Here is an excellent entry about love and personal inner battles on love from Vicarious Rising:, “The saga of the fall and rise of a 30-something female alcoholic. I talk about things I know nothing about and I am basically one confused sick puppy. But I’m sober.”

True Grit

I’m not having the best of days. I’ve been trying to wean myself off of communicating with my best friend, and frankly, it’s making me miserable. I miss him. I want to beg him to love me. I want to make an ass of myself. I want to ask him what it would…

If you are have a sense of humor and are into weird, funny, oddities Comics with Problems is worth a look. It is a fantastic website that has an odd collection of awareness government campaign advertisements that appeared in comic books. In particular, the drug and alcohol campaigns are a real hoot, for example…

Stay tuned for more!

The Incredible Tapestry Workshop

This was a bit of a treat to find… The Next Frontier – Emotional Sobriety. Nothing is better than a dash of humor on subjects that can often be so painful.

Sometimes, I have thought of creating a Slob’s Guide to Spiritual Growth, for those of us who can’t walk around with our hands folded and a slight, mysterious smile on our faces. It might go something like this:

1. It is better to watch the game in your undershirt with a can of cola in your hand than a can of beer.
2. When you holler at somebody, you…

By Martha Woodroof
November 19th, 2007

I was at a meeting yesterday with a newcomer who talked about how shaky his sobriety felt. The topic was “going to any lengths,” and this young man said he was sure this shakiness was his own fault, that he must not be working a good enough program.

I just wanted to march across the room and hug him. Early sobriety is so uncomfortable on so many levels. At the beginning of it I was a big onion of a person, with layers of self-imposed, stinky difficulties enveloping the pretty cheerful, well-intentioned, mostly kind person I really…

The Last Chance Texaco has written a life-affirming post that bravely exposes the truth of addiction, both good and bad.

All of Me. Good and Bad.
November 10, 2007

I have a friend, Joe K. who has been sober something like 38 years. Joe has worked with hundreds of alcoholics and addicts, not just here in Boise, but all over the country and continues to do so. A couple of weeks ago I was in a meeting and met this dynamite guy with years and years of what looks like, on the outside, really solid recovery. This guy works with probably ten men in…

In Florida, Addicts Find an Oasis of Sobriety
The New York Times
November 16th 2007
By Jane Gross
Photo: James Estrin
A coffeehouse, Koffeeokee, in Delray Beach, Fla., that plays host to therapy group meetings is a gathering spot for the city’s recovering addicts.DELRAY BEACH, Fla. — Whitney Tower, 56, a scion of the Whitney, Vanderbilt and Drexel fortunes, squandered his trust fund and sold family treasures to support a $1,000-a-day heroin habit before landing in a tough-love facility near here seven years ago and never leaving. “If I went back to New York I’d be dead in two weeks,” he said.

In some ways Mr.…

I was at a meeting yesterday with a newcomer who talked about how shaky his sobriety felt. The topic was “going to any lengths,” and this young man said he was sure this shakiness was his own fault, that he must not be working a good enough program.

I just wanted to march across the room and hug him. Early sobriety is so uncomfortable on so many levels. At the beginning of it I was a big onion of a person, with layers of self-imposed, stinky difficulties enveloping the pretty cheerful, well-intentioned, mostly kind person I really am. All I did…

Resentment, self-pity, fear. Which one trips up the most people who are in recovery? Semi-Charmed, over at Methed Up, answers that, at least for him, it’s fear:

Over and over in meetings you hear that ‘resentment is the number one offender.’ I’d like to be able to call bullshit of that, I suspect for me it is fear, but honestly I don’t know. Either way, we’re given tools for dealing with resentments and fears by doing the steps. We write them down. We look at what has troubled us. We share it with a trusted friend (a sponsor or someone else,…

Looking for for some great weblogs focused on recovery from addiction? Take a look at The 100 Sober Weblogs.

Getting clean is work, but staying clean is much harder. Relapse is common, especially during the first two years. Even after two years, relapse still occurs. Brain Dead Genius relates a tragic event that occurred to a friend who had been clean for 5 years:

This week someone OD’d after 5 years clean. A friend. The lesson was that [he] wasn’t really working a program, just being abstinent - I know that there aren’t any guarantees in life but just for today I choose to hedge my bets and work a program - because I know that I’m not immune.

Everyone in recovery…

Rusty Keller relates this startling, painful encounter with an old acquaintance who is still using:

I had a horrible run in with the still drinking T yesterday. In public. In front of my terrified son. In the parking lot of our little country store. She was wasted, as usual. I was so uncomfortable and felt so awkward, but I said hi and asked if she was okay. She was so freaky, babbling something about wondering what I was doing there (uh, buying dinner and some milk). As I was walking out she calls me over to the car she’s in (driven by…

There is something to say for the frankness some of these bloggers have about their addictions… tkdjunkie really brings this home.

This blog was started in December 2005, when I was still actively drinking. It was initially used as an outlet to express my grief when I discovered that my then-boyfriend had been cheating on me. I was drinking extremely heavily during that time and feeling that life wasn’t worth living. He somehow convinced me to seek help for my alcoholism through Alcoholics Anonymous.

Sober since April 6, 2006
That’s 589 days

and suddenly i was surrounded with champagne …

They had a celebration at work…

Sober Chick is a sober member of Alcoholics Anonymous, her sobriety date is June 13th, 2005. Follow her brave and difficult journey…

A butterfly represents the stages of recovery. We are reborn again, free and so beautiful!

I’m Off 2C The Wizzard!
Tuesday, September 25 2007
It’s time stop living like this . . .

I have been running off of self-reliance and just cannot seem to grasp on freedom from self. It appears that my life has become unmanageable. I start to feel better and then sabotage everything. I am a menace to myself and it has gotten to the point that I am really…

Heroin in suburbs?
Parents feel shock as son falls prey.

By Bill McClellan
Of the Post-Dispatch
11/25/2002

Walt Volkenannt was just a big kid. Thirty years old, and he had not grown up. Think of him as one of the Lost Boys from Peter Pan. He had friends. By all accounts, these friends were more mature than Walt. Of course, they were young, and I am not suggesting they were models of responsibility, but they were much more responsible than Walt. That fact gave Walt’s parents some hope. Last December, Walt nearly died from a heroin overdose.

His parents, Walter and Donna, were shocked. That is,…

“Dry”
Written by Augusten Burroughs
Reviewed by Ginger B.

You don’t have to be an addict to relish the journey of Augusten Burroughs in his book “Dry.” With the wit of an extra-dry martini (excuse the reference) Burroughs chronicles his life after he leaves his dysfunctional (an understatement) family described in “Running With Scissors” through the next ten years of his life.

At the age of 19, Burroughs becomes an ad copywriter in New York City, earning an ungodly amount of money, and pouring most of it down his throat. Augusten’s skills as an advertising writer are manifested in this slick, yet unfeigned account…

by Martha Woodroof

I’m working on a new book on faith without religion, so I’ve been thinking about God a lot—that is, when I’m not thinking about whatever story I’m currently reporting or my cats or what’s for dinner.

I had lunch with a good friend yesterday, a guy who’s also in recovery. My friend is Jewish. He’d read my book-in-progress and pointed out that, according to my own precepts, I’ve set myself the task of defining the indefinable. Nope, I said, I have not. All I’m claiming to know about God is that God is. Everything else I write about concerns the…

by Martha Woodroof

I’m working on a new book on faith without religion, so I’ve been thinking about God a lot—that is, when I’m not thinking about whatever story I’m currently reporting or my cats or what’s for dinner.

I had lunch with a good friend yesterday, a guy who’s also in recovery. My friend is Jewish. He’d read my book-in-progress and pointed out that, according to my own precepts, I’ve set myself the task of defining the indefinable. Nope, I said, I have not. All I’m claiming to know about God is that God is. Everything else I write about concerns the…

Bill Pittman 1947 ~ 2007

Dear Friends:

It is with great sadness that we share the news that William L. Pittman died suddenly on Friday, November 9, 2007 at his home in Center City, Minnesota. He was 60 years old.

Preceded in death by parents Marilyn and William. Survived by brother Mark (Nancy) Pittman, sister Mary (Tom) Legeros; nephews Matt (Kris) Pittman, Brad Pittman and Taylor Legeros; cherished aunt Eudora (Dot) Jenkins; Cousin Joe (Carol) Jenkins, Katherine Jenkins; Uncle William (Ardiss) Rendell; Cindy Rendell. Bill was a beloved brother, uncle, nephew, cousin and friend.

Raised in Saint Paul, Bill graduated with honors from the…

Let this proclamation be read throughout the Land of Internet!!!

By the authority vested in me, as Your Humble Road Warrior, it is with great pleasure, pride and, of course, appropriate humility (being your “humble” road warrior) that I am officially declaring that The Second Road is open for business.

Do come visit the many attractions with which to fortify your own recovery, while meeting and sharing your dreams, opinions and personal expertise with other voyagers on this odyssey called life. Remember, we are a caravan - the pilgrimage is continuous and the expedition itself is the destination. When you (or your…

The Meth Epidemic documentary (made by Frontline) is gripping and heartbreaking and we encourage everyone to take some time to check it out.
PBS has some excellent material to read on the physical side effects of meth use on the body. Below are some excerpts from their site… more info at How Meth Destroys the Body, where you can listen to an audio slideshow by Dr. Rawson, who explains how meth affects the brain’s dopamine receptors, look at the Faces of Meth slideshow and watch an interview with Dr. Bettger and her patient, Brian Kahler, an inmate in the Multnomah Country Jail…

A snippet from an insightful discussion that looks at the effects of crystal meth on the body. Frontline has an excellent documentary on this drug called The Meth Epidemic. Watch it online.
Finish reading this article at pbs.org

Meth Mouth

• “Meth mouth” is characterized by broken, discolored and rotting teeth.
• The drug causes the salivary glands to dry out, which allows the mouth’s acids to eat away at the tooth enamel, causing cavities.
• Teeth are further damaged when users obsessively grind their teeth, binge on sugary food and drinks, and neglect to brush or floss for long periods of time.

A common sign of meth abuse is…

Here is a beautifully honest blog entry from the wife of a heroin addict. To read more, check out www.thejunkyswife.com

Tuesday October 30th, 2007

I Love You Very Much.

Please. Please. I can’t be sick like this. Please. Please. Please. Help me. I can’t do this. I can’t. I can’t. It’s not working. I can’t. I can’t. Please. Please. Please.

He’s shaking, twitching, sweating. I can’t help him. The methadone dose is too low. He’s hurting in his body and even more in his mind. I can’t help him. I’m terrified and I hate it and I can’t help him.

I keep telling him, “I…

Intoxication

A quote from Psychological Assessment Referral Treatment Services;

“Intoxication is not without its benefits. A blood alcohol level of .05 may help an inhibited person perform more effectively in social situations. On the other hand, intoxication is implicated in 65% of murders, 88% of knifings, 65% of spouse battering, 55% of violent child abuse. ”

Herein lies the grand paradox of the very thing that attracts us initially; for some it may also unleash inhibited violent tendencies. I can attest to the progression from the simple mellow glow, to the angry simmering rage. That is not to say I ever acted with…

A collection of astonishingly beautiful photos telling an uncomfortably horrible story… The photos were taken in Germany by Ralf Brunner. A caption reads (translated from the Russian site it is posted on)
“Last dying man infected with human immunodeficiency virus [in the family]. In addition, he also sits on the drug heroin (probable reason for acquiring the virus). Sadly instructive.” To view the montage in its’ entirety please click the photo.

I found this collection of photos through a great weblog that will be featured next, http://www.thejunkyswife.com/

Find more work by Ralf Brunner at his site (it is in German!)
http://www.ralfbrunner.com/ralfbrunner_website/pages/aids1.html

…

Stop, Drop and Recover is a retired Bridgeport,CT Fire Dept. Lt., operating Prospect House Northwest Transitional Living for Men & Women in recovery since 2001. Deb is an R.N.& Drug & Alcohol Counselor.
A real life recovery…

First and foremost; addiction is a brain disease
There is no spiritual cure for a physical and mental illness
Showing up is mandatory, growing up is optional
Even in sobriety people die, cats run away, and dogs get hit by cars
Financial security is not a promise merely a possibility
I am not the Pickle that can turn back into a cucumber
there are two sides to every story, and the truth…

I couldn’t resist this one. Another example of musicians suffering the effects of addiction.

Here is a little about James Hetfield…”During the recording of the St. Anger album, Hetfield went into rehab for alcoholism and other obsessive-compulsive behaviours arising from his depression. Alcohol had long been a problem for Hetfield; the band’s alcoholic antics earned them the nickname “Alcoholica” by the music press. Just before this, Metallica’s bassist Jason Newsted announced he was exiting the band, after Hetfield forbade him to work on any side projects. Hetfield rejoined the band after two months in rehab and seven months with his family.…

The New York Times interviews singer/songwriter Chan Marshall (Cat Power) about her alcoholism and recovery.

By Winter Miller
September 20, 2006

Another day, another fifth of Scotch.

And that wasn’t all. Chan Marshall said her mornings began with a minibar’s worth of Jack Daniel’s, Glenlivet and Crown Royal. Mini bottles depleted, this indie singer-songwriter, known as Cat Power, would nurse a bottle of Scotch over the course of the day. On nights she performed, she took the antianxiety drug Xanax.

By the time she would weave onstage, beer in one hand, cigarette in the other, Ms. Marshall, 34, was wasted. And it showed. It would seem that every fan has a Cat Power concert story: the time she mooned…

This is down right tough. This blog entry is posting an article from The Guardian, an English newspaper.

Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Old Habits Die Hard

“For those of us who had spent every day of the past 10 years completely wasted, even the idea of getting through a couple of days without drugs felt like some kind of miracle.” Twenty years ago, Will Keighley started on the road to recovery from addiction. Now he wonders whether he will be the last survivor of his Narcotics Anonymous group.

It was a very English funeral. Half-stifled tears in a small church in Essex; professional pall-bearers…

Sober Re-Sources
“Something New Every 24. Courtesy of sobermusicians.com, purveyors of fine spirit since 2006.”

Mmm, what are they thinking?
If you want to convert the British pence to US sense to see how nuts these prices are try: http://www.xe.com/ucc/

Monday, November 12, 2007

Drunk for £1: Anger as leading supermarkets sell lager for 22p a can.

“Supermarkets are selling beer at a cheaper price than water, fuelling concern over their role in Britain’s binge-drinking crisis. Despite repeated public health warnings, Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Asda now offer lager at just 22p (45 cents) a can - less per litre than their ownbrand-mineral water and cola, and cheap…