their slavery to the illegal substance.

For Dao people in Pu Quan region, in Pu Nhi Commune, Muong Lat District, Thanh Hoa Province, consuming drugs was an integral part of their lives, particularly during festivals. Opium was always considered an “asset” of the locals in the far-flung mountainous area.

In the distant past, the region was covered by poppy fields and people living there were familiar with the smell from the time they were born. According to local police, there were more than 380 drug addicts in Muong Lat in 2005. San was one of them.

Viet Nam News

California Bars Restaurant Use of Trans Fats

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In addition to increasing the risk of heart disease and obesity, t-f’s have been implicated as triggers for binge eating.

California Bars Restaurant Use of Trans Fats – NYTimes.com

Under the new law, restaurants, bakeries, delicatessens, cafeterias and other businesses classified as “food facilities” will, in the preparation of any foods, have to discontinue use of oils, margarine and shortening containing trans fats.

Am I an addict?

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You try beer, booze or pot, maybe cocaine, whatever. It feels good. Youprogress from doing it only at parties or with lovers and/or friends.Now you occasionally have a drink and light up when you are alone. Usebecomes customary: maybe a drink or two before dinner, TGIF, Saturdaynight becomes party night … so do the other nights too … and you nolonger are someone who drinks at meals or social celebrations. Now youare someone who drinks, period.

That oft-asked question: Am I an addict?

See also:

What About The Way I Drink?

The Creative Theory of Recovery

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The Spiritual River is an excellent resource for those just becoming acquainted with the recovery process IMNSHO. Here’s a recent entry…

The Creative Theory of Recovery from Addiction

The creative theory of recovery is the idea that we need to actively and purposefully create a new life in recovery from addiction.

It’s the idea that we need to replace our passion for drugs and booze with a passion for something else.

The creative theory of recovery works well with 12 step programs such as AA or NA. However, those programs only constitute one possible path to the creative life….there are certainly other ways.

Here is a list of what the creative life in recovery entails. This is just a taste of things to come, I will expand on these much more later on:

God, or Whatever

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Boy Grows Up shares the following on his blog. An interesting take on religion, well-stated:

Tonight at dinner my partner and I had a fascinating discussion about God. Now, he has never been a believer in God, and has admitted to condescending attitudes toward those who do. His attitude has been that belief in God “is what some people need to feel OK about themselves.”

I, on the other hand, spent most of my life as a fundamentalist Christian who until 10 years ago believed that “every word of the Bible is literally true and written by men directed by God.”

And I spent years holding condemnatory attitudes about people who did NOT believe in the exact flavor of God that I believed in. So on the surface, we could never have been a couple.

Except for the fact that by the time he and I met, I long ago had abandoned any faith in a Higher Power, so our essential “spiritual” viewpoint was the same. Which is to say, none. Until…

Boy Grows Up: God, or Whatever

Who Are The “Winners?”

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by Bill

Around the 12-step rooms we are frequently told that we should not “take another person’s inventory,” often used in the sense that we ought not criticize another person’s program. The rationale behind such statements seems to be the fear that since (presumably) that person is doing the best they can, it might be bad for their recovery to tell them to their face what we believe they are doing wrong.

While this is no doubt true (addicts and alcoholics of every stripe being less than fond of criticism), it is certainly within the purview of their sponsors — although it should be handled diplomatically and with consideration for the individual’s issues, length of sobriety and other factors. The rest of us would probably serve them best by keeping our less-informed opinions to ourselves, since speaking from ignorance can lead to grievous error. That is why we share OUR experience, strength and hope, with no cross-talk.

We need also to avoid gossip, one of the favorite pastimes of people with poor recovery skills.

However, this does not imply that we should not take inventories at all. Continue reading →

…in a relationship that fills me with pain, anxiety and restlessness

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The trouble with these sorts of relationships is that often those who escape them end up back in another just like it. We seek the familiar, not realizing that we are conditioned to do so.

Superb article!

Aunt Sally: I am 30 and in a relationship that fills me with pain, anxiety and restlessness – Times Online

I am 30 and in a relationship that fills me with pain, anxiety and restlessness. When we met, it was glorious — I couldn’t believe how intelligent, funny and loving he was. Then we got to know each other. He became angry, distant and domineering, but I was so insanely in love,