Blog & News

Taking steps towards recovery

Taking steps towards recovery

Recently I met a young woman named “Jen.”   After six years on the run, she is living in a female sober living house and testing her first weeks of sobriety.  Surrounded by women who are months and years ahead of her in recovery, she craves the strength and experience they provide to guide her each …

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When you want to trust the therapist

When you want to trust the therapist

Even today I cannot recall his last name.  He went by some nickname, Art or Andy.  He was the first therapist in our family’s lives.  Just knowing we were “seeing a therapist” felt so strange.  But I was desperate to find someone to help my child. A colleague had said he was “good with kids.” …

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Six Years

Six Years

Wearing a cream-colored polo shirt and dark jeans, the young man stands at the front of the room.  Before him is a worn, wooden podium atop a small table.  His hair is cropped short and his beard neatly trimmed.  When he smiles, his teeth flash white.  Eyes are green, no, hazel under the ceiling’s fluorescent …

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“Author discusses son’s addiction in relation to the Jewish community,” Jewish Journal

“Author discusses son’s addiction in relation to the Jewish community,” Jewish Journal

Author Lisa Hillman discussed her book “Secret No More: A True Story of Hope for Parents with an Addicted Child” in three separate programs for rabbis, high school students and general audiences that took place recently in Boca Raton. Hillman and her son Jacob, a former substance abuse addict, each shared their personal stories of coping …

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When it’s about time

When it’s about time

The sudden quiet in their voices catches my ear. The group has been chattering for about an hour.  My husband and I are sharing sushi with our son and his friends at a favorite Thai restaurant.  The talk is mostly about food, weekend plans and the next retreat. Then, their voices drop.  I hear, so …

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Where hope is restored

Where hope is restored

Each January my husband and I visit our son in South Florida.   Frequently he invites us to attend open AA meetings.  It’s a glimpse into a world few who are not addicts or alcoholics get to see, or perhaps even want to see. For me AA meetings are intensely interesting.  In South Florida they are …

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When a child dies from overdose

When a child dies from overdose

Note: Today in Florida my son attends two funerals, both for young men. This post is for survivors.   Recently, two mothers who each lost a son to overdose invited me to lunch – just to sit and talk.  We sat overlooking a sunny harbor where boats breezed by. Their sons had died within weeks …

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Please, send me the roadmap

Please, send me the roadmap

A mother from Texas writes “our family is still struggling a lot.  It seems like the wall that our son is putting around him is getting taller every day.  It’s heartbreaking to watch him alienate us when he needs our help the most.” She longs for a “roadmap” to help her family decide when to …

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Angry Moms

Angry Moms

If you don’t know one yet, you will These are the mothers whose sons’ and daughters’ obituaries you read in the local newspaper. Joe could light up a room just by his smile.  He loved hiking and fishing.  He leaves behind his parents, grandparents, girlfriend Jill and his loving dog Bo. There will be a …

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