My Nonprofit Reviews

Sometimes recovery is a matter of life and death. As a Concerned Significant Other of someone struggling with SUD, I needed to respond to my loved one in a way that kept him close and made sobriety more attractive than substance use. Learning SMART taught me self-care, positive communication and boundary setting, which have been key in addressing this complex medical condition. With practice, we are now in a collaborative relationship that is seeing more and more success. I appreciated SMART Recovery so much I became a facilitator in order to bring these evidence-based solutions to others, as well as, reinforce my own positive responses. My loved one is now building a live he is proud of and our family is closer than ever. I am truly grateful to the founders of SMART Recovery, who knew people needed options. I am thankful to the central office staff, the many volunteers and all the participants who teach us to do better with this complex issue.

When we discovered our loved one was addicted to opiates, we couldn’t believe it. No way could that happen in our beautiful family. Naturally, our loved one’s attempt to finance and manage such a compulsion was beyond our family’s usual pragmatic approach to a problem. Fortunately, we were referred to a premier addiction therapy group in NYC that counseled families as well. It was there we learned CRAFT, or Community Reinforcement and Family Training, a science-backed non-confrontational nonjudgmental approach. CRAFT teaches concerned significant others how to help their loved one feel listened to, empowered and supported. Repeated studies show CRAFT is far more successful than 12-step programs or traditional interventions to motivate a person with an addiction to seek help. SMART Recovery includes CRAFT in their Family & Friends program.

When I was ready to end family therapy, I asked my therapist when they might bring their practice to my suburban community. Her response came in the form of a suggestion, “Why don’t you become a SMART Recovery facilitator?” Because of the success our family enjoyed, I knew my CRAFT experience could help others, so I signed up for the distance training. For two years now I have been helping families learn more helpful ways to respond to their loved one. It has been astonishing to watch SMART Family & Friends participants employ compassion, let go of fears for the sake of improving their relationship with their suffering loved one and become their greatest ally.

SMART Recovery has been helping people gain independence from addictive behavior for nearly 25 years. Rapidly growing solution-oriented meetings, whether online or face-to-face, are self-empowering and always FREE. www.smartrecovery.org is a rich website with forums, podcasts, videos, articles, tools and a 24-hour chat room.

SMART Recovery offers distance training for both regular and family & friends facilitators. Best of all, the SMART Recovery program goes beyond participant driven altruism with an international advisory board that includes addiction professionals who advance the program in pace with current addiction science.

The science is here! Old thinking of powerless and defective character is falling away. SMART Recovery’s “Power Of Choice” is gaining its rightful place in addiction recovery and I am beyond grateful to be a beneficiary of this exemplary science-based program.