Here we discuss the optimal ways in which to approach the course material. In fact, this may be the most important “exercise” of the entire course, practicing our “3 Asks”.

Welcome to Module One: Understanding Addiction. This module is designed to set the record straight, helping you to build a solid, foundation of understanding based on what addiction is, and what it isn’t.

Debunking the most common myths about what it means to have a problem with drugs/and or alcohol.

Understanding the power that drugs of abuse, including alcohol, trust have is a critical aspect of the illness of addiction. If you do not understand what it is you are up against, it is very difficult to understand the illness altogether.

In this lesson we will explore how to tell if someone really is addicted to drugs/and or alcohol, as we continue to grow our basic understanding of this illness.

Learn more about the drugs of abuse themselves (note if you are not concerned with learning more about drugs of abuse, you can skip over this lesson).

How can taking drugs or drinking alcohol really be a disease? In this lesson we address this question once and for all. Soon it will make total sense.

Here we explore the process someone goes through from experimenting with drugs to becoming addicted to them.

This lesson is optional, for those who are interested in learning more about the brain circuitry involved in the phases of addiction. This is completely optional - for those who want to go deeper into the science.

Understanding the relationship between mood & addiction is absolutely critical to understanding the illness, and to begin to understand the ways you, as a parent, can intervene for change.

The biggest complaint I hear from those seeking treatment for addiction is that their loved ones do not understand them. Being understood is something we all value, and therefore, can be a game changer for parents trying to reach their suffering child.

Here we will review the how and why addiction occurs, why in some and not others, and begin our intimate look inside the mind of those who struggle with an addiction. The goal here is to begin to understand their experience so as to intervene in a far more effective way in the future.

For those who are stuck in an addictive relationship with drugs of abuse, making changes to any and all aspects of their life can feel impossible. This has to do with how drugs work in the brain, mind, and body which we explain more here.

While at first, it may not seem to you like their is a relationship between love & substance abuse, however, understanding this relationship is the easiest way for you to grasp what it truly feels like to be addicted.

Here we will explore the inner life of those who become addicted, looking at that habits and patterns of thought that slowly take centerstage, the further someone succumbs to their substance abuse problem.

Thought Disturbances are automatic, maladaptive (or unhelpful) patterns of thought, rooted in Western culture and our human design, that occur to varying degrees of severity, and perpetuate psychological and emotional imbalance.

The TD™ so active and insidious within those who suffer from active addiction, we have selected to give it it’s own lesson.

Here you will learn about the system of defenses, such as denial, and rationalization, common with substance use disorders. These, you likely already know all too well, whether you realize it or not. Defenses are very active when someone tries to confront the destructive nature of one’s substance abuse.

In Module Three we begin the process of shifting from undestanding the problem of addiction, to understanding the solution to the problem. First we will look at what it even means to be in recovery, and then we will discuss how you can intervene for change.

Learn how to make your own starter, feeding it and baking different types.

We now begin what maybe the most important discussion for parents looking to help their child make a change. To succeed in your efforts, you must understanding how motivation works, and how this knowledge can be used to help support your child in making a change. Get your notebooks ready for this lesson and the one to follow!

Here we will look at what the science tells us are common factors to those who recover, who overcome their addiction to drugs and/or alcohol.

In this section we will briefly review the Thought Solutions, the answers to the question of how to overcome the Thought Disturbances™.

We have taken the most important principles from all of the recovery literature, treatment programs, and our collective experience to help you understand what the essence of recovery means.

We now begin the part you’ve been waiting for, specific instructions on what you can do to support a change.

Here we will discuss how and why it is so important for parents to make a change in how they engage their child, in order to have the positive influence you so deeply desire.

Before we get to our final course videos, it’s important to clarify what we mean by “the dance”, to help you understand how it is that you can use your positive influence best.

Before we dive into what it is we are asking you to do, what specific changes we suggest you make as you think through your change strategy, it is important to make a few key points. To help you to understand what these ten rules, are really all about.

Congratulations! You’ve arrived at the most important lesson yet. The 10 Cardinal Rules are the dos and dont’s of parenting for recovery. Expect to take your time. You are about to have a ton of important information thrown your way so take notes, review as much as you need to, and ask questions if you have them!

Here we continue our review of these 10 Cardinal Rules for Change.

Here we will conclude our introduction of the 10 Cardinal Rules, the 10 ways we recommend you learn to leverage your power to support your child in making a change.

In this lesson we begin to discuss how to take these Cardinal Rules you’ve just learned and implement them in your life to build a change strategy that works for you. Remember its. marathon, not a sprint!

In this lesson we continue our discussion on how to build your strategy towards change by implementing our Cardinal Rules.

As parents we are making agreements with our children (of all ages) constantly. Here we will review how to construct an agreement, we call behavioral agreements, with your child as a tool to move them towards change. Be sure to pay close attention here and plan to take lots of notes!

In our final lesson of the course, we will review how to support and guide your child through the “big moment” , the moment(s) where your child begins to contemplate taking action towards change. Take lots of notes!

Learn about the order with which drugs of abuse are considered most addictive to least addictive. As a reminder, all of these drugs are addictive thus while some are less harmful than others, none of them are considered “safe”.

An intervention is one of the ways families will often try to assert their love and support to help a loved one make a change. Here we will take a closer look at that process.

Here is a list of resources to help you find anything you want to know about drugs of abuse themselves.

Additional helpful links for parents

List of helpful books for parents with addicted children and for families in early recovery