Dear Friends and Colleagues:
We’re in the middle of winter in the desert and it’s been cold… 47 degrees cold. But, on the bright side, we have had some wonderful rain and California is no longer in a drought. What a blessing! The desert floor has gone from dry brown to lush green. Icing on the cake is that the desert flowers that usually bloom a bit later are already beginning to rise up from the ground. We may have the earliest and most luscious bloom in our region! This is, no doubt, the perfect time celebrate new beginnings.
We recently attended the Impact Behavioral Health Conference which took place on January 29th and 30th, 2017 as well as the Woman’s Desert Show on January 14th. Both were educational and empowering. Josie especially appreciated being able to moderate the “Heartbreak of Addiction” Panel where individuals who have claimed their sobriety shared their stories.
At this time Recovery View is promoting and honoring our long time client Dr. Lori Phelps, an expert in addiction psychology, and plans to have a presence at the CAADE Conference. We also have the Second Annual C-Suite Conference coming up on September 1, 2017 at the Mission Inn in Riverside. We’re hosting that one and are really excited about uniting executives in behavioral health for a wonderful, educational event.
In the Spotlight this month is Allen Berger, Ph.D. His article, “Learning From Our past,” explores the parallels between our biological processes and our psychological processes. In this fascinating piece, Dr. Berger suggests that we psychologically “take what can grow us from [traumatic] experience[s] and eliminate the rest,” which is basically what our digestive system does with the things we physically ingest!
Rev. Kevin T. Coughlin Ph.D., DCC, DDVA, DLC, DD, NCIP, NCAMP, IMAC describes how SPECT scans can improve treatment in “Psychiatry and Addiction Medicine Impacted by SPECT Imagery”. This article highlights the differences in the brain images of people with different kinds of addictions and makes clear that each one may require a different kind of treatment.
It’s not everyday you have a major realization about treatment. Louise Stanger, Ed.D, LCSW, CDWF, CIP, shares with us in “Rethinking Triple Threat,” how she feels about treatment beyond dual diagnosis. It’s not as simple as coming up with a triad of solutions for the triad of problems - rather, she suggests we settle into an “ecosystem” mentality to deal with the many issues at hand.
“Sex Addiction” by Jasmin Rogg, M.A., M.F.T., is a heart rending story which beautifully illustrates the underlying problems of sex addiction. While this is a real tear jerker, there is much to learn from the characters in the story as well as from the wisdom that follows.
“Reefer Madness” is enlightening in a way that may shock you. Condensing the history of Cannabis and particularly THC concentrations, this article by Jon Daily, LCSW, CADSII will help you to see why a weed high back then is not in any way the same as a getting a high these days. This is a highly scientific piece that will show you in a detailed way how you and especially your kids could be badly affected by these substances at this particular point in time.
Renee Popovits, J.D. shares with us some shocking news about a confidentiality law in her article “Perceptions of Protection.” It turns out that some of the patient protections we rely on are merely an illusion. Read the article to understand why enforcement of an important confidentiality law is virtually impossible at this time.
Wondering about how to make decisions you are happy with? Joan Hangartar, D.C., M.S. has provided us an easy way to figure out what direction we should be headed in. In “Does it make your Heart Sing?” she tells us how this guiding mantra can help anyone to figure out their life purpose and sing their way to a more fulfilled life!
West Jones’s piece called “Changing lives… through marketing?” is sure to change your business if you’re an owner or marketer of a treatment facility. While the article is geared at helping you to develop an altruistic marketing style and purpose, I’m certain that you will walk away feeling that financial abundance grows when your heart and your ethics are in the right place. What could be a better way to share love with the masses in this season of love?
Joan Borsten has been reporting on the insurance dilemma in behavioral health care for www.RecoveryView.com for quite some time. Read her article, “How Centene and Health Net’s CEO Got Rich on the Backs of California’s Out-of-Network Substance Abuse Providers and Rendered Worthless Health Net PPO Benefits” to learn the latest!
We can always count on our regular author, Herb Kaighan, to provide us a dose of wisdom! In “How Does the Program Really Work?” he follows up on a previous article in which he suggested that meetings have become the program to our detriment. In this new piece, Kaighan tells us exactly how the program works and how we can utilize it for the best result instead of over-focusing on only one aspect.
This edition’s Featured Members are West Jones of Incredible Marketing and Joan Hangarter, author, speaker, artist and healer.
West Jones is no ordinary marketer. He has found ways to build altruism into the personality of his marketing business. Get to know him and his philosophies in “West Jones: The Man Behind a Bold, Altruistic Message” and find out what it takes to be the kind of person that can run an an altruistic business. We love his quest for transparency and his openness in this interview.
Read the exclusive interview featured in this edition to find out how Hangartar creates her beautiful art. Those in recovery can apply the wisdom she conveys in the piece entitled, “Joan Hangarter: Painting to Heal, Painting to Ascend” to live out their life purpose... and find “high frequency” inspiration. The artwork featured in this interview is gorgeous and thought provoking and will make you want to go grab your paintbrush immediately!
Among the many resources you will find within the February Edition is an uplifting book by Hangartar. Miracle Makers Club features aspects of her life story, her healing, as well as workbook pages that can help you to receive miracles like she did. The wisdom she shares in this book will guide you toward a hopeful and inspired mindset.
We are also excited to feature Scott Kiloby\'s, J.D., latest book Natural Rest for Addiction: A Revolutionary Way To Recover. It is available for pre-order and we are sure you will love the simple techniques for experiencing \"natural rest\" described in this book... whether you are in recovery or not!
We are also pleased to present 3 Words That Will Ruin Your Life which is our Featured Video for this edition. Reef Karim, D.O., has been best known on our site for his entertaining online show, Reef Madness, which is geared at getting people to talk honestly and openly about behavioral health care. While we await Episode 4 ofReef Madness, we present to you a Reef Karim Original in which Dr. Reef gives us a fast and easy way to get rid of vocabulary that could be harming our relationship with ourselves.
We want to take this opportunity to thank our members, our readers and the sponsor of the current edition, the CAADE Conference, which is taking place on April 21-23 at the Sheraton Gateway LAX.
Finally, we want to express our gratitude to the incredible authors who make RecoveryView’s impact on the recovery community possible. We have received many inquiries from professionals in the community who want to write for our publication and that is a real blessing. There is room for all who want to share their expertise, so continue to send your inquiries, articles, artwork, poetry and more to creativeeditor@recoveryview.com! I look forward to hearing from you soon and featuring your work so that as many people as possible can benefit!
In Love and Light,
Josie and Jim Herndon
