The Embrace Family Recovery Podcast

I am so grateful to have this platform to share conversations with you. Tom continues to teach me, and it was so great of him to share how he works his recovery and the benefits to all family members working their individual recovery programs.  The parallel journey of recovery for family and the people with the disease is really clear. I hope you are inspired to attend a meeting, read some recover...

It is here... Tom's Tiger Talk!! Enjoy, and don't be afraid to listen twice as Tom is such a quick speaker. The Tiger Talk is a visual masterpiece with humor and experience that makes this a great way to better understand the disease of addiction. Tom's analogy helps a person with a substance use disorder learn to separate themselves from the disease. While explaining this disease,...

There are so many ways to learn about the disease of addiction. There are so many teachers that offer a variety of styles, from brain science to billboards along the highway showing before and after pictures of addicts. Today, you will hear from Tom, a friend and a substance use disorder counselor. Tom shares his experience, strength, and hope. Tom uses truth, humor, and his personal and professio...

Michelle shares tools that she uses in her recovery! One of the things I enjoy most about making this podcast is the opportunity to hear people's stories. I find, like in a Twelve Step meeting, if I stay open, I hear something that is an asset to my recovery program. I so value Michelle's humility in sharing the evolution of her recovery program through different meetings.  She also shar...

In today's episode, Michelle returns to continue sharing her story. Michelle shares the benefits of working with a sponsor in Al-Anon and how her recovery journey brings her to attend another 12 step program.  The famous Ralph Waldo Emerson quote says, "life is a journey, not a destination." Michelle's story embodies this truth. She does a fabulous job of sharing some of the re...

Today you will meet Michelle, who, as she says, comes to recovery "fully loaded" with ancestral trauma. As a child, and grandchild, a sister, an aunt, a mother, a grandmother. The disease of addiction creates chaos and trauma in the family—Michelle shares how she began her healing journey. Thank you for your support of The Embrace Family Recovery Podcast. People are finding it helpful, a...

Jerry Moe returns today, sharing more about the resources available for children and their caregivers. Jerry and his Children's Program team have worked with Sesame Street to create a storyline about parental addiction. Not only will you hear about Karli and Salia, but you will also learn more about the Continuing Care resources for children and their caregivers following participation in the...

Jerry Moe returns and shares about the phenomenal Children's Program of the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation. Jerry is one of the best storytellers. He explains how their use of play, creativity, connection, art, writing, and Beamer work to assist children in making the disease the enemy and separating it from their loved ones. When the disease is the enemy, it is easier to open up and share wi...

On today's episode, Jerry Moe, the Executive Director of the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation's National Children's Program, shares some of his story. Jerry has such a passion for helping the children of this family disease. The alarming statistics in the US show 5.7 million children under age 11 live in households with a parent who has a substance abuse disorder, and a third of those...

On a recent podcast, Episode 24, the topic was sponsorship.  If you missed it, find it in the link below. https://embracefamilyrecovery.com/ep-24-what-is-a-sponsor-do-i-need-one-im-not-good-at-asking-for-help/ A regular listener to the podcast suggested another episode about meetings. Such a good suggestion.  I appreciate topic ideas and people sharing feedback about the podcast! So today will be...

In this final episode together, Bob shares more about how he works to be observant rather than living in the chaos of absorbing other's feelings. He is clear about the need for support that doing this family recovery work alone won't be sustainable. Hear more from Bob about his quote, "I forgot I was his dad. I thought I was Higher Power". Enjoy the tools and quotes Bob shares,...

Bob is the father of a son with a substance use disorder. This episode is packed with tangible tools Bob used in his recovery to find relief from his own stress, anxiety, and obsession with his son.  Bob demonstrates the hope for all loved ones of people with the disease of addiction in  choosing their own healing. This required a willingness to recognize the disease had impacted him, and he deser...

Today I want to introduce you to Bob. A friend, a colleague, and a fellow traveler.  As you will hear in Bob's story, he's a man who's committed to growing, healing, and working on his own recovery. Bob candidly admits that witnessing his son's hard, scary work of recovery inspired him to do his own work in recovery.  Bob has an incredible memory for quotes that have impacted h...

Sponsorship is a tool that is invaluable for any recovery program. Sadly people on the family side of this disease often do not afford themselves this gift. A person asked on my Facebook Page, Embrace Family Program, how do I get a sponsor? They inspired the idea for this podcast! While working at Hazelden Betty Ford with clients seeking recovery from a substance use disorder, many parents and par...

This question is a common one with people who love someone with the disease of addiction. Dianne shares her answer as a person whose family has been impacted by this multi-generational disease. We take a deep dive into spirituality, healing and loss, ceremonies, the power and pain of acceptance, and boundaries. Yes, we cover a lot of ground! Dianne is such a resilient, generous woman who willingly...

Dianne shares the tools and actions she took to prioritize her self-care while her son was finding his way. You will learn how her famous line, who's bobber are you watching, came to be a part of her toolbox. Thank you for your support of The Embrace Family Recovery Podcast. People are finding it helpful, and that was my hope!  Please share it with people who love someone with this disease of...

Today Dianne shares more of her story. The family disease of addiction has traveled through her family and into her son's life. She shares the familiar struggle of being powerless as a mother to change Mike's path. Dianne shares the power and pain of setting healthy boundaries against Mike's disease while always loving him. One of her courageous lines to her son: "I can't...

Today we start a series of conversations with my friend Dianne! Dianne has been a powerhouse in the field of addiction for decades, a warrior of a woman who knows this family disease intimately from many perspectives. Yet, she always maintains a willing heart of a teacher. I'm sure some of that has to do with receiving the gifts other people in recovery shared with her and knowing the power o...

Today is a new experience for me; I was a guest on another podcast! I thought you might enjoy hearing more of my recovery story and the wisdom and experience Michelle generously shares about her own recovery story. Dr. Michelle St. Jane, the host of Life & Leadership: A Conscious Journey Podcast, offered this introduction for her podcast: Why is the topic of Embrace Family Recovery so importan...

In our final conversation with Barb and Tom, parents of a son with the disease of addiction. They share more about how Tom surrendered to this being a no-fault disease rather than an intellectual exercise.  Tom and Barb's recovery journey speaks to how we are exposed to recovery as a family because of the person we love with the disease of addiction.   Yet, the benefits of working the recover...

Tom and Barb continue to share their own learning about the family disease of addiction. They have phenomenal shifts in their strategies with their son, his addiction, and his recovery. Can't believe addiction is not an intellectual exercise? As a mother, I need to orchestrate all relationships around Eric, right? Their recovery expands in this episode as they embrace these tools of healing f...

Today You will meet Tom and Barb. This couple surprised themselves in finding their recovery through attending a Family Program.  They thought they were attending to help heir son. Barb, a self-described "Queen of Enabling" and Tom a Type A corporate man, master problem solver come together to share their journey of loving a son with the disease of chemical dependency. This family diseas...

Do you ever feel like you have racing thoughts? Are you constantly preoccupied with your loved one who has the disease of addiction? Is it hard to focus on and care for yourself? If you can say yes to any of these you have found the right podcast!  This subject is near and dear to my heart, Monkey Chatter is something I created to describe the insanity I experience in my head, I call it the voice...

The work of family recovery. What are the challenges? What are the payoffs? In this episode, Sandy Swenson shares how as family members, we deny our addictions and issues because our preoccupation with our addicted loved one is all-consuming unless we develop a community of support and tools to develop self-focus rather than being other-focused 24/7. What is there to be grateful for when the disea...

Sandy Swenson has coined the term 'Unabling' and she takes the time to share a reading from her meditation book entitled - 'Tending Dandelions. Honest Meditations for Mothers of Addicted Children. How does helping ourselves help the people we love? It feels so selfish and Sandy will share why it is not at all selfish. How do we love our person and set boundaries around the disease?...