Hopestream is the defacto resource for parents who have a teen or young adult child who’s misusing drugs or alcohol, hosted by Brenda Zane. Brenda is a Mayo Clinic Certified health & wellness coach, CRAFT Parent Coach, and mom of a son who nearly lost his life to addiction. Guests include addiction, prevention, and treatment experts, family members impacted by their loved one’s substance use, and wellness and self-care specialists. You’ll also hear heartfelt messages from me, your host. It’s a safe, nurturing respite from the chaos and confusion you live with. We gather in our private communities between the episodes, The Stream for moms and The Woods for dads. Learn more at www.hopestreamcommunity.org.
The Sacred Work of Parenting Through Substance Misuse Parenting a child who is misusing drugs or alcohol often feels isolating. As one parent described it, “I look at what I do as sacred work, I get to intersect with you, at the most raw, most real and sometimes the most painful parts of your life.”
When parents discover their child is misusing substances, the instinct is to focus entirely on fixing the child. But therapist and parent coach Rebekah Tayebi suggests a radically different approach: the real work begins with the parent. Why Your Child Isn’t Really the Problem Rebekah explains that families typically arrive at her door wanting her
Parents of children struggling with substance use often don’t recognize the toll this experience takes on their own bodies. The chronic stress, hypervigilance, and fear create real physiological changes that can persist long after immediate crises pass. Ericka Thomas, a trauma informed yoga instructor and certified trauma release exercise provider, offers insight into how parents
When a teenager is struggling with substance misuse or mental health challenges, parents often feel lost about where to turn and what level of help their child truly needs. Jennifer Taylor, founder of JET Ed Consulting and Board Chair of the Therapeutic Consulting Association, provides an insider’s perspective on therapeutic educational consulting and the hard
When a child struggles with substance misuse, parents often face their crisis in silence. This episode creates a bridge between the isolated parent and the friends or family members who want to help but don’t know how. Understanding the Daily Weight Parents Carry The reality of parenting a child through substance use is far beyond
When a child struggles with substance misuse, parents often focus all their energy on helping their child while neglecting their own mental health. But as licensed mental health counselor Laura Richer explains, parents are dealing with their own significant trauma that deserves professional support. Why Parents Need Their Own Therapy Laura emphasizes the reality that
When your child is struggling with substance use or emotional challenges, the experience can feel devastating. Parents commonly report three intense feelings that dominate their daily lives: fear, complete overwhelm, and exhaustion — not just mild versions of these emotions, but crippling levels that impact every aspect of life. ‘It’s this kind of crazy panicked
When it comes to prescription medications that have spun into a full-blown crisis, Xanax stands out as particularly dangerous for adolescents and young adults. In this critical conversation, Dr. Nzinga Harrison, board certified in psychiatry and Addiction Medicine and co-founder of Eleanor Health, breaks down exactly why this benzodiazepine has become such a problem and
When Hope Payson set out to create a documentary about addiction, she wasn’t thinking about drugs. She was thinking about pain. As a clinical social worker who had lost a brother to untreated trauma and addiction, she noticed something missing in public conversations about the opioid crisis: no one was asking why people wanted these
When substance use disrupts a family, parents often focus intensely on the child who’s struggling—and understandably so. But what about the other children in the home? They’re watching, worrying, and often confused about what’s happening to their sibling and their family. Dr. Nicole Kosanke, Director of Family Services with CMC and co-author of Beyond Addiction,
