Recovery (Sort Of) - The Podcast

We examine the 4th Tradition, Each group should be autonomous except in matters affecting other groups or NA as a whole. What does the Fourth Tradition actually tell us? When does Tradition Four say we have crossed the line into what affects other groups or NA as a whole? Is there any clear lines drawn in the sand about what groups can and cannot do? We further explore the idea that some consider...

When the medical system is set up to see as many people as possible, and attempts to combat the opioid epidemic by shaming anyone who uses substances, what options do we have to help those in the community? How about taking vigilante nursing to them? We talk with Jason B. to find out what exactly he does in his work. Jason fills us in on why he got into helping the substance use community, how he...

When is it okay to make fun of people? In a spiritual program, when do we stop to consider what the line is and if we have crossed it? Can we make fun of people we are close to? Can we make fun of people who will never know about it, and therefore not be hurt by it? Are there certain topics that aren't okay to joke about? Is there a universal line about what is allowed to be laughed at and what is...

We examine tradition 3, the only requirement for membership is a desire to stop using. What does this actually mean in the 12 step fellowship world? Are we becoming members of the program, or of the fellowship? What does this mean about how we treat people at our meetings? Is everyone truly welcome there? Are we also free to leave at any time we don't want to be there? How does this apply to the i...

We have Jenny on to talk about being non-anonymous. Jenny recently decided to tell the world of her substance use history, and the fact that she is in recovery. We talk about what led up to her making the decision to let her world know that she identifies as having struggled with alcohol, and as someone who no longer drinks. Jenny tells us about what made now the right time to make the decision to...

We invite Carlos H onto the show to talk about his experiences with drug policy, advocacy, and activism in the Baltimore recovery community. Carlos has been deeply involved in policy work since he first found recovery. He has been involved in many organizations in Maryland, in different ways trying to improve the recovery scene to help save lives. Today we focus on the struggles with recovery hous...

We invite Kassandra Frederique, the Executive Director at Drug Policy Alliance and Tracie Gardner, Vice President of Policy Advocacy at Legal Action Center to help us explore the war on drugs through the lens of racial justice. We learn about the beginnings of drug policy, which started out punishing only the mode of opium use that was popular among Asian immigrants, the progression to the politic...

Tradition 2: “For our group purpose there is but one ultimate authority— a loving God as He may express Himself in our group conscience. Our leaders are but trusted servants; they do not govern." We talk about the difference between group conscience and group opinion. We explore the idea that spiritual principles can never be in conflict. We mention that we have to pick the right person for the in...

We explore Sexaholics Anonymous (SA), Sex Addicts Anonymous (SAA), and Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous (SLAA) this week. We look at what each defines as acting out behavior, and what each program defines as sobriety or sexual clean time. We talk about SAA's 3 circles concept, and similarly, SLAA's idea of top and bottom lines. We give some descriptions of what sex or love addiction can look like in...

This year we are going to examine the traditions and how they apply to life inside and outside the 12 step program life. Sounds incredibly boring, for sure, but hopefully we can find connections and ways to make it interesting. We explore themes such as "does having a singular purpose in our program ensure unity?", "can you have unity without having a common goal?", "is unity a spiritual principle...

We talk with Joshua Shea from RecoveryPornAddict.com about porn addiction, sex addiction, and partner betrayal trauma. Joshua is a porn addiction and betrayal trauma services expert, in recovery himself, who helps persons struggling with addiction and their partners to find recovery. Joshua has written 3 books about porn addiction, and offers a wide variety of courses to help people become more kn...

Is there a god? A higher power? If there is, does this god have a particular will? Is it a punishing god that harms us to teach us lessons? Or is it a hands off god that just shows up to comfort people when life happens due to free will? Or something else entirely? Are we all just being suckers? We started this episode just talking about things we hear in meetings that we don't believe, and ended...

We have Stephanie on to talk about the mental health of our children. Mental health is generational, and also involves epigenetics. Many of the issues in our personal childhood homes get carried over into our adult families, leading to our kids getting a lot of the same inputs we had. This can happen during our using or even after finding recovery, before we learn healthier ways to parent. Even if...

We take a look at how months of quarantine, pandemic, coronavirus, Covid-19 has taken it's toll on our recoveries. What we miss from before, how we feel about our current practices, guilt about not feeling as attached to our 12 step programs, what we have done in place of meetings to fill our lives. We look at the 4 legged table concept and how even without meetings, 3 legs of the table can be pre...

We have Matt on the show to talk about recovery and how it relates to the intersection of the community of LGBTQ persons. We explore what little is being done research wise to determine if this population needs something specific in their recovery programs, what risk factors are greater for the LGBTQ population, the statistics around being LGBTQ and what that means for your chance at substance use...

Today we talk all about the ego. Often referred to as "Easing God Out," we examine if the goal is to completely rid ourselves of ego, or to pursue a healthy ego. We take an ego test, and look at suggestions for limiting ego, or gaining a healthy ego. Join the conversation by leaving a message, emailing us at RecoverySortOf@gmail.com,  or find us on Twitter , Facebook or Instagram , or find us...

Step 12, the 12th step, Having had a spiritual awakening as a result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to addicts, and to practice these principles in all our affairs. We talk about what it means for your spirit to be awakened, how the evidence exists for this happening, ways in which we carry the message, and how to practice these principles, and this step, outside of the 12 step fel...

This week we talk with Jessica Hulsey, the founder of Addiction Policy Forum, a group dedicated to the fight to end stigma, help patients and families in crisis and translate the science around addiction.  We talk with Jessica about research surrounding prevention of substance use disorder, why it's important to not only recognize addiction as a disease, but also incorporate it into our healt...

You're openminded, right? But are you really openminded? 95% of people think they are more openminded than average, which means that a lot of us overestimate our openmindedness.  Did you know that being openminded is actually being receptive to arguments? Or that most closeminded people are closed to the idea that they might be closeminded, and just assume that everyone that disagrees with the...

On this episode we explore the world of smart phone and internet addiction. What is it? What are some of the signs that you may be suffering from it? Why are smart phones so addictive? What are some things you can do to minimize the disturbance that smart phones cause in your life? Join the conversation by leaving a message, emailing us at RecoverySortOf@gmail.com,  or find us on Twitter , Fa...

Is it wise to date other people in recovery? While they are on the same journey as us, we also run the risk of losing everything if they relapse. Do we even consider these factors when getting into a relationship? When deciding to get married? When choosing to have children? How do you know, once they have relapsed, whether to support them or protect yourself? We talk to Stacey about all these que...

What are Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs)? We talk about where the research started, what it means, and how it is informing the treatment of mental health and addiction. We take the ACEs test to see if we can ace it and talk about our experiences with childhood trauma. For more info on ACEs and to take the test for yourself, go to https://acestoohigh.com/ . Join the conversation by leaving a m...

Step 11, the 11th Step, where we seek to increase our relationship with our higher power. We also stop trying to attain certain outcomes in our life. Further, we ask for guidance to do our higher power's will, not ours. We talk about what this looks like in someone's daily life, how they can apply the meaning of this step to further their peace and serenity. What is god's will for us? How do we pr...

What is Narcan? Or Naloxone? How does it work? Is it effective in treating overdose? Is the only reason to provide Narcan ethical? Should Narcan be free? What about the argument that insulin isn't free? We delve into many of these questions and with the help of Erin, we explore how Narcan and insulin are different, along with all the reasons we need to distribute Narcan to as many people as possib...

What is a relapse? What does it take to avoid relapse? Can we really stop people from relapsing? What can we do after a relapse? Are the 12 step programs too soft on relapse? Too hard? We take on these questions and more in our conversation about relapse. Join the conversation by leaving a message, emailing us at RecoverySortOf@gmail.com,  or find us on Twitter , Facebook or Instagram .