by PAL | Jan 1, 2026 | A Counselor
In 2025, author Melody Beattie died at the age of 76. The following is from Melody Beattie’s book More Language of Letting Go. She also has the following on her website melodybeattie.com. At PAL, we have a saying: take what you want and leave the rest. Many...
by PAL | Dec 1, 2025 | A Counselor
Just in case you missed the Recovery in Action live presentation on November 20th, here is a summary of what we talked about with our special guest Ron Paterik, a licensed substance abuse counselor and long time friend of PAL. The session entitled Navigating the...
by PAL | Nov 1, 2025 | A Counselor
Fall is that time on your journey when your adult child relapses. Yes, your son or daughter has had a period of progress, but he or she has returned to drugs or alcohol, and it feels as if the chill of winter has returned as the leaves fall from the trees again....
by PAL | Oct 1, 2025 | A Counselor
Guilt is a natural feeling that comes to you when you feel you have done something wrong. For instance, most people feel guilty about lying to a friend for their own convenience. If, in your model of the world, lying is against your moral code, then you will feel...
by PAL | Sep 1, 2025 | A Counselor
The Transtheoretical Model for Behavioral Change is a framework that seeks to explain how individuals move through the process of changing unhealthy ways of coping behaviors toward more positive choices. It is used for many problem areas (i.e. smoking cessation,...
by PAL | Aug 1, 2025 | A Counselor
Addiction starts with our brain, and I find it helps to imagine that our brain is like a dog driving a Tesla. One part of our brain is extremely advanced (the prefrontal cortex) – this is the part that allows us to do all sorts of complex things other animals can’t,...
