Recovering from My Child's Addiction

Shelly Summers
  • 4.0 (4)
  • Mental Health

Has your son or daughter’s addiction impacted you in ways you never dreamed of? When you have a child who has the disease of addiction, you say, do, and feel things you wish you never had to experience. My 24-year-old son has struggled with addiction since he was prescribed ADHD medication almost 12 years ago. Just as an addict can work the Narcotic’s Anonymous 12-step program as a catalyst to change their life, their loved ones have their own 12-step program. The program is called Nar-Anon. This podcast is my journey through each of the steps.

  1. 06/23/2024

    Interview with Joseph's Youngest Sibling

    Meet my youngest child in this episode as she shares her perspective about being the younger sister of a drug addict. Visit https://www.nar-anon.org/ for helpful resources or to find a meeting.

  2. 10/22/2023

    Interview with Joseph's Younger Brother

    Meet my youngest son in this episode as he shares his perspective about being the younger brother of a drug addict. Visit https://www.nar-anon.org/ for helpful resources or to find a meeting.

  3. 09/03/2023

    Interview with Joseph's Older Brother

    Meet my oldest son in this episode as he shares his perspective about being the older brother of a drug addict. Visit https://www.nar-anon.org/ for helpful resources or to find a meeting.

  4. 08/21/2023

    Interview with Joseph's Dad

    Meet my husband, Nick, in this episode as he shares his perspective about being the father of a drug addict. Visit https://www.nar-anon.org/ for helpful resources or to find a meeting.

  5. 07/17/2023

    Interview with My Son

    In this episode, my son shares some of his story. Visit https://www.nar-anon.org/ for helpful resources or to find a meeting.

  6. 06/26/2023

    Step 12: Having had a spiritual awakening as a result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to others, and to practice these principles in all our affairs.

    Step 12 is the final step in the Nar-Anon program. In this episode, these 20 questions are discussed: What does being spiritual mean to me? What kind of Twelfth Step work have I done? What thoughts or feelings come to mind when I think of the word awakening? How has working the Twelve Steps led me to a spiritual awakening? How has my spiritual life improved as a result of working the Steps? What progress do I see in myself as a result of working these steps? Working the Twelve Steps has required effort and soul searching. How has accomplishing this given me more self-confidence? How has my understanding of the phrase "working the steps" changed since I started this journey? How have I seen my Higher Power working in my life as I have traveled this Twelve Step path? What does it mean to carry the message? What is the message I am trying to carry to others? What are some of the ways I can carry the message of recovery through attraction rather than promotion? Can I remember a situation when I shared the Nar-Anon message? How did it make me feel? What does it mean to practice these principles? How can I practice the principles in my group, area, and region? How do the principles of Nar-Anon work in my daily life as well as in meetings? What does it mean to place principles above personalities? How does practicing these principles in all my affairs contribute to a better way to live? What changes do I see in myself? How have these changes affected my life? Visit https://www.nar-anon.org/ for helpful resources or to find a meeting.

  7. 03/25/2023

    Step 11: Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.

    Step 11: Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out. In this episode, these 22 questions are discussed: What insights do I gain by praying for my Higher Power's will for my life? If there are barriers to my reaching out in daily prayer, what steps and actions can I take to overcome them? Can I give an example of how my Higher Power answered my prayer through another person or a new experience? What are the consequences of doubting my Higher Power's availability and willingness to provide help and guidance? Describe a recent situation where I tried to take control from my Higher Power because of doubts. What can happen if I wait for my Higher Power's answer to my prayer rather than following my own self-will? How do I define prayer? Meditation? Do I find meditation difficult because of the thoughts going through my head? What can I do to quiet these thoughts? What activities help me relax and get in touch with my Higher Power? Why is it important to listen to my Higher Power? What does conscious contact mean to me? What steps can I take to improve my conscious contact with my Higher Power? Did I reach out to my Higher Power today? Why? What is my current concept of a Higher Power? What experiences have shown me a Higher Power is at work in my life? Because this program is spiritual and not religious, how does this allow me the freedom to find a Higher Power of my understanding? How does the decision I made in Step Three help me as I work this step? In what ways am I accepting my Higher Power's will? How has acceptance of my Higher Power's guidance helped me make better decisions? In what ways has my relationship with my Higher Power improved? How has this improved relationship given me the courage to act on my Higher Power's will? Can I share an occasion when I felt guided by my Higher Power? Visit https://www.nar-anon.org/ for helpful resources or to find a meeting.

  8. 01/08/2023

    Step 10: Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it.

    In this episode, 61 questions are discussed. Due to space restrictions, only the first 30 questions are listed below. The full list of questions can be found on my blog at https://wordpress.com/post/childsaddiction.wordpress.com/521 at the bottom of the post for Step 10. Visit https://www.nar-anon.org/ for helpful resources or to find a meeting. 1. Which behaviors are not appearing as often? 2. How can I remind myself to take a spot-check inventory every day? 3. Which behaviors are not appearing as often? 4. How am I doing? Is my spot-check inventory helping me in my daily life as I interact with others? 5. How was I good to myself today? 6. What do I have to be grateful for? 7. What boundaries did I set today with no expectations? 8. What problem areas have I noticed in my life? 9. How did I handle conflicts today? 10. How does this daily reflection help me be more aware of my behaviors? 11. How often am I setting aside time to do a long-term periodic inventory? 12. What new behaviors am I discovering? 13. What issues in my life could benefit from a long-term inventory? 14. How am I using what I learned in Steps Four through Nine to help with my inventory? 15. Do I continue to justify past behaviors instead of admitting my wrongs? If so, explain why. 16. What am I keeping to myself that I should discuss with my sponsor? 17. How am I maintaining personal integrity in my relationships with others? 18. What apologies or amends do I need to make today? 19. If I see old patterns emerging, what can I do to get back on track? 20. How did attending a Nar-Anon meeting or talking to a trusted Nar-Anon friend help me find freedom and serenity? 21. How has being of service helped me focus on my own recovery? 22. How did I use the principles of the program today? 23. How do I practice tolerance and compassion for others? 24. How can I forgive those who hurt me so I don't carry resentments? 25. Why is it important to focus on my own inventory instead of someone else's? 26. How do I take responsibility for my actions? 27. Does fear prevent me from accepting change? How willing am I to change? 28. How does admitting my fears allow me to face them honestly? 29. How am I relying on my Higher Power for courage? 30. How can I overcome feeling threatened by others? Questions 31 - 61 can be found at https://wordpress.com/post/childsaddiction.wordpress.com/521.

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Has your son or daughter’s addiction impacted you in ways you never dreamed of? When you have a child who has the disease of addiction, you say, do, and feel things you wish you never had to experience. My 24-year-old son has struggled with addiction since he was prescribed ADHD medication almost 12 years ago. Just as an addict can work the Narcotic’s Anonymous 12-step program as a catalyst to change their life, their loved ones have their own 12-step program. The program is called Nar-Anon. This podcast is my journey through each of the steps.

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