Straight stuff on addictions

He grew up in the City.  It wasn’t easy.  His first run at sobriety was at the Northwest Edge Alano club but between not being ready and the “marijuana maintenance program” it didn’t last long.  His second run was after the fateful “three point turn DUI” in Champaign Illinois.  With tragic losses in and out of sobriety Johnny is a miracle.  Join us this week for a story of tragedy and transformation.

The U.S. has been a leader in medicine, the humane treatment of mental health and more recently addiction however we approach treatment from the perspective of our own particular needs.  Other countries approach their mental health and addiction issues with their own needs and cultural parameters.  Join us this week as we speak to Dr. Elizabeth Nyang  Ed.D LCPC about her practice here in the U.S. and her recent experiences with mental health and addiction treatment in India.

Rachael was drinking shots at thirteen.  In high school she could drink most of the boys under the table and was proud to be a party girl…it was her identity.  Empty and scared inside but able to tell no one her secrets she marched off to therapy for years but skipped the alcohol part.  After some years of hard drinking she met a sober friend and the journey to recovery began.  Rachael's happiness and gratitude is infectious.  Join us this week to catch it.

Pot wasn’t much of an issue; neither were pills. Boyfriends were largely to blame, she thought.  When he started selling and later using heroin she joined him blaming him for her use.  Later when he started using heroin IV she angrily felt like he was leaving her out and joined him….for years.  He died of an overdose and she began the journey to get well.  Multiple treatments and many bumps in the road later she’s sober and happy.

He was the youngest of eleven so that was the reason he drank?  Nahhhh…he drank because he didn’t know a better way to deal with life.  He used because he was an alcoholic and a drug addict.  It’s just the way it was done where he came from.  He drank because he suffered through a number of family deaths?  Nahhh…he drank because it was all he knew and by the time he wanted to stop he couldn’t.  He wasn’t foolin’ around; crack and whiskey were his DOC.  Listen in this week to Duane M., as he talks about his transformation from a rough street guy to a better man.

Join us for a lively discussion with Ray Chlebicki, the former national sales manager for Roxand Labs, one of the three largest manufacturers of methadone.  Methadone, originally a drug developed by the Germans during the Second World War as a synthetic opiate pain reliever, has been used in this country both as a pain reliever and as a substitution therapy for heroin addiction.  Many have found successful recovery and others vehemently disagree with its use for this purpose.  Ray will offer us some history, some facts and debunk some myths.

 Some people can travel quite a few miles before the “ism” catches up with them.  Taking all things into consideration I would have to say our guest ran about as fast and as far in front of the tsunami as anyone I know. But as Mark will tell you, you can’t run fast enough or far enough to outrun alcoholism.  Having bopped around the US, joining the military and “seeing the world” marrying a Brit and living abroad, Mark did his share of “dodging the bullet” but eventually the wave caught up.  Join us this week to hear from, “the travelin’ man”.

Our guest this week is Chris Gleason.  Chris is a nationally recognized substance abuse treatment professional who specializes in working with adolescents.  He’ll tell us how treatment works and the things parents can do.  We’ll talk about the developing adolescent brain, the disease concept and how adolescent development and addiction interact.  This is a must hear show for families dealing with questions about how to handle a substance abusing teen and want the inside story on how treatment can work.

Some say that addiction is an attempt to fill an emptiness inside. Many with addictive disease say that they never felt like they were enough; that they never fit in or belonged even if, to all appearances they were popular, successful and happy.  Our guest is one such person who despite outward success always felt he had “a hole to fill”.   “Good” was not enough and “best” was only a temporary fix.  Steve had to have “More”.

If sustaining a relationship isn't hard enough these days throw in the need to recover from both sides of the addictive disease.  Our guests are John and Lori, a "recovering couple" who've been together many years and have been in recovery a long time as well.  They'll share how they have come to terms not only with their own addictions but each other, how they've faced individual growth, adversities and changes.  They'll share how they've "worked the program" in their marriage. 

News Flash: Big disagreement over Legality of Marijuana.  Join us this Sunday for a lively discussion about the relative merits or lack thereof of our friend cannabis sativa.  Chris and I will take opposing sides of an argument that spans subjects from medical benefits to long term physical and emotional effects, from legality and decriminalization to morality; from social norms to addiction treatment implications.

He came in kicking and screaming.  He wasn’t anywhere close to an easy convert, in fact, it might have been a gaggle of ferocious resentments at people in the program that kept him coming back if only to prove them wrong.  He describes himself as “off the charts” in the area of analytical thinking and control and admits it’s a miracle that he stayed sober.  He’ll tell you that he’s “learned to trust the process” and that self-knowledge got him nowhere.  Join us this week as we talk to Ed H.

 In his world drinking wasn’t a problem it was a way of life.  The question was never whether or not to drink but only how well you managed the drinking. Traumatic events in his teens led to withdrawal from relationships, more drinking and an early visit to AA.  Later further drinking helped to end a marriage which led to another more serious visit to AA. Shortly after the visit began, however, he started the “marijuana maintenance program”, hiding it from everyone.  After nearly four years of duckin’ and dodgin’ he’d had enough and got clean.  Join us this week to welcome David C.

Our guest this week has the personal experience to know the power of recovery.  His own time in the barrel gave him the sensitivity, the knowledge and the skills to intervene in the disease process largely in the lives of young opiate and benzo addicts. Brian J. has learned and has much to offer about the “science of addiction” and the importance of neuroscience in the recovery process.  He travels widely providing intervention services to select families and has extensive experience in developing and operating recovery homes.  Join us this week in welcoming Brian J.

Welcome to our second annual Holiday Show.  Join us to talk to Scott D. about Christmases past in the "not so good old days" and how he manages a joyful and sober Christmas present.  We'll also feature some live music and conversation with our old friend Russell T.