Dear Lauren, Last year when I was riding a horse I got bucked off and split my chin open. I was okay, but I had to get eleven stitches that wrapped around the bottom part of my face. The doctors told me that I was lucky, and that it could have been a lot […]
Category: Dear Lauren Series
Process Addiction
Dear Lauren, My father has become severely addicted to gambling. After my mother died, he got severely depressed, and found comfort at online gambling tables. He not only does it online but at nearby casinos at least three times a week. He has spent all of his retirement savings at the casinos and has racked […]
Relapse Prevention
Dear Lauren, I have made a complete 180 in my life. Just last year I was homeless, jobless, and alone. I was addicted to painkillers, heroin, and methamphetamine. I drank all day and night long and begged for money on street corners. I hadn’t seen my family for years. Then my brother reached out to […]
Signs of Alcoholism
Alcohol Poisoning Dear Lauren, Next week my son is going to his first party of his freshman year. I’m not oblivious, I know that there will most likely be drinking there. I warned my sons of all of the dangers of alcohol on his body, with the law, and with me. I know the […]
Overcome Smartphone Addiction
You know what really hurts my feelings? When I’m trying to have a conversation with someone and they won’t stop looking at their phone. Is it really so hard to put it down or look away for just a few minutes and listen to what I am saying? Yes, people say, it is. Millions of […]
Rapid Opioid Detox
Rapid opioid detox Dear Lauren, Unfortunately I have suffered from opioid addiction for several years. Six years ago I broke my back in a boating accident and after weeks of surgery I was finally released from the hospital. After getting home I started to experience severe pain. Over-the-counter drugs just did not cut it. […]
Enabling
Dear Lauren, I am at a bit of a crossroads. I have been a heavy drinker since I was a teen and now at age 40, I see my twenty year old daughter making the same mistakes. She drinks every night, and I suspect that she drinks in the morning before going to her […]
Dealing With Alcohol Addiction During the Holidays
Dear Lauren, Usually the holiday season is my favorite time of the year. I love seeing my family members that live far away and giving out presents to my loved ones. This year is going to be much different than the past. I have been sober for over six months, and I plan on […]
Addiction Intervention and Sobriety
Dear Lauren, I am at a loss. I want to give up, but I know that I can’t. My best friend of ten years is headed down a dangerous spiral and I am afraid he is close to hitting rock bottom. I have talked to his sister and she is just as worried as […]
Peer Support Group
Sobriety Dear Lauren, I recently made the choice to devote my life to being sober and clean. I first became an alcoholic when I was in college, and a lack of resources led to me self-medicating with alcohol and other dangerous substances. Since then I have kicked the drugs, but I keep finding myself […]