Articles | Page 6 of 15

Anger The Drug

“Anger is liquor to the “dry drunk” alcoholic. Once anger comes in, just like alcohol, it has to wear itself out; it goes through the body just like liquor.” These…

AA and the Question of Anonymity

Some time ago, I had the opportunity to have an e-mail discussion about anonymity with a law student who was trying to decide whether he should disclose information about being…

Asking the Hard Questions About Alcoholism

The alcoholic came first. At least that is the answer from recent alcoholism research on the often asked chicken or egg question of which came first: the alcoholic personality or…

Becoming a Better Lawyer: Identifying Addiction

“It’s just coke that you smoke,” the dealer said. “It’s direct.” John drew on the pipe and blasted off into the ecstatic edge of consciousness. This was John’s escape from…

Good Mental Health Starts With Becoming Real

A man and his wife and small daughter go into a restaurant for dinner. The waitress comes over and takes the orders of the husband and wife. Immediately the five…

Thriving Through Depression: Beethoven

Case Study A. This is a lawyer 31 years old who works for a prestigious law firm in a North Carolina city. He is married, has two children, and makes…

Brain Neuroplasticity and Addiction

For a long time there has been much research on addiction but there hasn’t been much research on the solution. I like to talk about recovery, the solution. Now for the first…

Cave Paintings, Substance Abuse and Lawyers

One of the most dramatic struggles in pre-history recorded in the Bible and myths of old was the conflict between the old order of hunter-gatherers and the new order of…

Choosing Your God

“You can’t solve a problem with the very mind that created it.” Albert Einstein Often I find myself being told, “Don, I would like to get sober but doesn’t AA…

Cocaine: Old Attitudes New Dangers

Alcoholism is the primary chemical causing addictive disease in our country. It is responsible for thousands of fatalities each year, but there is another drug that is having a profound…

College and Law School Drinking

I made it through junior high school and high school drinking regularly on weekends. I could drink a lot. Miraculously, no one seemed to know how inferior I was and…

A Recovery Story: Darkest Before Dawn

Introduction My name is Kent S. and I am a recovering alcoholic and drug addict. I am sober today through the grace of God and the fellowship of Alcoholic’s Anonymous. …