Hopestream: Parenting Kids Through Addiction & Mental Health

ABOUT THE EPISODE: Dr. Nzinga Harrison is back for another vitally important conversation, this time focusing on benzodiazepines and Xanax in particular. Parents who have a son or daughter who's experimenting with substances must listen to this eye-opening and informative episode where Dr. Harrison and I discuss all-things-benzo's. We cover so much territory in this discussion including ...

ABOUT THE EPISODE: In this important and uplifting film, six people from Connecticut with vastly different cultural and socio-economic backgrounds explore the childhood traumas at the roots of their drug addictions.  At an innovative retreat organized by addiction and trauma counselor Hope Payson (LSCW, LADC), six people from varying walks of life – each affected by childhood trauma – come togethe...

ABOUT THE EPISODE: They're the ones left in the dust and shadow of a child who's misusing substances - the siblings. They witness the craziness and chaos, see the manipulation of their parents, they might get blackmailed or harassed - it's scary and parents are often left wondering what this is doing to their other kids - yet are so exhausted they don't even know where to start...

ABOUT THE EPISODE: There are some common emotions parents feel when they have a child who's misusing drugs or alcohol, and two of those are guilt and regret.  We punish ourselves for things we did or didn't do, choices we made in the past and actions we took in our lives. Today's episode will provide you with a way to use these feelings of guilt and regret to actually improve your c...

ABOUT THE EPISODE: Who's confused about using medication to treat opioid addiction? If your hand is in the air this is your episode! I was fortunate enough to speak with Dr. Lauren Hoffman who works with Recovery Research Institute , a leading nonprofit research institute of Massachusetts General Hospital, an affiliate of Harvard Medical School, dedicated to the advancement of addiction treat...

ABOUT THE EPISODE: This episode will give you an alternative view of your child's substance use that might create more space for empathy and an understanding of why they continue in high-risk behaviors. I share four helpful things you can do when your child isn't showing signs of wanting to change what they're doing and you're pulling your hair out. You'll come away from t...

ABOUT THE EPISODE: If you're nodding your head at the term "failure to launch" this is the episode for you. Dr. Mark McConville is a psychologist and author of THE book "Failure to Launch, Why Your 20-Something Hasn't Grown Up and What To Do About It." His work over the course of 30 years has shown him that there are some common themes and traits that cause kids to st...

ABOUT THE EPISODE: It's not often that you come across a resource or a person who cares deeply about families and kids struggling with substance use disorder, so when I met Denise Mariano and learned about everything offered by The Partnership to End Addiction, I was stunned. I knew I had stumbled into a goldmine for parents and caregivers and needed to share it with the world. As the mom of...

ABOUT THE EPISODE: Parents who are baffled and frustrated by the amount of negativity in their home and resulting lack of motivation in their kids with substance use issues will get some simple, useable takeaways from this bite-sized episode. Sometimes you just need a quick visual to help grasp and deal with a situation and that's what we'll talk about on this show. There's a compan...

ABOUT THE EPISODE: For students who want a shot at sobriety - whether they've been to treatment or not - there are very few options when it comes to high school. Finding a place where the cool kids aren't using drugs or alcohol can sound like a fantasy but at recovery high schools, the culture promotes and celebrates being sober, not just at school, but full-time. Seth Welch, Recovery Co...

ABOUT THE EPISODE: You've probably been there - that moment when something unexpected or horrible happens and you feel yourself reacting in a highly emotional way. It might be finding the stash of weed or empty vodka bottles, or you get the call from the police about your daughter's shoplifting escapade - whatever it is, it sets you into panic mode and you're not sure what to do. Th...

ABOUT THE EPISODE: If there's one topic that worries and frustrates parents everywhere, it's marijuana. Cannabis, weed, MJ, whatever you want to call it, when your teen or young adult child is using it, or using it too much, it's hard to know what to do. This episode is a MUST-LISTEN for parents who are concerned about their child's marijuana use because Dr. Nzinga Harrsion bre...

ABOUT THE EPISODE: Parenting a teen or young adult through substance use or addiction is a massive challenge, but layering on the complexity of a child who is questioning their sexual identity or openly part of the LGBTQ+ community can make it even more difficult.  This episode is a must-listen for parents who are wondering how to approach their child with questions around sexuality and identity,...

ABOUT THE EPISODE: Every once in a while something comes along and works, and you're shocked because life can feel like an endless series of failures when your teen or young adult child is misusing substances. When I found the CRAFT method of parenting a child in addiction, I was skeptical because it seemed too simple - but sometimes simple is what you need. This episode will introduce you to...

ABOUT THE EPISODE: Nearly every parent of a child who’s living in addiction has the same questions -  why do they keep taking drugs or drinking alcohol when it’s ruining their life, making them sick, killing their family, and pretty much everything in their life? why do they do things that are so high risk, and obviously have bad outcomes? should I keep helping him/her with things like rent and a...

ABOUT THE EPISODE: Nearly every parent of a child who’s living in addiction has the same questions -  why do they keep taking drugs or drinking alcohol when it’s ruining their life, making them sick, killing their family, and pretty much everything in their life? why do they do things that are so high risk, and obviously have bad outcomes? should I keep helping him/her with things like rent and a...

ABOUT THE EPISODE: Welcome to a wrap of 2020! This episode features snippets from 11 guests who, over the course of 2020 shared their knowledge, wisdom and stories for us to learn from. It's a long one so grab a cup of something warm and cozy and listen in to these amazing golden nuggets from Hopestream's first season: Derek Bowles , Crossroads Academy @ 3:57 Carrie Wilkens , Beyond Addi...

ABOUT THE EPISODE: If you've spent any time learning ways to parent a child (adolescent or adult) who's experimenting with drugs or alcohol, or who's in active addiction, you've likely heard about the concept of setting and holding boundaries, and about letting natural consequences happen when your child makes a bad decision. But how do you actually do those things when they fe...

ABOUT THE EPISODE: If the communication with your son or daughter who's misusing drugs or alcohol has broken down significantly, or if you're just trying to understand them better and are getting shut down with your attempts at talking, this is your episode . Because our kids are stressing us out and living a dangerous lifestyle, we tend to focus all our communication on their problems a...

ABOUT THE EPISODE: The transition from high school to college is never easy and some teens get to this phase in life and stall or "bomb out" with emotional challenges like anxiety and depression, or use substances to cope with the stress and demands of college life.  Parents can find themselves writing huge tuition checks for college semesters that may end up unfinished and questioning w...

ABOUT THE EPISODE: There are tens of thousands of moms and dads carrying an unimaginable weight every day, trying to figure out how to move ahead when their son or daughter is misusing substances to cope with life. Using a simple story and analogy of holding a glass of water, this episode will provide parents with a powerful way to recognize and approach the stress level in their life. I explain t...

ABOUT THE EPISODE: Ayurveda is considered by many scholars to be the oldest healing science. In Sanskrit, Ayurveda means “The Science of Life.” Ayurvedic knowledge originated in India more than 5,000 years ago and is often called the “Mother of All Healing.”  In the U.S., treatment for substance misuse and addiction is often centered around the medical-disease model, but the Ayurvedic model refram...

ABOUT THE EPISODE: Uncertainty, unpredictability, fear, anxiety, fatigue, dread...life right now is likely a mixture of all these things and maybe more. As the parent of a child with substance use issues who's also navigating COVID and looking ahead to celebrating holidays, you may be wondering how you can keep it all together. The elements of life you know and love have changed, things you u...

ABOUT THE EPISODE: Dr. Ayana Jordan is a passionate advocate for racial and ethnic minority groups dealing with substance use. She's an MD/Ph. D. addiction medicine practitioner and associate professor at the Yale School of Medicine, but more importantly, she's someone who works tirelessly to bring culturally informed, gold-standard addiction treatment to racial and ethnic minority popul...

ABOUT THE EPISODE: Parents who are trying to help a child misusing drugs or alcohol are usually overwhelmed, stressed out and frazzled from trying to keep up with their normal life and deal with the chaos and uncertainty that's invaded their home. Add a global health pandemic, massive social unrest and an election of historic proportions and it can feel like a tidal wave has crashed over your...