by Ryan Schwantes | Apr 15, 2024 | Abstinence and Moderation, Addiction Help, Addiction Prevention, Addiction Recovery, Audio/Video, Non 12 Step Programs, Podcast, Self-Help
The Addiction Solution Podcast Are You Hanging on to Your Addiction? “The only stuff you can’t get over is the stuff you’re hanging onto!” This is a quote from a book written by Gary John Bishop called Wise as Fu*k. It is absolutely brilliant in its simplicity,...
by Ryan Schwantes | Apr 4, 2024 | Abstinence and Moderation, Addiction Help, Addiction Prevention, Addiction Recovery, Audio/Video, Non 12 Step Programs, Podcast, Self-Help
The Addiction Solution Podcast What is The Freedom Model’s Solution to Addiction Is there a solution to addiction? Addiction treatment providers and nearly all addiction help models will tell you that there isn’t, yet nearly everyone gets over their problematic...
by Ryan Schwantes | Mar 28, 2024 | Abstinence and Moderation, Addiction Help, Addiction Prevention, Addiction Recovery, Audio/Video, Non 12 Step Programs, Podcast, Self-Help
The Addiction Solution Podcast Escaping the Cult of Addiction Recovery: Our Interview with Finn At 15, Finn was caught smoking weed in school and that led to his first stint in an abusive rehab for teens. That initial 28 day program in 1983 was just the beginning of...
by Ryan Schwantes | Mar 12, 2024 | Abstinence and Moderation, Addiction Help, Addiction Prevention, Addiction Recovery, Audio/Video, Non 12 Step Programs, Podcast, Self-Help
The Addiction Solution Podcast Alcoholics Anonymous and the Troubled Teen Industry The Netflix Documentary “The Program” exposes the shocking truth about the multi-million dollar troubled teen industry. What you may not know is it has its roots in AA’s ego deflation...
by Ryan Schwantes | Feb 27, 2024 | Abstinence and Moderation, Addiction Help, Addiction Prevention, Addiction Recovery, Audio/Video, Non 12 Step Programs, Podcast, Self-Help
The Addiction Solution Podcast Take Away the Enemy and There is No Battle! There are those that wear their “battle with addiction” like a badge of honor, but there are many more who consistently feel like they are losing that battle. The thing is, there doesn’t have...
by Ryan Schwantes | Feb 14, 2024 | Abstinence and Moderation, Addiction Help, Addiction Prevention, Addiction Recovery, Audio/Video, Non 12 Step Programs, Podcast, Self-Help
The Addiction Solution Podcast The Day My Mind Cracked Open: Our Interview with Leslie Like Mark and Michelle, Leslie’s exposure to Alcoholics Anonymous began in childhood. That may have been one of the reasons she became susceptible to being lured into cults. AA was...
by Ryan Schwantes | Feb 7, 2024 | Abstinence and Moderation, Addiction Help, Addiction Prevention, Addiction Recovery, Audio/Video, Non 12 Step Programs, Podcast, Self-Help
The Addiction Solution Podcast A Candid Discussion About Coaching in the Addiction-Help Space Life coaches, sober coaches, recovery coaches…it seems everywhere you turn there are people “in recovery” peddling their coaching services. They are going to show you what...
by Ryan Schwantes | Jan 31, 2024 | Abstinence and Moderation, Addiction Help, Addiction Prevention, Addiction Recovery, Audio/Video, Non 12 Step Programs, Podcast, Self-Help
The Addiction Solution Podcast I Escaped the Recovery Cartel! Our Interview with Rene From the suburbs of Boston to the streets of south Florida; from a 2-sport collegiate athlete to spending 20 years as an integral cog in the Florida rehab shuffle. Rene’s story is...
by Ryan Schwantes | Jan 23, 2024 | Abstinence and Moderation, Addiction Help, Addiction Prevention, Addiction Recovery, Audio/Video, Non 12 Step Programs, Podcast, Self-Help
The Addiction Solution Podcast A Healing Journey: Our Interview with Crystal Over the next few episodes Mark and Michelle are interviewing people who have escaped or are in the process of escaping the addiction and recovery trap! Crystal’s story will sound quite...
by Ryan Schwantes | Jan 16, 2024 | Abstinence and Moderation, Addiction Help, Addiction Prevention, Addiction Recovery, Audio/Video, Non 12 Step Programs, Podcast, Self-Help
The Addiction Solution Podcast Leaving the Addiction Recovery Cult More and more people are contacting us to talk about their experiences in AA and other 12 step programs, and asking us to help them get out and move on with their lives. Leaving these groups can be...
by Ryan Schwantes | Jan 10, 2024 | 12 Step Programs, Addiction Help, Addiction Solutions, Alcohol Treatment, Articles, Deprogramming, Non 12 Step Programs, Reviews, Uncategorized
The Freedom Model Online Program App is Now Available to the Public! The Vision and Achievement In 1989, when I began working with my research mentor, Jerry Brown, I made a promise to myself; I (we) would build a substance use model that was more effective than what...
by Ryan Schwantes | Jan 9, 2024 | Abstinence and Moderation, Addiction Help, Addiction Prevention, Addiction Recovery, Audio/Video, Non 12 Step Programs, Podcast, Self-Help
The Addiction Solution Podcast When is Therapy Counter-Productive? Do people need therapy when working to solve the various emotional problems that often accompany a heavy substance use problem? Certainly therapy can be helpful, but it can also be counter-productive....
by Ryan Schwantes | Jan 4, 2024 | 12 Step Programs, Addiction Help, Addiction Solutions, Alcohol Treatment, Articles, Deprogramming, Non 12 Step Programs, Reviews, Uncategorized
The Freedom Model Coalition The Freedom Model Coalition What is it, and why would you want to participate? Let me start by wishing you a Happy New Year! Over the past 34 years, we have received consistent correspondence from the public asking us what they can do to...
by Ryan Schwantes | Jan 4, 2024 | 12 Step Programs, Addiction Help, Addiction Solutions, Alcohol Treatment, Articles, Deprogramming, Non 12 Step Programs, Reviews, Uncategorized
WOW! What a Year at The Freedom Model! I asked Michelle and Ryan this morning, “What should my year-end email topic be?” She said, “Do a year in review.” So we went into my office and began listing all the accomplishments of 2023 – and frankly, we were shocked!...
by Ryan Schwantes | Jan 3, 2024 | Abstinence and Moderation, Addiction Help, Addiction Prevention, Addiction Recovery, Audio/Video, Non 12 Step Programs, Podcast, Self-Help
The Addiction Solution Podcast What Does The Freedom Model Say About Behavioral Addictions? Mark and Michelle discuss the differences and similarities between problematic substance use and behavioral “addictions”, and how Bill Wilson paved the way for millions of...
by Ryan Schwantes | Dec 28, 2023 | Abstinence and Moderation, Addiction Help, Addiction Prevention, Addiction Recovery, Audio/Video, Non 12 Step Programs, Podcast, Self-Help
The Addiction Solution Podcast The Passage of Time and Personal Evolution Time marches on irrespective of the choices you make. Are you fighting against the passage of time or evolving with it? “Addictions” are often a manifestation of holding onto “magical moments”...
by Ryan Schwantes | Dec 19, 2023 | Abstinence and Moderation, Addiction Help, Addiction Prevention, Addiction Recovery, Audio/Video, Non 12 Step Programs, Podcast, Self-Help
The Addiction Solution Podcast Do You Have to Work on “Addiction Recovery”? AA members will tell you “It works if you work it!” And even people that reject AA still hold the belief that solving an addiction takes consistent effort and “work”. Freedom Model creators...
by Ryan Schwantes | Dec 12, 2023 | Abstinence and Moderation, Addiction Help, Addiction Prevention, Addiction Recovery, Audio/Video, Non 12 Step Programs, Podcast, Self-Help
The Addiction Solution Podcast Is Selfishness “at the Root of our Troubles”? There is a popular line in the book Alcoholics Anonymous that says selfishness is the root cause of an addiction. Is this statement true and helpful to those struggling with...
by Ryan Schwantes | Dec 11, 2023 | 12 Step Programs, Addiction Help, Addiction Solutions, Alcohol Treatment, Articles, Deprogramming, Non 12 Step Programs, Reviews, Uncategorized
How I Let Go of My Fears and Anxieties A Childhood Shaped by Fear and Dread I learned how to worry when I was a young child living in a home where bad things were happening to me frequently that were completely out of my control. As a child, you are at the mercy of...
by Ryan Schwantes | Dec 5, 2023 | Abstinence and Moderation, Addiction Help, Addiction Prevention, Addiction Recovery, Audio/Video, Non 12 Step Programs, Podcast, Self-Help
The Addiction Solution Podcast Your Naturally Evolving Preferences Most people agree that they don’t like to do the same activities at 40 years old that they liked to do at 10 years old. It’s common sense that our preferences change as a function of time and...
by Ryan Schwantes | Nov 29, 2023 | 12 Step Programs, Addiction Help, Addiction Solutions, Alcohol Treatment, Articles, Deprogramming, Non 12 Step Programs, Reviews, Uncategorized
Your End-of-Year Assessment: Breaking the Cycle of Broken Promises Whether you like it or not, as we come to the end of another year, we can’t help but assess, have I made progress? Am I ending the year in a better place than I started it, or do I have the same...
by Ryan Schwantes | Nov 27, 2023 | Abstinence and Moderation, Addiction Help, Addiction Prevention, Addiction Recovery, Audio/Video, Non 12 Step Programs, Podcast, Self-Help
The Addiction Solution Podcast The Birth and Evolution of The Freedom Model For our 200th Episode Mark and Michelle tell the story of how The Freedom Model began in the late 1980s, how they met, and how they walked out of the cult of recovery and developed The...
by Ryan Schwantes | Nov 22, 2023 | 12 Step Programs, Addiction Help, Addiction Solutions, Alcohol Treatment, Articles, Deprogramming, Non 12 Step Programs, Reviews, Uncategorized
What Grips Your Soul? Do That! “You must cultivate activities that you love. You must discover work that you do, not for its utility, but for itself, whether it succeeds or not, whether you are praised for it or not, whether you are loved and rewarded for it or not,...
by Ryan Schwantes | Nov 20, 2023 | Abstinence and Moderation, Addiction Help, Addiction Prevention, Addiction Recovery, Audio/Video, Non 12 Step Programs, Podcast, Self-Help
The Addiction Solution Podcast Recognizing Autonomy is Key to Helping Someone So you have found The Freedom Model and it changed your life, but someone you love is still struggling; how can you help them? What can you do for them? Mark and Michelle discuss more...
by Ryan Schwantes | Nov 10, 2023 | 12 Step Programs, Addiction Help, Addiction Solutions, Alcohol Treatment, Articles, Deprogramming, Non 12 Step Programs, Reviews, Uncategorized
The Definition of Insanity – Is It a Cliché? We’ve all heard the cliché, the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. If you’ve spent any time at all in the addiction recovery world you’ve heard this touted as...
by Ryan Schwantes | Nov 7, 2023 | Abstinence and Moderation, Addiction Help, Addiction Prevention, Addiction Recovery, Audio/Video, Non 12 Step Programs, Podcast, Self-Help
The Addiction Solution Podcast Everyone Wants a Little Magic in their Lives! Looking for magical experiences and moments in life is quite natural. Life without these kinds of experiences would likely be sad and dull. Seeking magical experiences using substances can...
by Ryan Schwantes | Oct 31, 2023 | Abstinence and Moderation, Addiction Help, Addiction Prevention, Addiction Recovery, Audio/Video, Non 12 Step Programs, Podcast, Self-Help
The Addiction Solution Podcast Is There a Lesson in Matthew Perry’s Tragic Life? What does it look like to be fully and deeply indoctrinated into addiction disease mythology? If you read Matthew Perry’s memoir, Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing, you will...
by Ryan Schwantes | Oct 31, 2023 | 12 Step Programs, Addiction Help, Addiction Solutions, Alcohol Treatment, Articles, Deprogramming, Non 12 Step Programs, Reviews, Uncategorized
“My mind is out to kill me, and I know it.” “My mind is out to kill me, and I know it.” Quote from Matthew Perry’s Memoir, Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing Actor, author, and 12-step advocate, Matthew Perry, passed away this past Saturday (October 28,...
by Ryan Schwantes | Oct 24, 2023 | Abstinence and Moderation, Addiction Help, Addiction Prevention, Addiction Recovery, Audio/Video, Non 12 Step Programs, Podcast, Self-Help
The Addiction Solution Podcast Pleasure and Addiction: A Not-So-Clear Connection Think of all of the activities that are now labeled as addictions: eating sugary foods, sex, porn and masturbation, drinking, using drugs, playing video games, gambling, etc. Are...
by Ryan Schwantes | Oct 17, 2023 | Abstinence and Moderation, Addiction Help, Addiction Prevention, Addiction Recovery, Audio/Video, Non 12 Step Programs, Podcast, Self-Help
The Addiction Solution Podcast Are Changing People, Places, and Things Required to Solve an Addiction? Were you told you needed to ditch your friends, change jobs or your career, distance yourself from family, or even leave a marriage to stop your substance...
by Ryan Schwantes | Oct 10, 2023 | Abstinence and Moderation, Addiction Help, Addiction Prevention, Addiction Recovery, Audio/Video, Non 12 Step Programs, Podcast, Self-Help
The Addiction Solution Podcast A Frank Discussion about MOUD (fka MAT) with Steven Slate How effective is “addiction medication” at helping people to stop an addiction? And if it is so effective, then why are overdose rates in the US still rising rapidly....
by Ryan Schwantes | Oct 9, 2023 | 12 Step Programs, Addiction Help, Addiction Solutions, Alcohol Treatment, Articles, Deprogramming, Non 12 Step Programs, Reviews, Uncategorized
Is The Freedom Model for Addictions Opposed to MOUD? No. There you have it. The Freedom Model for Addictions is not opposed to anyone who wants to take medications for “opioid use disorder”. But with that blanket statement made, it is important to know that we are...
by Ryan Schwantes | Oct 4, 2023 | Abstinence and Moderation, Addiction Help, Addiction Prevention, Addiction Recovery, Audio/Video, Non 12 Step Programs, Podcast, Self-Help
The Addiction Solution Podcast What Do Red Elephants Have to Do with Addiction and Recovery? To truly solve an addiction and move on, means leaving the cage of recovery too! Mark and Michelle talk about their experiences leaving the cage of recovery,...
by Ryan Schwantes | Oct 3, 2023 | 12 Step Programs, Addiction Help, Addiction Solutions, Alcohol Treatment, Articles, Deprogramming, Non 12 Step Programs, Reviews, Uncategorized
Leaving the Cage of “Recovery” – Why is it Difficult Sometimes When I wrote Chapter 12, Leaving the Cage of Recovery, in our book, The Freedom Model for Addictions, I didn’t realize how important this particular chapter would become to so many people. At that...
by Ryan Schwantes | Sep 26, 2023 | Abstinence and Moderation, Addiction Help, Addiction Prevention, Addiction Recovery, Audio/Video, Non 12 Step Programs, Podcast, Self-Help
The Addiction Solution Podcast Talking with Zach Rhoads of The Life Process Program Mark and Michelle have a candid discussion with friend, colleague, and competitor in the non-12-step program world, Zach Rhoads of The Life Process Program. Hear how...
by Ryan Schwantes | Sep 19, 2023 | Abstinence and Moderation, Addiction Help, Addiction Prevention, Addiction Recovery, Audio/Video, Non 12 Step Programs, Podcast, Self-Help
The Addiction Solution Podcast The Real “Addiction Crisis” – You Believe You’re Out of Control! What’s your “addiction”? Do you feel like a slave to something; maybe an activity, a feeling, an emotion, a food, a person, or a substance? Mark and Michelle...
by Ryan Schwantes | Sep 18, 2023 | 12 Step Programs, Addiction Help, Addiction Solutions, Alcohol Treatment, Articles, Deprogramming, Non 12 Step Programs, Reviews, Uncategorized
The 3 Levels of 12 Step Indoctrination Most people think being immersed in the 12 steps is a valid way to overcome an addiction. Know that this is not the case. Implementing the 12 steps in one’s life has been linked to massive increases in dangerous binge...
by Ryan Schwantes | Sep 16, 2023 | 12 Step Programs, Addiction Help, Addiction Solutions, Alcohol Treatment, Articles, Deprogramming, Non 12 Step Programs, Reviews, Uncategorized
“Relapse is Part of Recovery” Or is it? We hear this statement made all the time from counselors, rehab professionals, interventionists, AA members, and people “in recovery” alike. But is it true? Is relapse a part of recovery, or is it just another fear-based...
by Ryan Schwantes | Sep 13, 2023 | Abstinence and Moderation, Addiction Help, Addiction Prevention, Addiction Recovery, Audio/Video, Non 12 Step Programs, Podcast, Self-Help
The Addiction Solution Podcast Running the INFORMED Experiment When learning The Freedom Model, there can be a tendency to get some of the information and begin your experimentation with abstinence and moderation. You spend a bit of time abstinent and feel...
by Ryan Schwantes | Sep 7, 2023 | Abstinence and Moderation, Addiction Help, Addiction Prevention, Addiction Recovery, Audio/Video, Non 12 Step Programs, Podcast, Self-Help
The Addiction Solution Podcast Science and The Mind Can pleasure and addiction be explained with neuroscience? Can thought, behavior, habit, change, and all matters of the mind be shown on a brain scan? What about your likes and dislikes? Where do they...
