All Things Substance

Shame is paralyzing. It lurks in the hearts of all people causing us to hide from each other. Therapists are uniquely suited to help people get free from shame. Today we'll talk about the impact of shame on addiction. 

Paperwork for therapy is a core part of the job. It's sometimes also a pain in the ass. Developing good habits at the beginning of your career will be incredibly helpful. Today we'll talk about the four main types of paperwork and what the purpose is for each one. 

Jonny isn't the type of person others picture when they think addiction. But addiction is sneaky and can strike even the most unlikely people.  His internal struggles were eating him up and he didn't know how to talk about it. Hear his story of finding true self-acceptance through recovery in this week's episode.

Fear and addiction always show up together. Being in active addiction fills a person with fear of so many things. Today we'll talk about managing that fear in our therapy sessions.

We can ask all the perfect questions, but sometimes a client's answers aren't as clear as we'd hoped. There are lots of reasons for why a client might not want to share about their use of substances. Today we'll discuss the most common responses and how to work around them. 

Why do we need to diagnose clients? Is it harmful to give someone a diagnosis? I believe that done correctly, diagnosing can help both you and your client. I believe that having a name for what someone is going through can be healing for them. 

Sean is a regular guy. Married to the love of his life. Father to four wonderful girls. Trying to be his best self to his family. Alcohol wasn't an issue, until ALS showed up in his father and things took a turn for the worst. Hear his story of persevering through grief to find the joy of recovery in this week's episode.

Why would therapists not ask about substance use? Perhaps a fear of practicing out of scope, not feeling like they have enough knowledge about drugs and a number of others. We'll talk about those reasons in today's episode.

Is CBD good for anxiety and/or PTSD? Is CBD good for treating substance use disorders? Is CBD good for chronic pain and arthritis? With CBD being added to more things all the time (drinks, lotion, vitamins and even water) it can be hard to know what is real and what isn't. In our work as therapists we really need to know what science is saying about CBD and its benefits. I took on the task of sort...

What should you focus on as graduation approaches? What should you look for in a first post-grad job? What about going into private practice? Everything you've done since entering college has been leading to this moment. In this episode we'll talk about getting your resume ready, choosing an agency and the things to consider when accepting an offer.

Nick is a kind and hard-working man who works daily to create a life for himself. He very nearly didn't make it  out of the addiction that had swallowed his life. His story is one of perseverance and hope. His recovery journey was long and winding, but he didn't give up fighting for the life he wanted.

The episode this week is a short holiday message to go along with the picture of yours truly, circa 1980, complete with Miss Piggy housecoat. Wishing you and yours peace and rest this holiday season!

What is CBD?  What's the difference between CBD and Marijuana? Is CBD really what people say it is? We start from the beginning and go over its origins, how it works and what to look for.  In the second part we'll talk about fact vs fiction according to the research. Join me as we this product that is popping up everywhere.  

What are employers looking for in an intern? What will set me apart from other interns? What's the most important quality for an intern? Being a great intern isn't something that happens without effort. What a student thinks makes them a great intern, might not be the same as what agencies are looking for.  Today we are talking about interns from the agency perspective. 

Coming out is what allowed Casey to find his way to recovery.  Now part of his work is to help others find their way. Casey is passionate about his recovery and his work with the LGBTQIA+ community. His story is a winding path, dark at times that leads to a place of peace and joy in recovery.

What is vaping? What's the difference between different types of vapes? What are the issues around vaping? I explore its origins and talk to the American Lung Association about the incidence and impact of this trend. 

What is Delta-8? What does it do? What's the legal status? Delta-8 is the newest product to come out of the CBD industry. This product, though, gets people high. Derived from hemp, Delta-8 is legal in most states and increasing in popularity.  

What should I be most focused on in choosing an internship? How should I go about picking an internship site? Why are internships so important? Therapist internships are the most important part of your graduate experience. They can be an amazing experience full of learning opportunities and can feel really worthwhile. They can also feel boring, difficult and not worth your time. Today we'll talk a...

Jill is a holistic health nurse and her recovery journey from alcohol use included healing her own significant health challenges that mainstream medicine inadequately addressed. Hear her story on this week's episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or at betsybyler.com/podcast.

Host of the Intentional Clinician and I talk about putting substance use and mental health together in therapy. His journey and mine. Check out our interview on this episode.

Which OTC medications are used most often recreationally? Which OTC medications could pose a risk to a person's health? OTC meds are considered to be relatively safe and so don't need a prescription. There are some medications that are pretty commonly misused in a recreational way to get high and often it's the first drug used by many adolescents. 

There's little else you will invest more money into than your education. It should be everything you want and more, right? Grad school is what we wanted all of those years of school to be like. It's all the subjects you want to learn. We're able to get deeper into the details about our chosen field. It can be enlightening personally and professionally. Today I offer 12 tips for getting the most ou...

Gray area drinking is more common than we might expect. It can hide behind mom-wine culture or the culturally common "happy hour" after work.  Hear Lisa's story of recovery and finding a place of peace without alcohol. 

What are steroids? What are the real risks to using steroids? What does it have to do with mental health? The pursuit of a perfect body is not just for women. There are unrealistic body expectations of men too. Steroids are more complex than we think and not the shortcut they're assumed to be. 

What are barbiturates? How were barbiturates used historically? How are barbiturates used in recent years? Barbiturates are an older class of drugs that had tons of uses and were the go-to for many years. There are still some surprising ways these drugs are being used today.