The New Shame Problem Anonymity used to be simple. You went to a meeting, you listened, you spoke when you were ready, and you left with the comfort of knowing what was said in that room stayed there. The point was safety. People could be honest without the fear of...
When the drug is not the only thing poisoning the house
Emotional abuse and addiction Addiction can turn a decent person into someone selfish, dishonest, and cruel. That is true, and it is one reason families tolerate far more than they should. They keep telling themselves, it is the substances talking, it is not really them, once they are sober they...
When Counselling Becomes Another Excuse
Sounding “Aware” While Staying the Same There is a type of client who can walk into counselling and speak like they have already done the work. They know the words, trauma, boundaries, triggers, self sabotage, inner child, nervous system, accountability, self care. They can describe their childhood in detail, explain...
Cannabis in Recovery Culture, When One Substance Replaces Another
Cannabis Often Enters Recovery Through the Back Door For many people in recovery from alcohol or other substances, cannabis feels like a safe compromise. It does not cause the same chaos. It does not trigger the same consequences. Compared to what came before, it feels controlled and manageable. This makes...
Denial Holds More Power Than the Drink Itself
Denial Begins Long Before the First Drink of the Day Alcohol abuse does not begin with reckless drinking or dramatic collapse, it begins with denial woven into everyday life, long before the person realises how deeply alcohol has taken hold. Denial is the emotional shield that protects the drinker from...
Gaslighting, When Manipulation Becomes the Operating System of a Sick Relationship
Gaslighting Is Psychological Vandalism In the world of addiction, gaslighting operates as far more than a dishonest habit. It grows into a protective shield for someone whose life has become increasingly unmanageable. People in the grip of addiction rarely manipulate because they enjoy it, they manipulate because the truth has...
When Addiction Looks Like Anxiety, Depression, or ADHD
The Confusion That Keeps Families in the Dark Addiction rarely walks into a family wearing a clear label. It doesn’t announce itself with obvious signs in the beginning, and it doesn’t always follow the dramatic patterns people expect. More often, addiction disguises itself as something else entirely, anxiety, burnout, depression,...
Why Some People Get Addicted and Others Don’t
The Question Everyone Asks Whenever addiction enters a family, people begin asking the same question in different ways. Why did this happen to him and not his brother? Why did she spiral when everyone else was drinking too? Why do some people experiment and walk away while others cannot stop?...
Why We Keep Returning to the Same Emotional Address
No matter how far you run, you somehow end up back in the same place. Different city, different job, different partner, same feeling. The loneliness, the shame, the restlessness. The craving. It’s as if something inside you keeps recalculating your route back to pain. Like a broken GPS that refuses...
When Sobriety Feels Like Losing Your Edge
No one tells you that sobriety might feel boring. They tell you it’ll save your life, restore your health, fix your relationships. They tell you that clarity is beautiful. But what they don’t tell you is that clarity can also feel like emptiness, a quiet so strange it borders on...