Alcoholism & Addiction in the Gay Community

For more than 25 years, conventional wisdom has held that lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) individuals are much more likely to abuse alcohol and other drugs than are their heterosexual counterparts. But recent efforts to clarify and quantify the prevalence of drug and alcohol use within the LGBT community have cast doubt on the veracity of this long-held belief. Read more

Can Yoga Help in Recovery from Addiction?

Some experts believe that yoga can be a valuable tool for treating addiction, although the topic has created some controversy among addiction counselors. Read more

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Women at Greater Risk When Heavy Drinkers

Women who drink heavily are at greater risk of cardiac problems than men, according to the latest research from A Japanese Collaborative Cohort Study. Read more

Relationship Addiction (Co-Dependency)

It’s a fact that everyone and everything exits in relationship to everyone and everything else. It is sometimes difficult to identify a relationship addict because humans absolutely require relationships in order to live healthy lives. Relationship addicts (also called co-dependents) engage in relationships for reasons which are not healthy. In addition, many of the relationships do not bring them joy, or enhance their lives; they bring trouble instead. Read more

Addiction: More Than Just a Choice

By Stephanie Hamilton

The answer seems simple enough, and is often lumped in with solutions for other unhealthy – albeit far less destructive – habits. You want to lose weight? Stop eating junk food. You want to be in better physical shape? Stop sitting on the couch and start exercising. You want to overcome a drug addiction? Stop using drugs. Read more

Ten Golden Rules (OK - Suggestions) for Early Recovery

When you are first sober it truly does seem to be a new world you are entering. It can be daunting, even overwhelming. Read more

Reflections at 21 Years

As I approach my 22nd anniversary of sobriety (August 1st) I keep thinking about a friend of mine who lost his sobriety at 20 years. Actually, he started to “lose” it many years before that when a well-meaning but uninformed psychiatrist prescribed Xanax to him. That’s something alcoholics like to call “booze in a pill.” 

He knew he shouldn’t risk it - but the “doctor” said it was okay, so he took it when he had anxiety. He didn’t go to meetings anymore.  He didn’t really talk to other people in recovery.  It didn’t bode well for his future.

I saw him maybe 10 years ago - falling down drunk. He told me later that he was on a cross-country flight and as a nervous flyer he looked very anxious to the flight attendants. One said, “You look like you could use a drink.”  He heard himself say, “Yes, I’ll have a Wild Turkey.” 

His sponsor and I went through his office and rooms searching for the hidden booze. (Note to those still drinking: a recoverying alcoholic can ALWAYS find your stashes - even the bottle behind the furnace in the basement).  He tried to get sober. He got drunk. He tried to get sober again. He got drunk again.

For the next five years he went in and out of alcohol rehabs - one stint was almost a year long, and he drank on the train ride home. The disease truly had him in its talons.

A few weeks ago I learned that he was on his death bed due to brain cancer (he had been chain smoking for over 30 years as well). He only had a few days to live.

He got to spend his last dying months sober, but truly lost the last decade of his life to alcohol.

It’s a grim story - this was a brilliant, talented man who was so loved and likeable when he was sober. He was on top of the world - a highly successful screenwriter who was making money, had lots of friends, and seemed to have everything.

What does it tell me?  That alcohol is a powerful and deadly addiction. It keeps its grips long after you stop drinking. It’s ready to pounce if you let your guard down.

You can take a sober man with a brilliant life, give him a drink, and his life is destroyed.

So anytime you think, maybe one drink, remember the man who thought the same thing…and killed himself.

Just for Today?

What does “just for today” really mean? Most recovering people will tell you it doesn’t mean you don’t plan for tomorrow or the future - it just means you stay as focused on the here and now as possible so you don’t get a head of yourself. It’s a lot easier to say, “I won’t drink today,” than it is to say, “I won’t ever drink again.” This is a critical part of staying clean and sober!

Breaking the Cycle of Self-Sabotage

By Shannon Perez

When it comes to addiction, few things are more frustrating than dealing with the issue of self-sabotage. Just when it seems everything is moving in the right direction, the tendency to revert back to old behavior patterns, thoughts and activities rears its ugly head. The guilt, shame and despair leaves everyone bewildered and feeling hopeless. Read more

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