Health Steps

Grief and loss affect almost every aspect of living—or having lived—with alcoholism. Members share how they have learned to acknowledge and accept these losses with the help of Al-Anon Family Groups. The stories shared here reflect the experience, strength, and hope of hundreds of members.

Richie Stephens is an actor who often plays hardened gangsters and criminals. This is easy for him because he was a drug trafficker, kidnapper, drug addict, alcoholic, and all-around criminal himself. His life twisted and turned in harrowing self-destructive adventures that took him from his native Ireland to San Francisco, Australia, and finally, Los Angeles, coalescing into a classic tale of a man trying to run from his problems by moving to new and more exotic locations—a hard and painful realization that comes at a point in which he’s about to take his own life.

Mindfulness is the biggest breakthrough in treatment for alcohol problems of the 21st century. It changes lives. Yet, outside of formal treatment, the use of mindfulness for alcohol recovery is little understood. I have written this book to put that right and make mindful treatment available to anyone in an easy-to-use format, suitable for you to learn at home.

As a healer, you want to heal, but often, you can feel trapped in a life of exhaustion, burnout, and misery. You are forced to sacrifice your family, relationships, and health - only to realize you still aren’t making the difference you were born to make. Many people have a dream to make a greater difference healing with their own signature soul-satisfying programs, without putting their family at risk, but they have no idea how to do that...until now.

Allen Berger, PhD, draws on the teachings of Bill W. and psychotherapy pioneers to offer 12 hallmarks of emotional sobriety that, when practiced, give people the confidence to be accountable for their behavior, ask for what they want and need, and grow and develop a deeper trust in the process of life. These smart things include: understanding who you are and what's important to you; learning not to take others' reactions personally; trusting your inner compass; and taking responsibility for your reactions to problematic situations.

We all want to feel less anxiety, guilt, anger, and sadness. We want to obsess less and be less lonely, and free ourselves from our demons, compulsive habits, and stress. But as humans (unlike rocks), we experience all of these. And, paradoxically, trying to avoid and control them only makes things worse. Having struggled with serious mental illness for many years himself, Mark Freeman has become a dedicated mental-health advocate and coach. He makes the case that instead of trying to feel less and avoid pain and stress, we need to build emotional fitness, especially our capacity for strength, balance, and focus.

Maggie Berghoff, health consultant to the stars, presents a personalized, accessible approach to fighting inflammation. Using thorough questionnaires to identify your specific ailments, Eat Right for Your Inflammation Type prescribes a targeted plan that will help you live free of the major types of inflammation, including those triggered by hormones, digestive issues, stress, allergies, rheumatoid arthritis, and more.

"Giving up" alcohol might sound daunting...but what are you actually giving up when you're hungover on the sofa all day? Cutting out the booze can transform your life in unexpected ways.

Arthritis is the most common cause of disability in the world - greater than both back pain and heart disease. One example, rheumatoid arthritis (RA), is the most common autoimmune disease, affecting 1% of the US population, and almost 68 million people worldwide. Conventional medicine tends to treat arthritis with strong, gut-damaging, immune-suppressing pain medications, temporarily relieving the symptoms of the disease without addressing its root causes.

Do you live with a chronic, debilitating, yet invisible condition? You may feel isolated, out of step, judged, lonely, or misunderstood - and that's on top of dealing with your actual illness. Take heart. You are not alone, although sometimes it can feel that way. Written by a blogger who suffers from an invisible chronic illness, Surviving and Thriving with an Invisible Chronic Illness offers peer-to-peer support to help you stay sane, be your own advocate, and get back to living your life. This compelling guide is written for anyone suffering with an illness no one can see.

Most people diagnosed with bipolar disorder are sent home with the name of a doctor and multiple prescriptions. However, few people with bipolar disorder are able to find long-term stability with medications alone. Bipolar disorder researcher and expert Julie A. Fast, who was diagnosed with the illness at age thirty-one, and specialist John Preston, PsyD, offer the pioneering Take Charge program used around the world to help listeners promote stability, reduce mood swings, increase work ability, decrease health care costs, and improve relationships.

Get rid of mom guilt, regain your sanity, and prevent burnout. Loving your kids isn’t supposed to mean you completely disappear or get swallowed up by the demands of motherhood. You want to be a great mother. But how do you care for yourself without neglecting your kids needs, feeling overwhelmed by guilt, or succumbing under the pressure to be perfect? Dr. Morgan—a psychotherapist and relationship expert—has helped over 100,000 moms regain their sanity and prevent burnout through her popular courses, coaching, and social media wisdom.

There are three simple questions to determine whether you should listen to this book. Do you spend HOURS trying to get your baby to sleep? Do you dread the nap and evening routine, knowing what is to come? Would you like your baby to fall asleep quickly, on their own, and to sleep all night long...even if you honestly believe you've tried everything...and in as little as three days. If you answered YES to any of those questions then you need to listen to this book.

At least ten percent of children have excessive fears and worries—phobias, separation anxiety, panic attacks, social anxiety, or obsessive-compulsive-disorder—that can hold them back and keep them from fully enjoying childhood. If your child suffers from any of these forms of anxiety, this book offers new, practical, and evidence-based proven tools that can help.

A ketogenic diet is distinctive from all the other health-oriented diets for several reasons. Firstly, it fully restricts the consumption of carbohydrates in the diet. It points out carbs as enemies of good health and active metabolism. Not only it restricts the intake but also set a standard formula to limit the number of carbohydrates taken per meal. The diet is not only restrictive in essence, but also suggestive. It promotes the use of good quality fats in food products. If it restricts carbs for one reason, it provides a rather healthy alternative.

At one point or another, we’ve all done something that undermines our best interests and intentions. Even the most successful people get in their own way - often without realizing it. In Stop Self-Sabotage, licensed clinical psychologist, tenured professor, and television personality Dr. Judy Ho takes a fresh look at self-sabotage to help us answer two vital questions: Why do we do it? How do we stop?

Combat stress, hectic and health problems with delicious recipes and relaxing massages and call it medicine - a wishful thinking? Quite the opposite! No matter what is bothering you: Whether they are sick, simply feel unwell or can no longer cope with all the challenges of the modern world, even if you just want to lose a few kilograms or simply feel good again: Ayurveda helps you to do so. Because this ancient healing art not only combats your aches and pains in a wonderfully individual way, but also brings your body and mind into balance and maintains your health in the long term.

In the past decade, depression rates have skyrocketed, and one in four Americans will suffer from major depression at some point in their lives. Where have we gone wrong? Dr. Stephen S. Ilardi sheds light on our current predicament and reminds us that our bodies were never designed for the sleep-deprived, poorly nourished, frenzied pace of 21st-century life.

Could your breakfast or lunch be harming your memory? Are you missing out on the foods that could prevent Alzheimer's disease? Everyone knows good nutrition supports your overall health, but few realize that certain foods-power foods-can protect your brain and optimize its function, and even dramatically reduce your risk of Alzheimer's Disease. Now, New York Times best-selling author, clinical researcher, and health advocate Dr. Neal Barnard has gathered the most up-to-date research and created a groundbreaking program that can strengthen your memory and protect your brain.

It's projected that in 50 years, one American in three will be diabetic. Many today are well on their way to becoming a sad statistic in the war on obesity, high blood sugar, and the related diseases - including diabetes - that can result from a diet that's seriously out of whack. In his previous best-selling book, Overcoming Runaway Blood Sugar, Dennis Pollock shared his personal experience with this deadly epidemic - including his success at lowering his runaway blood sugar to acceptable levels. Now Dennis offers listeners the next step in the battle.