The littlest Victims of Addiction

There has to be a better way to help babies born with addictions to opiods. My grandson was born 6 days ago and has been in the NICU since Tuesday night. His mother and my son are both being treated with methadone, good for them but not so good for this little guy. He was

Autumn, Season of New Paths

Autumn is almost here. It’s the season of pumpkin everything! Either you love it or you don’t but wherever you look you’ll soon be seeing the signs of the changing season. I enjoy Autumn almost as much as hot summer days. Autumn gives you the chance to bundle up, take hayrides, carve pumpkins, peruse local

Life Begins Again

Wow! And life begins again. Today my son and fiance had a little baby boy. He was only 4lbs 14 1/2 oz. Just a little peanut. This family has been the inspiration my son has needed to stay clean. Right now this is enough. He has a 2 year old, a newborn and a 8

Repost – What you learn from loving an addict

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/Alicia-cook/what-you-learn-from-lovin_b_8112240.html What You Learn From Loving An Addict By Alicia Cook Cook, seen here in Point Pleasant, NJSeptember is National Recovery Month.* I am not an addict. But try and love one, and then see if you can look me square in the eyes and tell me that you didn’t get addicted to trying to

Brainstorming 100+ Sober and Fun Activities

Here are 150+ ideas for your weekend. It’s always helpful to get some ideas, a place to start, when you’re just not sure what to do. So here you go, Print this out and Check them off as you go and most importantly have FUN!! 1. Read a book about a place you’d like to

Defying Manipulation

The only time he calls is when he needs something from me. This morning I did not respond to his text message of “call me”. Why should I? It’s so frustrating. I would love if he called or texted and just said, “Hey Mom, just checking in, hope everything is ok, can I do anything

Definition of Relapse

This week we lost a close friend of the family. It wasn’t from an overdose or a car accident. It was from untreated and unknown stage 4 cancer. Our friend went into the hospital 2 weeks ago and found out how sick she was and she’s now gone. Life just isn’t fair sometimes. She was

Sunflowers

Sunflowers. They seem to bring a smile to everyone’s face. They are a very cheery flower that can brighten everyone’s day. Seeing a huge field of them only makes it that much more uplifting. When you admire them you think of the beautiful photo I took, front facing, bright yellow, sun shining, everything that’s makes

Addiction and Stress on Others

Addiction hurts everyone, not just the addict. Addiction has far reaching affects on the people that are around the addict, the ones who love them and the ones who care for them or advocate for them. Having the constant stress takes it’s toll both mentally and physically. It is the constant worrying about your loved

I know what it feels like

I know how you feel because I feel the same things. I know the pain you’re feeling because I too feel the pain. I know what it’s like to see them walk out the door not knowing if you’ll ever see them again. I know the excitement that this will be the time he stays

Families & Addiction – Repost from Dr Steven Melemis

Repost – from Dr. Steven M. Melemis https://www.addictionsandrecovery.org/families-and-addiction.htm Help for Families With Addiction An addiction destroys families as much as it destroys individuals. Living with an addict is both heartbreaking and exhausting. Family members are torn between how to help the addict and how to avoid being sucked into the addict’s world. Here are some

Drug Use & Families

We can all use information from reputable sources to help us understand how addiction impacts families. Remember that you’re not alone. The following article from NCADD provides an overview and some helpful links. https://www.ncadd.org/family-friends/there-is-help/family-disease Addiction is a family disease that stresses the family to the breaking point, impacts the stability of the home, the family’s

Fighting the Labels and Stigma of Addiction

  I find myself talking about the bad things that happen because of my son’s addiction. I talk about lying, stealing, yelling, homelessness, selfishness and so much more but there is also the part of my son that is good. The part that loves his family, the part of him that wants to stay sober,

Our Son is in Recovery

Our son is in recovery, he has to my best estimate, 12 months clean. I know that he relapsed last June when my Father, his grandfather, passed away. He has made a lot of changes in this past year, some good and some not as good. He found out last June that he had a