PAL Blog
A Parent’s Story
Articles by Parents Like You
Hope Restored: How PAL Helped Us Rebuild Trust, Love, and a Future Together
My husband and I have been married for 43 years and have two sons. Our oldest son is married and has a baby. When our sons were growing up, our home was filled with neighborhood kids and school friends. Our youngest son began with marijuana in middle school and...
How Faith and Education Helped Me Find Purpose and Joy Again
I am the mother of two grown children, a daughter and a son. I have one grandson and two granddaughters. My husband and I have been married for 40 years. Growing up, my children were involved in several sports and activities, and we were very involved in our...
Breathing Again : Reclaiming Life and Joy Despite Uncertainty
I am free today of the trauma I carried far too long. I am a parent of an adult son who has substance use disorder. My son is 39 years old and has been a polysubstance abuser for 25 years. Much of that time he has been unhoused. Shane has had type 1 diabetes since...
The View from Recovery
Articles by People in Recovery
Starting the New Year with Renewed Hope: Letting Go of Reservations
“What could possibly be different this time? How long have you been sober? When is it going to stick?” If you’ve walked alongside someone battling addiction, or if you’ve fought the battle yourself, you’ve probably heard these questions—maybe even asked...
When Loneliness Becomes Strength How a Broken Christmas Sparked My Renewal
“These are the only genuine ideas; the ideas of the shipwrecked. All the rest is rhetoric, posturing, farce.” Jose Ortega y Gasset. I’ve spent holidays in detoxes. I’ve spent them in hospitals. I’ve spent them alone. I’ve spent them in cynicism and...
Honoring Friendships: The Simple Smiles That Spark Change
In 2014, I went to treatment in Prescott, AZ. After a long string of failed attempts at getting clean, it felt like my last hope, and for whatever reason, I felt a spark of inspiration when this opportunity presented itself to me. Removing myself from my...
From Counselors
Articles by PAL and Partner Counselors
Holiday Harmony: Crafting a Plan to Handle Holiday Triggers
With December upon us and the holidays closing in, it is very important to recognize all the various emotions and thoughts that take place during these last months of the year. The holiday season tends to be commercialized as a time of joy, celebration, and family...
Accepting Help is Still Very Possible
Feeling helpless and hopeless in trying to save loved ones who believe they do not need help is one of the most disheartening aspects of the disease that families endure in dealing with mental health/addiction. As the growing number of individuals struggling with...
California Sober
There are some concepts in the field of addiction and recovery that have become outdated with time. For example, the consensus decades ago was that the only true path to recovery from addiction were 12-Step fellowships (like Alcoholics Anonymous). We now know that...
