Posts by Jeremy Wachter, ICADC

About Jeremy Wachter, ICADC

Jeremy is a Internationally Certified Alcohol & Drug Counselor who counseled teens and young adults for five years with various drug and alcohol treatment programs around the country. His journey to recovery began at the age in 2009 at the age of 23, and he developed an interest in helping young people and their families his first couple of years in recovery.

Teens dealing drugs to one another.

Arizona Youth Survey | Young Adult and Teen Drug Use Statistics in AZ

By on December 8th, 2020 in Adolescent and Young Adult Substance Use, Arizona Substance Abuse, Articles

Finding out that your teen has begun to experiment with drugs can be a scary reality. Many times parents we have worked with already had a sneaking suspicion, but often the discovery leads to more questions than answers. If you live in Arizona, hopefully we can answer a few of those questions about middle school, high school, and teen substance abuse in Arizona for you today. Note: if you’re not sure, check this resource about warning signs of teen drug use for some helpful tips to determine whether you should be concerned or not.

Whether you are a professional who works with teens and young people, a parent looking to determine information pertaining to the potential risks your loved ones face, or a concerned citizen, we would like to present the teen drug abuse statistical data available to us in as straightforward a manner as possible. The data below has been compiled from the 2018 Arizona Youth Survey, which covers topics ranging from risk factors such as dangerous behaviors and teen drug use to environmental factors such as gang involvement and family attitudes. For the purpose of this article we will focus solely on drug use among Arizona teens statistics.

What is the Arizona Youth Survey (AYS)?

The AYS is an anonymous survey given every two years to youth all across the state of Arizona in middle schools and high schools that decide to participate. The report is reported on state-wide, as well as broken down by county. Due to the anonymity involved in the testing tool (see the tool used in the survey), students are far more likely to tell the truth than in other settings. We believe this is the most reliable glimpse into the reality of drug, alcohol, and tobacco / vape use among teens and youth in the state of Arizona. The teen drug abuse statistical information is also particularly helpful in monitoring the future of prevention efforts in our state.

This teen substance abuse statistical information is, of course, specific to Arizona, but we find it mirrors what we see in other parts of the United States. For instance, here’s a resource on statistical information about teen drug use in California.

Will there be a 2020 AYS?

The AZCJC reports that “Due to school closures in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the 2020 Arizona Youth Survey (AYS) has been postponed until Fall 2020.” We eagerly await the results of this newest installment of the AYS, and we will update this post accordingly once the results come out.

What grade levels take the Arizona Youth Survey?

The Arizona Youth Survey is taken by 8th graders, 10th graders, and 12th graders throughout Arizona. This allows for an accurate picture of age of onset and progression of use as teens get older.

Key Statistics: Why do Arizona teens use drugs?

One of the most common questions we get revolves around the motivation for substance abuse, especially for first time drug use. When we meet parents they are often bewildered that their kids have made the decision to turn to drugs. While it is natural to start questioning our parenting skills, as well as wondering if our kids have other mental health problems, we find that the real reasons kids use drugs are often extremely simple. Here at Pathway, we have an expression – we lovingly call teenagers “fun machines”. This is because so much of what they do has such a pure and simple motivation: to have as much fun as possible, today. The other commonly cited reason is to deal with stress. The results from the Arizona Youth Survey speak for themselves:

When asked about the reasons for using alcohol and other drugs in the past 30 days:

  • 50.8% of teenagers replied that they used drugs “to have fun”. 
  • 38.6% stated that they used drugs “to get high or feel good.”
  • 36.0% cited school-related stress as a reason for using substances.
  • 31.5% cited family-related stress as a reason for substance use.
  • 28% cited feeling sad or down.

Other common answers were “to stay focused or think better” (20.1%), and to deal with peers and friends (23.0%). For a full breakdown, see page 64 of the AYS.

Key Statistics: Where are Arizona teens getting drugs and alcohol?

Below we have listed the common sources of various drugs of abuse. It is important to note that not all the numbers add up to 100%. This is because a teen obtaining drugs could technically qualify for two or more categories. An example would be a student who acquires a drug at school from a friend. This student would have checked the boxes for “at school” and “from a friend” for the same drug. Here are the numbers:

Sources of marijuana

67.4% of students who used marijuana reported that they obtained it from friends, and 27.2% reported that they obtained it at a party. One particular statistic of note is that 25% of students reported obtaining the marijuana from someone who had a medical marijuana card, and 15.4% reported that they obtained it at a dispensary either within or outside of Arizona. Other sources included over the internet (5.7%), from school (17%), and from home (9.6%), among others.

Sources of alcohol

47.1% of students reported obtaining alcohol at a party, and 22.8% reported that it was given to them by a relative over the age of 21. 20% reported that alcohol was given to them by a non-relative over 21. Other common sources included stealing it from home (18.0%) and stealing from a store or someone else’s home (6.8%).

Sources of prescription drugs

Unlike other drugs, the most common source of prescription drugs was from friends at 29.0% and from home at 23.6%. As these drugs are particularly dangerous, this goes to show the importance of keeping your prescription drugs locked up and disposing of them once you are done using them. Other common sources were from a doctor or pharmacy inside or outside of he US (21.8%), at a party (11.9%), and at school (10.5%).

Key Statistics: How prevalent is teen drug use in Arizona?

Marijuana

29.7% of all students across all grades reported using Marijuana one or more times in their lifetime. 23.4% reported using marijuana concentrates (such as wax or hash oil). We can extrapolate that 79% of those who used marijuana were using some form of concentrate. The number did not significantly decrease or increased across the 2014, 2016, and 2018 surveys. This makes sense, as  our own data shows that marijuana is firmly the number one drug used by teens.

15.7% of students reported using marijuana in the past 30 days, and 12.3% reported using marijuana concentrates in the last 30 days, confirming the statistic above that about 80% of marijuana use is through concentrates. It should be noted that, like the relationship between cigarettes and vaping, marijuana concentrates are significantly stronger than even modern plant marijuana.

Alcohol

44.9% of students across all grades reported having drunk alcohol for “more than just a few sips” in their lifetime. This number dropped slightly across 2014, 2016, and 2018 surveys. The number of students reporting using alcohol in the last 30 days was 20.2%, about one in five. In surveys of our own clients, we’ve found that alcohol is still second on the list of the top drugs used by teens.

Tobacco and E-cigarettes / Vaping

37.1% of students across all grades reported having used electronic cigarettes in their lifetime, and 16.9% reported smoking traditional cigarettes in their lifetime. While the number of students using traditional cigarettes has dropped significantly (by as much as 77%, depending on the grade), the number of students who have vaped has increased by as much as 74%. This shows that while traditional cigarettes have fallen out of vogue with teenagers, nicotine use levels among students remains about the same.

This trend continues when students were asked about use over the last 30 days – 19.0% reported having used e-cigarettes in the last 30 days, whereas only 4.7% reported using traditional cigarettes in the last 30 days. As noted above in the marijuana section, vaping nicotine tends to be significantly stronger than traditional cigarettes.

Prescription Drugs

Multiple prescription drugs were reported on, with the most commonly used being prescription pain relievers (9%), followed by prescription sedatives (4.8%) and prescription stimulants (4.6%).

While these numbers may seem less significant than the higher numbers reported for marijuana and alcohol, it should be noted that 3% of students reported using prescription pain relievers in the past 30 days, followed by 1.4% for prescription sedatives and 1.3% for prescription stimulants. These drugs are known to be very dangerous and addictive, and they are present in schools.

Poly Substance Use

A particularly alarming statistic is that 11.7% of teenagers report using more than one illicit drug at once during their lifetime, with the highest number being 12th graders at 18.1% (almost one in five). 3% report that they have utilized the specifically dangerous combination of alcohol and prescription pain relievers at the same time.

This number drops to 4.7% when students were asked about poly substance use in the last 30 days. 1% of students also reported combining alcohol with prescription pain relievers in the past 30 days.

Other Drugs

Other drugs were reported on in the survey, with levels of lifetime use being between 1-3%. These drugs include cocaine / crack, ecstasy, methamphetamines, heroin, and steroids, among others. View pages 49-50 of the survey for complete data on these substances.

Are there teens who do not use drugs?

Absolutely! While the teen drug abuse statistics above can paint a bleak picture, there is evidence that prevention works. The survey even details (on page 63) reasons students chose NOT to use alcohol or other drugs. This information is particularly useful for prevention efforts, but can also be helpful to parents.

Among teens who reported that they have turned down drugs in the past 30 days, the most common reasons were:

  • 87.9% stated that they turned down drugs because they are not interested in drugs.
  • 74.2% stated that they turned down drugs because they knew their parents would be disappointed.
  • 56.5% reported that they avoid drugs because their parents would take away privileges.
  • 48.2% avoided substances because would get a bad reputation and 31.1% cited that their friends would stop hanging out with them. This is known as positive peer pressure.
  • Other common reasons were because drugs are illegal (61.4%) and because they are aware of the damage drugs can do to the body (73%).

This goes to show the importance of a family making it clear that they do not approve of drug use, the importance of drug abuse / drug addiction related education and positive peer relationships.

If you have any questions or would like to speak with one of our professional counselors further regarding your specific situation, please call (877) 921-4050. We will gladly discuss your situation or recommend a course of action based on your circumstances.

Teens dealing drugs to each other.

2020 Teen Drug Abuse Statistics in California | Prevalence of Adolescent Substance Use in CA

By on November 16th, 2020 in Adolescent and Young Adult Substance Use, Articles, California Substance Abuse

Is substance abuse among teens and young adults a major problem in California? We believe that it is. This is especially true considering that in the United States, 90% of adults who meet the criteria for Substance Use Disorder began using substances (including tobacco) prior to the age of 18.

Drug abuse can be a scary topic. As of this writing towards the end of 2020, we are in the middle of a global pandemic, but there is another, often forgotten epidemic going on: the widespread use of drugs, alcohol, and vaping among youth and teenagers. Whether you are a parent dealing with the realization that your young one is experimenting, a representative from a school or community organization, or simply a concerned citizen, we would like to present the information to you in as straightforward a manner as possible. As a drug abuse program specializing in working with teenagers, we wanted to present some of the teen drug abuse facts and statistics.

Though this topic can be hard to make sense of, luckily there are a number of sources that compile teen statistics on the top drugs used by teens:

Sources of statistical information on teen and young adult drug abuse

The substance abuse in adolescence and teen statistics below are compiled from three primary sources:

Though all of these resources include data on other topics (such as instances of mental health issues), for the purpose of this article we will keep the discussion on their insights in to youth and young adult substance use in California. If you would like to see a complete list of references contained in this article, click here.

Defining the terms of Substance Use and Substance Use Disorder

We would like to start by defining a few commonly used terms in the substance abuse and drug abuse / addiction world.

Substance Abuse – This term refers to using a substance in a way that is problematic to the user. For instance, an individual may use substances and it may cause them to miss a school assignment, miss a family gathering, or affect their work performance. The presence of these “consequences” is one of the first symptoms we look for in determining whether someone has a substance use disorder.

Substance Use Disorder – This term was first introduced in 2013 in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Health Disorders, 5th Edition by the American Psychiatric Association. It is a diagnosable disorder characterized by the user reporting any of 11 criteria. These criteria range from reporting a desire to cut down on use, experiencing tolerance, experiencing withdrawal, and a number of others.

Alcohol, Marijuana, and Tobacco use among California adolescents aged 12-17 Statistics

The following three tables outline the statistics of substance abuse among secondary school students between the ages of 12-17. If you would like to skip ahead to specifically see data regarding young adults (aged 18-25), click here.

The California Health Care Foundation reported in their 2018 PDF that:

Lifetime use of substances for various grades
  Grade 7 Grade 9 Grade 11
Alcohol 13.3% 32.3% 51.7%
Cough/Cold Medicine – 43.6% 43.5%
Marijuana 7.9% 23.1% 37.9%
Cocaine – 3.7% 6.4%
Prescription Pain Medications – 16.8% 21.8%
Percentage of 11th grade public school students that used a specific substance at least four times to get high
Alcohol 33.0%
Cold/Cough Medicines 31.2%
Marijuana 25.1%
Prescription Pain Medications 8.2%
Ecstasy 3.4%
Inhalants 3.6%
Cocaine 3.0%

The table below details statistics from the Behavioral Health Barometer, Volume 5 in regards to substance use in teens aged 12-17.

Additional statistics on youth aged 12-17 (According to the Behavioral Health Barometer)
  Initiation of use in the past year Used in the past month
  California National Average California National Average
Marijuana 5.2% 4.8% 7.5% 6.8%
Cigarettes 2.9% 3.9% 2.9% 3.9%
Alcohol 8.5% 9.4% 9.8% 10.1%

Other statistics on adolescent drug use

Kidsdata.org reports in their PDF that:

Percentage of students who have used alcohol or other drugs in the previous month.
  Female Male
7th Grade 7.3% 7.1%
9th Grade 22.7% 16.6%
11th Grade 30.0% 27.7%

Key takeaways regarding adolescent / teen substance abuse in California

The above three substance abuse categories represent the most commonly used substances among adolescents. The report notes that while tobacco and alcohol use among teens age 12-17 were down in 2017 from their levels in 2005, marijuana use has not dropped. The report also does not detail use of other drugs, such as opioids, stimulants, or prescription drugs. In our professional experience, we have seen that many teens are using other drugs, especially prescription drugs, more often and we would like to see these numbers included in the next survey.

Additionally, it should be noted that as the older the kids get, it appears the more likely they are to experiment with drugs or alcohol. While this is not surprising, it is very revealing to see statistics approaching 1 in 3 students using substances as they approach the 11th grade level.

Young adult (ages 18-25) drug use in California Statistics

There is significantly less data compiled on this topic, since “young adult” generally means that the subjects are over the age of 18. This age group tends to get lumped together in the “over 18” category, which typically includes any adult over the age of 18. However, the SAMHSA’s 2017 data does provide some insight on the topic: 

Young Adults aged 18-25 who reported (in the past year)
  California National Average
Tobacco Use 33.4% 42.6%
Marijuana Use 34.7% 33.0%
Marijuana Use Disorder 5.8% 5.1%
Heroin Use 0.9% 1.3%
Illicit Drug Use Disorder 7.5% 7.2%
Binge Alcohol Use 35.2% 38.1%
Alcohol Use Disorder 10.9% 11.0%
Substance Use Disorder 14.4% 15.1%

Key takeaways on young adult substance use and substance use disorder in California

As with the reported numbers on youth, key numbers have dropped since 2005 – alcohol and tobacco use are down. However, there is one notable exception. Marijuana use among young adults has risen from 28% to almost 35%.

Young adults are far more likely to have experimented with drugs in their lifetime, and they are far more likely to have experimented with “harder” drugs such as cocaine or heroin. The key point to remember with this age range is that many of them used for the first time before the age of 18, and the ones that didn’t are still at much higher risk of developing dependency than 25+ year olds who have fully developed frontal cortexes.

What to do about a young person’s drug use

This is often the question that parents, guardians, and loved ones have for us when we first meet them. For many of us, the day we realize that our loved one is using drugs can be described as the worst day of our lives. It’s common to experience guilt, shame, fear, anger, distrust, feelings of betrayal, or a combination of these emotions upon first discovering that a family member is using drugs.

We’d like to start by saying that – there is hope, and you are not alone in this realization.

We often say that there are no guarantees in the drug and alcohol treatment world, but what we do know is that as a program, we see the results of young people and teenagers changing their lives and mending their broken family relationships every day of the week.

Our first recommendation is that you connect with a professional in the field of youth and young adult substance abuse. Many programs offer free assessments, or will talk with you on the phone. It is especially valuable to receive an assessment from a professional because it can be incredibly difficult to assess the severity of an individual’s substance use without a proper assessment. Sometimes this process makes you realize that perhaps the problem wasn’t as bad as you thought, and other times you realize that it’s time to seek real help and/or treatment.

Though our offices are located in California and Arizona, we are more than happy to spend time with you on the phone discussing options. Please reach out to us if you have concerns, questions, or would like a free assessment.

References:

Alcohol/Drug Use in Past Month, by Grade Level

Beharioral Health Barometer, Calofornia, Volume 5

California Student Mental Health Scorecard, 2015-2017

Mental Health and Substance Use: A Crisis for California’s Youth

Substance use among adolescents in California: A latent class analysis

Youth Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drug Use in California

Wine glass with a cry for help.

Does AA Really Work? New 2020 Research on AA Effectiveness

By on August 13th, 2020 in Addiction, Alcoholism, Articles

A new analysis of research on AA published this year by Keith Humphreys, PhD et al. has sought to answer some long-standing questions about whether or not Alcoholics Anonymous is effective for alcohol use disorder and other substance use disorders.

Alcoholics Anonymous has been considered the gold standard in the treatment and mental health world for decades as a method of helping individuals beat their drinking and drug use problems. There have also been over 30 other free fellowships formed that directly utilize their 12-step program model of recovery. This number doesn’t even include the many fellowships and groups out there that credit AA with influencing their model, such as Celebrate Recovery. However, the fellowship’s insistence that each AA group remains autonomous, that access to the fellowship remains free of charge, and it’s historical resistance to being directly studied may lead one to some very logical questions:

  1. How effective is AA and 12 step treatment?
  2. If it is effective, is it more effective than other forms of treatment such as cognitive behavioral therapy?

AA Research – some quick background

Humphreys is a professor of psychiatry and behavioral studies and a member of the Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute at Stanford University. For the past 3 years, Humphreys and his co-authors have been reviewing research from over 57 independent studies concerning the effectiveness of Alcoholics Anonymous as a solution to the basic trouble of the alcoholic, drug addict, or substance abuser.

They ran the meta-analysis through the standards set forth by the Cochrane Collaboration, which has long been considered the gold standard for meta-analysis. It is trusted by clinicians and considered to be bias resistant. After holding the 57 studies up to Cochrane Reviews’ standards, it was decided that 27 of them were suitable for inclusion in the meta analysis. The 27 studies represented research on over 10,000 individuals ranging in age from young to old and who either attended AA or received other types of therapy. The average ages of participants in the studies was between 34 and 51. This is quite a large evidence base!

The original abstract of the research can be found in the Cochrane Library by clicking here.

The basics of the AA 12-step approach – a quick overview

Alcoholics Anonymous chips for lengths of sobriety

Alcoholics Anonymous gives out chips denoting various lengths of sobriety.

Alcoholics Anonymous is a grassroots movement that dates back to the 1930’s between two alcoholics who were trying to maintain abstinence from alcohol. They found that when they connected with each other, and attempted to deliver their message of hope and recovery to alcoholics still suffering, they were able to maintain their own sobriety, and even find peace and happiness.

This realization flowered into multiple free support groups in Akron, New York, and Cleveland. They later formed the basis of their recovery process, the well known approach using 12 steps. This process starts with admission of powerlessness over one’s addiction and developing a relationship with a higher power of the participant’s choice. It proceeds to complete a thorough inventory of one’s conduct and life, continues through a process of making amends with those harmed, and culminates with the 12th step – delivering the message to those who still suffer of alcoholism and addiction.

AA’s model is completely free and self-sustaining, denying charitable contributions from outside organizations. AA members are free to consider themselves members if they have a stated desire to stop drinking.

The study’s results – does AA really work?

The study refers to AA/TSF interventions, which means Alcoholics Anonymous and Twelve Step Facilitation. These interventions were compared with other psychological clinical interventions, such as cognitive behavioral therapy. Three areas were studied: rates of continuous abstinence, percentage of days abstinent, intensity of drinking/using, and healthcare cost savings.

It was found that:

AA improves rates of continuous abstinence at 12 months, and that the effect continues at 24 and 36 months. This means that AA meetings and 12 step interventions are particularly better at producing continuous abstinence in the long term.

For percentage of days abstinent (days sober compared to days not sober), AA performs as well as other clinical interventions at 12 months – but AA outperforms other interventions at 24 and 36 months.

For drinking intensity (drinks per drinking day / percentage heavy drinking days), AA was found to perform as well as other clinical interventions at 9 months and 12 months.

3 of the 4 studies reporting on the cost of health care reported that AA and 12-step interventions showed greater health care cost savings. The fourth study concluded that other interventions outperformed AA, but that those with the worst prognostic characteristics showed greater health care savings from AA. While at first this may seem like it should be obvious, keep in mind that things like overdoses, hospital visits, and sickness add to healthcare costs as well. Sober people have lower healthcare costs in general.

The authors’ general conclusions, as quoted directly from the abstract:

“There is high quality evidence that manualized AA/TSF interventions are more effective than other established treatments, such as CBT, for increasing abstinence. Non‐manualized AA/TSF may perform as well as these other established treatments. AA/TSF interventions, both manualized and non‐manualized, may be at least as effective as other treatments for other alcohol‐related outcomes. AA/TSF probably produces substantial healthcare cost savings among people with alcohol use disorder.”

What does this mean for counseling, therapy, and rehab?

Humphreys also addressed the controversy that can surround Alcoholics Anonymous at times. He noted that while physicians tend to support 12 step approaches, psychiatrists and psychologists will sometimes regard the fellowship with skepticism. After all, how can lay people do a better job at facilitating recovery from alcohol and drugs than a trained psychologist with degrees?

Humphreys was quick to point out that while the study has made him a true believer in the Alcoholics Anonymous approach, he isn’t saying that counseling or substance abuse treatment shouldn’t be considered. He recommends that counseling for substance users can be designed as a “an extended, warm hand-off into the fellowship.” He noted in a podcast interview with Stanford Medicine that he felt validated for his recommendation that so many different people try Alcoholics Anonymous over the years. While he does admit that the AA way of life doesn’t necessarily work for every single person, an individual with a substance abuse problem will likely be better off if they give AA a try.

Based on our extensive experience helping young people and teens stop drinking and find sobriety, we would agree with Humphrey’s assessment here. Alcohol and drug treatment programs, whether inpatient or outpatient, in addition to therapy, are all valuable tools, but we see success rates dramatically improve when the participant is willing to make a transition into Alcoholics Anonymous or a similar fellowship (such as those directed at drug addiction) once their participation in our support groups comes to a close.

Further reading on this important research on Alcoholics Anonymous can be found Stanford University and Inverse.com.

It's possible to seek freedom from drug usage during the COVID pandemic.

Should I Still Seek Drug and Alcohol Treatment or 12 Step Meetings During COVID-19?

By on April 17th, 2020 in 12 Steps, Addiction, Alcoholism, Articles

Who knew how much the Stay At Home Order would affect our substance abuse recovery?

Over the past month, we’ve all had a lot of time to think, pray, and reflect on the implications of our current situation. As of this writing, we have been under quarantine for one month, and I was reminded of this moment today:

After the last in-person 12 Step meeting I attended before the stay at home order, one of the regulars in the meeting joked, “I’m not sure what’s worse for us alcoholics, to risk getting COVID-19 by attending meetings or to risk drinking by not attending meetings.”

It was a sullen half-joke. We both chuckled, but in the back of our minds we thought of the countless alcoholics and addicts around the city, country, and world who would struggle in this unprecedented situation. In a very real sense, we both knew that access to recovery resources is a matter of life and death for many. We exchanged phone numbers with one of the newer members of the group and went home.

It’s been over a month since that moment, and at the time, none of us in that meeting realized how long this quarantine would last. We also didn’t realize how serious this pandemic would be.

A friend of mine recently wrote an article in which she indicated that she had spent her entire recovery fighting her natural desire to isolate. How ironic that, for our own good, we are now being directed to isolate! As a recovering person, that sentiment really resonated with me.

However, a few questions that have come up over and over throughout this process:

  • What are the newcomers to recovery going to do? (I couldn’t imagine having 30 days sober at this moment in time)
  • Are the drug & treatment programs even open right now? (Yes, they are on the essential services list)
  • Is it even worth it to see drug and alcohol treatment right now? (Hint: yes, it is)
  • My son or daughter is using drugs; how am I supposed to help them with everything shut down?

I’ve noticed that while there has been a lot said about the struggles of the recovering person, I haven’t seen very much said about the solutions that are still available to us and to our families. For that reason, I’ve decided to compile a list of resources that I KNOW are available to each and every one of us, right now:

COVID-19 Stay At Home Order Alcohol & Drug Recovery Options For the Newcomer & The Recovering Person:

  • Recovery meetings (12 Step and otherwise) are available virtually over Zoom, GoToMeeting, Skype, and other platforms. You can find links to those resources…
  • Treatment centers are still open. As an essential service, in-person and virtual IOP’s are open. Please, please, please do not hesitate to seek treatment for yourself or a loved one who needs it during the COVID-19 crisis.
  • You’re probably carrying an $800 recovery supercomputer in your pocket right now. Your phone is your friend. Call your safety nets, sponsors, and friends. Share, laugh, cry, do whatever you need to do. If you don’t have phone numbers, Alcoholics Anonymous help lines are up and running. You can also call SAMSHA’s helpline 1-800-622-HELP (4357).

Resources For the Parents of recovering (or using), teenagers, young adults, or loved ones during the COVID-19 pandemic:

Tools for anyone Affected by Drug Use or Recovery During This Time

The stay at home order has forced me to be reminded that, as we say in recovery, happiness is an inside job. Here’s some things that any of us can do:

  • Finish some Stepwork. You know the inventory you’ve been putting off? Yeah, THAT one. Go ahead and write it.
  • Write a Gratitude List.
  • Read Page 60-63 in the Big Book – or any other of your favorite passages. 

My challenge to recovering people & families over the next week:

  • Utilize ALL of the recovery tools listed above that apply to you.
  • Write your own gratitude list. You might be surprised what you come up with.
  • Do all things with love.
  • Follow Rule 62: DON’T TAKE YOURSELF TOO SERIOUSLY.