I Was the Daughter and Partner of a Porn Addict Anonymous “If your partner or child tells you that your use of porn is causing them harm, it might be harmful for you too.” People with substance use disorder are increasingly recovering out loud, but when it comes to...
We are so excited to share this guest post by Ester Nicholson. Ester is a recovery coach, author, speaker and recording artist. You can find more about her and her work at her website, esternicholson.com. You can also listen to this post, and the beautiful prayer she...
I’ve come to know and believe that each of us has a soul message that only we can share, and if we don’t discover this message, the world misses out on a beautiful offering. Our message is within us when we are created, and although our childhood and other life...
Guest Blog Post by Lucy Rocca Exactly six years ago, I drank my last alcoholic drink. It was a bottle of strong cider (I didn’t even like cider but had found it lurking in my fridge), and I consumed it on top of the three bottles of wine that I’d been working my way...
Guest Blog Post by Caroline McGraw Oh honey, I know what you’re like. You are a driven, high-achieving woman trying so very hard to be perfect. You have a staggering helping of responsibilities on your plate. You’re the conscientious planner, the purposeful...
GUEST BLOG POST BY CHELSEY SILVERIA, LCSW (CLEARVIEW TREATMENT PROGRAMS) Has a therapist ever suggested PE therapy for you? Have you ever felt unsure about what that means and the potential impact or usefulness of this therapy? PE stands for Prolonged Exposure....
GUEST POST BY CAROLINE BLACK Most of us recovering from addiction are open to the idea of accessing extra help. Regardless of whether we need constant or occasional help, having access to innovative resources and tools can only be a good thing. If you need help...
Relapse is common in early recovery from drug or alcohol abuse. Many long-term alcoholics and drug addicts fail the first time they attempt to quit. This is because the intense cravings experienced by substance abusers are actually due to changes in brain chemistry....
I felt the crack split slowly beneath my feet as it gave way and I plunged into the deep freezing water. Grab my camera! I shouted as the weight of my wool coat got heavy and my body began to sink into the lake. I looked up at my friend Rae standing just a few feet...
“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” – Will Durant (American Philosopher and Historian) “Habit is the intersection of knowledge (what to do), skill (how to do), and desire (want to do).” – Stephen Covey (The 7...
The baby is crying, the dog is barking, your husband is snoring, and you look over at the clock and realize you went to bed just five hours ago. You grab the baby; let the dog out, and sleepwalk to the coffee pot. The dishes from the night before are still piled high...
Years ago when I heard people got massages, or went to meditation, or took a “me” day I would scoff. How do they have time or money to do that? Seems like a complete waste of time to me. No one takes bubble baths in their 20s. Sure a massage might be nice, but it’s a...
No matter how far down the road to recovery I go, I find myself from time to time, in a hole. Or, I notice that I am acting out in behaviors that are unhelpful to me. When these things become apparent to me I nearly always discover it’s because my balance is...
We don’t break habits; we replace behaviours. This truth is at the heart of everything I have done since getting sober. From the moment my drinking life finally came crashing down around me, I have gone about the business of creating an entirely different...
Prayer of St. Francis Lord, make me a channel of thy peace! That where there is hatred, I may bring love. That where there is wrong, I may bring the spirit of forgiveness. That where there is discord, I may bring harmony. That where there is error, I may bring truth....
Unless you have personally witnessed a loved one suffer from alcoholism, it’s very difficult to identify the characteristics of an alcoholic. If I was to ask you to identify the female alcoholic in a lineup of 10 people, it would be impossible. Alcoholics come in all...
It’s probably true that when most of us think about people addicted to drugs, the pictures that pop up are of younger or middle-aged persons, not seniors. Indeed, most people and service agencies focus on addiction as experienced by the younger generations. Often,...
It is the morning of August 1st, 2002. I am 29 years old. As I lie in the fetal position, shaking and sobbing uncontrollably, I wonder how the hell my life will ever, ever go on without alcohol. I know I have to stop. My life has fallen apart. I know I have no choice....
On April 22nd 2011 I had a much-needed moment of clarity. Somehow, I finally realized that as much I had been suffering from my addiction – the people around me who loved me were suffering more, and that included my own son. All that my beloved child wanted was an...
I had the honor and privilege of studying Spiritual Psychology when I was 6 months sober. It was a 2 year Master’s Degree program that catapulted my recovery into full gear. By learning the principles of Spiritual Psychology, I was able to change my thinking and...
I’m going to tell you a story that, in all the years I’ve been writing about addiction and recovery, I’ve never published anywhere. It’s the backstory to my new book, Sex in Recovery. Two or three years into sobriety, it became impossible for me to take my clothes...
GUEST POST BY ALAINA BASKERVILLE-BRIDGES Last night my thirteen-year-old daughter’s Snapchat app bumped her out of her account. She clomped down the stairs to the living room where I had just settled in to watch the second season of Homeland on Netflix, and she thrust...
GUEST POST BY JOLENE PARK CN, CHC, RYT 200 Have you ever stopped drinking for a couple of weeks or months and then fallen off the wagon, beaten yourself up, and wondered why you can’t stick with it? Or, have you stopped drinking, but used other addictive substances or...
Very early in my recovery I came to understand and accept that my life had become completely unmanageable and it was falling apart because of my addictions. I saw – finally and clearly – that regardless of all the reasons or excuses for why I had ended up in that...
Shelly Dimitrijevic’s professional and philanthropic activities have always focused on improving the lives of others. She began her nursing career at Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital in St. Louis and went on to become a LifeFlight nurse specializing in neonatal, pediatric, and cardiovascular intensive care.
Shelly has been involved with numerous charities focusing on children and education including the Charlee and the Chocolate Factory gala, The Venus Orbit, Design For A Cure, Jackson Memorial, and Impact Oasis. In 2010 she founded the Lotus program, a program that focused on educating parents on the nutritional needs of children and basic child development. Shelly also served on the Frost Science Museum gala committee for 7 years before Co-Chairing the event in 2015.
After a diagnosis of Celiac disease and subsequently receiving Certification as a Nutritional Consultant, Shelly recognized that topically applied products have an effect on her Celiac Disease and overall health. She turned her focus to developing skincare that was free of toxic and hormone-disrupting ingredients.
Since she lost her only sibling in 2012 Shelly has been determined to find a way to contribute to the recovery community in a way that can make a great impact and ensure that others have the resources necessary when they are struggling.
Shelly's substantial contributions to SHE RECOVERS of both time and resources have been instrumental and deeply appreciated.
As a result of being introduced to SHE RECOVERS through retreats and meet-ups, Kirsten will be starting her yoga teacher training in the fall. These retreats also led her to become more deeply involved with SHE RECOVERS in a volunteer capacity. Kirsten was instrumental in setting up some of the Foundation's grassroots groups and currently volunteers her time helping SHE RECOVERS Foundation to design and implement the Volunteer Chapter Network.
Kirsten and her husband recently moved from Southern California to Roswell, Georgia to be closer to Kirsten's sister and two young nieces. When she isn't spending time being an aunt, you can find Kirsten hanging out with their rescue Labrador or exploring their new state.
Mary Beth is a founding member of SHE RECOVERS Support for Legal Professionals and is active at the local level with SHE RECOVERS in the Bay Area. Mary Beth has been living a sober life in recovery for over 26 years. She also has a history of trauma and abuse, from which she’s worked hard to recover as well. 6 years into her recovery, Mary Beth attended Berkeley Law. She worked at a large firm in Silicon Valley, then litigated class actions for the federal government. In 2014 Mary Beth was appointed an Administrative Law Judge. She recently retired, so she could devote her time to completing her writing and being more active in the recovery community.
She regularly speaks on behalf of LifeRing and develops relationships with organizations supportive of the multiple pathways approach. In August 2020, Mary Beth had an op-ed published in the Wall Street Journal, I Beat Addiction without God, where she described building a personal recovery plan by combining ideas from LifeRing, Women for Sobriety, and Narcotics Anonymous. In November 2020 she had an op-ed published in the Philadelphia Inquirer, I was a federal judge, and I support Safehouse. Here’s why. She is currently working on a full-length memoir.
Taryn Strong is a founder of SHE RECOVERS® Foundation as well as a trauma-informed yoga instructor, recovery coach, aromatherapist, and herbalist (and daughter to Mama Dawn). Taryn has developed a unique yoga retreat program and led over 40 yoga for recovery retreats since 2012. She is also the host of the SHE RECOVERS Podcast and most recently created and taught the inaugural trauma-informed SHE RECOVERS Yoga Teacher Training Program. Operating from a trauma-informed lens and a firm believer in anti-oppressive practices, Taryn brings an empathic and invitational approach to healing - empowering women to find and follow individualized pathways and patchworks of recovery.
Taryn's courageous vulnerability and passion for recovering out-loud has made her an influential voice in the global recovery movement - smashing the stigma often associated with substance use and mental health issues. Taryn creates and lives with her beloved and two dogs within the ancestral and unceded traditional territory of the Hul’qumi’num and SENĆOŦEN speaking peoples (Saltspring Island).
Susan is an architect of hope and healing with over 30 years of experience in providing executive-level leadership to heart-centered teams in the non-profit realm. Since joining SHE RECOVERS® Foundation as Executive Director in April 2020, Susan continues to weave her experience with her passion to help other women receive what she has been so graciously given – long-term recovery from substance use disorder, body image issues, codependency, perfectionism, and moral injury.
Susan’s work in the treatment industry quickly revealed how stigma kept women struggling with mental health issues and addiction from seeking help, and the lack of resources available to them once they did. Having served as a founding employee of Susan G. Komen for the Cure for 20 years, playing an integral role in creating the global grassroots movement that changed the way breast cancer is talked about and treated, she felt called to utilize that experience to do the same for women struggling with mental health and substance use disorders.
Celebrating more than 27 years of continuous sobriety, Susan is a Certified Peer Support Worker (CPSW) in the state of New Mexico to provide resources and peer support to those in or seeking recovery. She lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico with her fur family of four, Alex, Chaco, Bodhi, and Gracie.
Dawn Nickel, Founder of SHE RECOVERS® Foundation, is a thought leader in the women's recovery sphere as well as an accomplished leader, dedicated researcher, and visionary in the recovery moment. She holds a Ph.D. in health care policy with extensive experience in researching and writing about women experiencing substance use disorders, mental health challenges, and intimate partner violence. Dawn started her own journey of recovery from a substance use disorder and domestic violence in 1987. She is also in recovery from anxiety, grief, trauma, overworking, and cancer. Dawn's tell-it-like-it-is wisdom has created a ripple effect where you will often hear her quotes "the shit you did is just the shit you did - it's not who you are" and "recovering from all the things" resonating throughout many recovery realms.
Currently working on her first book, Dawn is living proof that in a world where all women in or seeking recovery are celebrated, supported, and deemed essential to healthy communities - anything is possible. She is fondly referred to as Mama Dawn in the SHE RECOVERS Community and to her daughters Taryn and Ashley. Dawn lives, works, and plays with her beloved grandchildren on the traditional territories of the Lkwungen speaking peoples on Vancouver Island.
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