Dr. Sarah Wakeman

Yeah. Yeah, I think empathy is really powerful. Those kind of things that we think of as soft skills actually matter tremendously.

Yeah. Yeah, I think empathy is really powerful. Those kind of things that we think of as soft skills actually matter tremendously.

Yeah, I mean, this is this concept of like enabling, which I think is nuanced. I would say at its core, it's really deeply problematic that for the most part, love and support are never going to be harmful. And when I talk to patients... Often the thing that caused them to ultimately engage in treatment was not some terrible consequence.

Yeah, I mean, this is this concept of like enabling, which I think is nuanced. I would say at its core, it's really deeply problematic that for the most part, love and support are never going to be harmful. And when I talk to patients... Often the thing that caused them to ultimately engage in treatment was not some terrible consequence.

It was the idea that someone cared enough about them in a moment where they didn't love themselves very much and felt hopeless that someone was willing to sort of lift them up and believe in them. And it's these small moments of kindness. I'll tell you a story of a patient that we took care of in the hospital who was there for a really life-threatening infection related to their drug use.

It was the idea that someone cared enough about them in a moment where they didn't love themselves very much and felt hopeless that someone was willing to sort of lift them up and believe in them. And it's these small moments of kindness. I'll tell you a story of a patient that we took care of in the hospital who was there for a really life-threatening infection related to their drug use.

And a year to the date after he was hospitalized, he wrote a letter to our team. And he said, you know, I'll never forget the moments you guys came in and just sat with me and talked to me. And he now sends an email every single year on the anniversary of when he got out of the hospital.

And a year to the date after he was hospitalized, he wrote a letter to our team. And he said, you know, I'll never forget the moments you guys came in and just sat with me and talked to me. And he now sends an email every single year on the anniversary of when he got out of the hospital.

And it's those moments of humanity, of connection, again, that connection idea that often are the catalyst for change, the kind of hope and belief that your life could be better somehow. Yeah. as opposed to this idea of like increasing someone's pain and suffering. And that plays out in different ways.

And it's those moments of humanity, of connection, again, that connection idea that often are the catalyst for change, the kind of hope and belief that your life could be better somehow. Yeah. as opposed to this idea of like increasing someone's pain and suffering. And that plays out in different ways.

So in families, one of the most effective tools we teach people is something called CRAFT, which stands for Community Reinforcement and Family Training. And it's very different than the like, people may have seen like shows where you're supposed to stage an intervention and tell someone all or nothing. But craft is very different.

So in families, one of the most effective tools we teach people is something called CRAFT, which stands for Community Reinforcement and Family Training. And it's very different than the like, people may have seen like shows where you're supposed to stage an intervention and tell someone all or nothing. But craft is very different.

It teaches people, first, how do you understand the science of addiction, family members? Second, how do you get support for yourself? Because it's really tough to deal with addiction in a family. And then how do you start to learn about consequences in a different way?

It teaches people, first, how do you understand the science of addiction, family members? Second, how do you get support for yourself? Because it's really tough to deal with addiction in a family. And then how do you start to learn about consequences in a different way?

That if you're a parent and your kid is missing school because they're using, you don't want to cover for them and sort of reinforce their pattern. Right. But you also don't need to kick them out of your house, that there are sort of gradations of consequence that can actually help people change.

That if you're a parent and your kid is missing school because they're using, you don't want to cover for them and sort of reinforce their pattern. Right. But you also don't need to kick them out of your house, that there are sort of gradations of consequence that can actually help people change.

And one of the biggest sort of motivators for change is actually positive reinforcement of the behaviors you want to see. So that's been called contingency management in the kind of treatment world. You know, health insurance companies, lots of companies have figured this out, right?

And one of the biggest sort of motivators for change is actually positive reinforcement of the behaviors you want to see. So that's been called contingency management in the kind of treatment world. You know, health insurance companies, lots of companies have figured this out, right?

So if you get money back because you joined a gym or you get those, you know, you get reimbursements for doing something that people want to see, people do more of it. It's true in human behavior. It's very true with addiction. But we often do the opposite.

So if you get money back because you joined a gym or you get those, you know, you get reimbursements for doing something that people want to see, people do more of it. It's true in human behavior. It's very true with addiction. But we often do the opposite.