10 Tales from Chef Karen on Cooking up Trouble Whether you’ve taken the suggestions in the rooms of an anonymous program or you haven’t, you may have a few interesting stories about people who try to “get” and stay sober. Karen Zaccour, our “Chef” for this recipe and Stepping Stone alumna, pours light-hearted humor over
There is an undeniable link between mental health conditions and substance abuse. While there are many reasons for this, the primary one is that patients self-medicate. Unfortunately, this tends to make things worse. Identifying dual diagnosis disorders can be the key to recovery. Nearly 10 Million People in America Have a Severe Mental Illness Unfortunately,
By: Jen Suresh I am the sister of two heroin addicts. My sister Beth’s first dealer was her doctor, who prescribed her countless pain killers after she was in a car accident at age 23 that left half of her body broken. After the prescriptions ran out, she turned to heroin as it was cheaper
Florida’s substance-use crisis continues unabated. The latest annual figures show that total drug-related deaths in Florida increased by almost 14 percent in 2015 over 2014. Especially alarming are the rising overdose deaths from heroin and fentanyl. Data for 2015 from the Florida Medical Examiners Commission shows that “occurrences of heroin increased by 74.3 percent and
I grew up in a loving family, with my parents still being married over 40 years later. I was the youngest of three, with two old sisters; one being six years older and the other being 12 years older. Growing up as the youngest, it gave my parents time to establish themselves financially. Financial stability
My Journey to Addiction Recovery: Beth M. I grew up in South Jersey, just outside of Philadelphia, in a good family. Drugs and alcohol were not part of my story at a young age, I actually got a pretty late start compared to many other stories that I hear. I just wasn’t exposed to it.
“Tolerance is one of the most obvious effects of abused drugs,” wrote the first director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), Robert Du Pont, in The Selfish Brain. “Most non-users are impressed by how much drug use tolerance permits. They cannot imagine liking the feelings produced by smoking 40 cigarettes a day or
My name is Karrie. On November 13, 2013, around 7:00 PM I checked in to Stepping Stone Center for Recovery. I had finally got to a point where I knew my drinking and drugging had spun out of control and that I couldn’t change on my own. I had 4 children. Months before I knew
Vickie Gave Herself and Her Family the Gift of Recovery Three years ago I entered addiction treatment at Stepping Stone a broken woman who had suffered incomprehensible demoralization. I had gotten a DUI and had lost my job. I had had long-term sobriety and went to AA but that was not enough. I decided that my best hope
If you were to answer the question, “what is substance abuse?”, would you point to narcotics such as heroin or cocaine? You’re not alone. There are many who consider these substances to be the drugs that others abuse. However, did you know that this list should also include tobacco, prescription drugs, and alcohol? Understanding a
