Holding Space For Choice

When college student April Lombard first considered checking out a SMART Recovery meeting on her LSU campus, she worried that it would be both cringey and lame. Turns out it was neither. In fact, based on the value April found in the science-based approach, she decided to take the facilitator training and get even more involved. In this podcast April shares some of her personal recovery journey, her perspective as a young person in recovery, and why having multiple pathways available to students just makes sense. 

Sarah Laurel is the Founder and Executive Director of Savage Sisters Recovery, a nonprofit outreach and education organization focused on reducing the harm created by addictive behaviors. Sarah uses her lived experience to advance the organization’s commitment to providing trauma-informed resources in a judgement-free way.  In this podcast Sarah shares her personal recovery journey and the "happy accidents" along the way that led to the work that she does today. Her hopeful message is filled with practical concern for how things are right now, along with encouragement for all of us to live in a ferocious and loving manner toward ourselves and the world we inhabit.  

There is a well documented connection between problematic substance use and mental health conditions. Since May is Mental Health Awareness Month, we asked SMART facilitator Kelly Scullin to join us in a conversation about mental health and recovery. She is a Certified Professional Co-Active Coach and has deep experience in the human resources field. Kelly brings a unique perspective to her work based on her personal journey with substance use, her status as a "self-proclaimed recovering type A," and the coaching skills involved with facilitating group meetings and helping people make the best decisions for themselves. As a person who stays curious and explores the world around her, Kelly is a positive force in the continued growth and development of SMART.  Further resources: SAMHSA Mental Health Awareness Month Mental Health and substance Use Co-Occuring Disorders National Alliance on Mental Illness  

College age youth often experiment with new behaviors when they perceive they have less formal restrictions, and Millie Goins knows all about it. She is a prevention advocate and certified wellness coach that leads student programs at the University of Central Arkansas. In her role she seeks to educate youth about the multiple dimensions of wellness and how substance misuse can negatively affect their ability to stay healthy and succeed in an academic setting. Because she has lived experience, Millie is able to connect with students and offer valuable support as they make choices. In this podcast, Millie shares her personal and professional background, why she sees SMART as such a great resource for young adults, and how careful planning and strategic deployment of resources benefits the entire academic community. Additional Resources: SAMHSA Eight Dimensions of Wellness video Publications highlighting connection between recovery and wellness  

Naltrexone has been used to treat alcohol use disorder for 30 years, ever since researcher Dr. Joseph Volpicelli identified its effectiveness. In this podcast we are joined by both Dr. Volpicelli and Jonathan Hunt-Glassman, the founder of Oar Health, an organization that supports the combination of medication and psychosocial supports to assist people seeking to change their relationship to alcohol.   Dr. Joseph Volpicelli runs the Volpicelli Center and is a University of Pennsylvania’s Medical Scientist Training Program graduate, receiving both his doctorate of medicine and psychology.  In this podcast Jonathan shares his and others personal stories of successfully making changes by using Naltrexone and other supports. For Dr. Volpicelli, it comes down to the medication helping individuals make the best choices for themselves when it comes to alcohol use, and the positive steps that he sees patients make in their recovery journeys.   

Carrie Wilkens is the Co-founder and Partner of the Center for Motivation and Change, a group practice of dedicated clinicians and researchers who rely on science and kindness to help people change. She is the co-author of the award-winning book and companion workbook Beyond Addiction: How science and kindness help people change that is based in part on CRAFT, the evidence-based treatment approach to helping families.   In this podcast Carrie talks about her immediate recognition as a young psychologist that she wanted to be part of helping individuals and families who are facing issues related to addictive behaviors, the need to fight stigma, how CMC helps create "conditions for change," and what it means to be relevant in the evolving treatment landcape.  

Rebekah Robertson is a SMART facilitator in Columbia Missouri who found the program after a family member entered treatment for an addictive behavior. At first she thought she was different and people wouldn't understand all the circumstances that surrounded her. Then Rebekah experienced "that knowing smile" of others who had gone through similar situations and were able to navigate them in a positive way. She felt connected, learned much, and eventually moved on from attending meetings regularly. A few years later Rebekah returned to SMART Family and Friends meetings during a challenging time. She quickly reconnected and after encouragement from the group's facilitator, she decided to give back by becoming a facilitator herself.  In this podcast, Rebekah shares some of the powerful moments she has experienced as both a participant and facilitator in SMART meetings, and why the program is valuable for so many.  

  Nichole "Nikki" Lowder is a Program Manager at the South Carolina Department of Corrections. She brings both her lived experience and professional training to her work with incarcerated individuals who are trying to make important changes in their lives.  Prior to her own recovery journey, Nikki worked in the finance world but realized that she could no longer live the kind of life that was filled with dishonesty and deception. She discovered her passion for helping others who were facing similar crossroads, and made it the purpose of her career change. In this podcast Nikki talks about her personal struggles, the power of peer support, and how watching the ripples spread from her work brings her incredible satisfaction.   

For more than 30 years Dr. Joseph Gerstein has been collecting stories from SMART participants about powerful emotional experiences related to their recovery journey. He has now written a captivating essay about the nature of these occurances that includes examples and analysis of what he calls "secular conversion experiences." His insight into the value of these experiences and the common elements found paints a picture of how our cognitive functions connect with the more emotive features of our lives. Dr. Gerstein is SMART's Founding President and a retired professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School. He has been instrumental in the growth of SMART in the U.S. and across the globe and has personally facilitated over 4,000 SMART meetings over 34 years. 

Dr. Michael DeMarco is a licensed mental health and family therapist and has pursued additional training in the use of psychedelic medicines for those struggling with substance use disorders. He emphasizes that there has been a significant amount of research about the use of Ketamine and other medications over the course of decades, and it's important to know how to put such research in an appropriate context. In this podcast, Michael talks about his own interest in the recovery ecosystem and the journey he has embarked on in the pursuit of helping others. He also relates his extensive background in cognitive behavioral therapy to his current Ketamine-assisted therapy practice. Additional information: Ketamine for the treatment of mental health and substance use disorders: comprehensive systematic review Psychedelic Cognitive Behavioral therapy: On Ketamine, Context, and Competencies in "Assisted Psychotherapy" Survey of peer recovery coaches' attitude toward use of psychedelic medicines