Navigating the Effects of Addiction in Families with Kids with Dr. Aaron Weiner

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Today’s episode with Bryce Hamilton, LSCSW, and Dr. Aaron Weiner is a great one for parents, caregivers, teachers, therapists, and anyone who may work with kids. Bryce and Dr. Weiner  discuss the wide range of effects of addiction on a person’s family. Specifically, they discuss the impact addiction has on kids whose parents or caregivers may be battling addiction. Addiction doesn’t usually start immediately. Dr. Wiener explains that it typically starts as a coping skill and then snowballs into a vice needed to survive day to day. When examining the effects of addiction on families, Bryce and Dr. Weiner discuss how the cycle of addiction causes a destabilizing environment that can lead to neglect and legal issues in regards to children’s welfare. Kids are affected by addiction and can end up internalizing the addiction as their fault. Parents who are in addiction may not understand how their own kids are experiencing the addiction and are left feeling confused and struggling internally. It’s important to understand the complexities of addiction and how it affects kids well into their adulthood.

Bryce and Dr. Weiner discuss the importance of having conversations in compassionate ways with kids to reassure them they are not the cause of the addiction. Dr. Weiner gives advice on how to approach the conversation around addiction with kids in an age-appropriate way. The conversation also covers how to be on the lookout for mental health struggles in kids as they get older and start to understand addiction and how it may have impacted their childhood. The conversation leads to helping kids notice, talk about, and process through addiction in the family and come up with a safety plan for kids to feel safe and prepared in any environment.

Check out our video chat here!

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Dr. Aaron Weiner is a board-certified Psychologist and addiction specialist who speaks nationally on addiction, behavioral health, and drug policy’s impact on public health. His expertise stems from directing hospital addiction services and observations from private practice, combining clinical experience with current research. A past president of the Society of Addiction Psychology, Dr. Weiner serves as an addiction policy advisor for the American Psychological Association and on the Science Advisory Board for the Foundation for Drug Policy Solutions. His insights have been featured in Newsweek, USA Today, The Chicago Tribune, The Guardian, Psychology Today, and The New York Times. 

Dr. Weiner’s websites:
primeforlife.org 
weinerphd.com 

Resources mentioned in today’s episode for families:
Smart Recovery: https://smartrecovery.org/
Al-anon and Alateen: https://al-anon.org/

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