Domestic Violence

There are many forms of abuse; emotional, verbal, sexual, and physical abuse (and some books specifically site social, financial, religious/spiritual abuse as well), which people suffer at different times of their lives by perpetrators they know and usually trust. This could happen throughout childhood and/or in adulthood. When it occurs in adulthood between intimate partners, […]

Codependency

Codependency was a really common term in the 80’s and ’90’s that came out of the addiction field to describe anyone involved with an addict (includes alcoholics and will be referred to as a male) who tends to “caretake” and “enable”. They generally lose sight of themselves the more wrapped up they get in the […]

Couples

Most of us spend our lives in pursuit of a happy, healthy, fulfilling, exciting, loving, relationship with a partner. Some of us find it and some of us don’t, but most of us enter one relationship after another in search of it, trying to figure it out. After all, it is a basic human need […]

Alzheimer’s

Alzheimer’s is often referred to as the “long good-by” because it’s a disease that slowly invades the brain, interferes with the person’s ability to function normally causing them to become more and more confused, forgetful, agitated, aggressive, angry, and eventually completely dependent on others. It is progressive and fatal. The person afflicted with Alzheimer’s suffers […]

Addiction

Addiction is a lifelong struggle; one that the can be experienced with or without sobriety and recovery. Without sobriety, it can be and very often is fatal; directly or indirectly. Addiction is very powerful and should not be underestimated. There are many types of addiction including alcohol, drugs, sex, and gambling. There are also many […]

Parenting Amidst the Chaos

Vallarta Tribune, Aug 13-19, 2006, issue # 488, pg 18 What happens to the children who grow up in chaotic homes? Many problems contribute to the chaos such as marital conflict, affairs, divorce, loss or absence of a parent, addiction, and domestic violence.  The problems can manifest themselves in many ways including behavioral problems, dramatic […]

Adult Daughters of Alcoholics…and maybe the rest of us too!(part 2)

  PV Mirror, Feb 5-11, 2011, issue #121, pg 21    Last week I described the a) achiever, b) triangulator, c) passive one, d) other-directed one. Now here are the next four types. Let’s see which ones sound familiar either for you or someone you know. The Conflict Avoider:avoids personal conflict at any cost, but […]

Adult Daughters of Alcoholics…and maybe the rest of us too! (part 1 of 2)

PV Mirror, Jan 29-Feb 4, 2011, issue # 120, pg 21 There is a classic book in the addiction field written specifically about daughters who grow up in alcoholic homes. Robert J Ackerman, PhD, spent his career specializing in alcoholic families and has written numerous books. This one in particular is “Perfect Daughters”. In it […]

Begin the Path of Recovery

Vallarta Tribune Nov 19-26, 2006, issue # 502, pg 26 Many people realize that they have a problem somehow related to addiction whether they grew up in an alcoholic or abusive home and now have problems with relationships or have developed an addiction. The problems manifest themselves differently in various members of the family. Your […]

Codependency: Who Am I Without You?

Vallarta Tribune, Apr 2-8, 2006, issue # 469, pg 21  Codependency may be difficult for people to understand, but we often explain that it is the other side of the addiction coin. It is a term that tends to generate controversy because individuals/institutions can’t seem to agree on a definition. It became popular in the […]