Life Process Program Blog

The main ingredients in your personality (e.g., outgoing/friendly/shy-reserved; adventurous–risk taking/cautious-risk averse) are largely fixed by genes, upbringing, trauma. But, as you mature your purpose and outlook can change (e.g., seeking success, enjoying helping others). The latter, changeable things are...

The American Dream: We can bypass human consciousness, lived experience and intentionality so as to cure addiction medically. Alcohol: Colonial America to Mary Pendery Antiquity through American Colonial Period. Psychoactive substances were not identified as special objects capable of...

Hi Dr. Peele, I’m a long-time follower of your work, and have been reading about Ariel’s experience. I can relate to so many of the comments in this article, and I was going to just post my own response...

As medical treatment for drug use and depression continue to increase, more people— often young people— suffer and die from each. What’s the connection? Is it social connection? A strange phenomenon occurred during the Vietnam War. After the Secretaries...

We are regularly told to turn ourselves over to medical and recovery experts who can save us. They couldn’t help Heather Armstrong after 20 years. Armstrong, who ushered in an age of confessional writing online by women, inspiring millions...

Tom Horvath (SMART Recovery) and Stanton Peele  delve into their decades’ long association in the battle to establish non-disease, harm reduction treatment in the United States. Their connection is supportive, even affectionate. Each in their own way — Tom...

  We have been watching the Johnny Depp lawsuit against Amber Heard with great interest. Except we don’t care if Johnny Depp wins his defamation suit against Amber Heard. Nor will we render an opinion about whether “mutual abuse”...

“Does love addiction exist?” commentators question. Yet our most popular streaming media stories are replete with the cases of people whose lives are severely disturbed by harmful, irrational intimate involvements — up to an including death. Take “Dirty John”....

NYT Best-Selling Author Johann Hari, In his new book, “Stolen Focus”, explains why and how our ability to pay attention is diminishing; he explains why that matters; and he offers potential solutions to those of us who wish to...

In the wake of Norm Macdonald’s unfortunate death, Zach and Stanton discuss Macdonald’s legendary gambling problem (as explored in an extremely interesting way by Marc Maron). They reflect on the values of money, achievement, and purpose — both in...

Zach was very hopeful that the tides of addiction theory and treatment were turning when super podcaster Joe Rogan had Carl Hart on his show. Carl, author of “Drug-Use for Grown Ups,” despite being a neuroscientist, doesn’t believe that...

Dr. Stanton Peele and Zach Rhoads discuss Jordan Peterson’s work, his views about addiction, and how he handled his own addiction to benzodiazepines (with an understanding that Peterson makes a distinction between “addiction proper” and what he believes was...

A question that we are often asked is – Is LPP a “trauma informed program”?  In this podcast, we offer a definition of “trauma” in several contexts and we discuss the differences between traumatic events and adverse conditions in life. We...

Dr. Carl Hart explains that the vast majority of people who use drugs do so with no problem. In fact, drugs — yes, even so-called “hard drugs”– offer more positive than negative experiences. Dr. Hart is a professor (and...

Harm Reduction is an approach to reducing the harm associated with potentially dangerous activity– it’s common sense. But many people balk at harm reduction practice and policy when drug use is involved. In this video, LPP coach Zach Rhoads...

Questions of family often appear in relation to addiction and drug issues. As with all questions in these areas, discussion is misled by disease beliefs, which leave people muddled and mystified about how to proceed constructively.  Nonetheless, basic human...

Stanton Peele answers questions from social media followers, listeners, and YouTube viewers. Today, Zach Rhoads reads Stanton a question from a Facebook follower: “Why do people call addiction a disease, and what is addiction REALLY?” Want to ask Stanton...

This is episode 45 of the LPP Podcast (and the 11th segment of the “Sundays With Stories” series).  Sundays With Stories is a segment of the LPP podcast that Dr. Peele and Zach Rhoads created in order to illuminate...

Sundays With Stories is a segment of the LPP podcast that Dr. Peele and Zach Rhoads created in order to illuminate the myriad natural recovery (recovery without support groups or rehab) stories all around us. They do so because...

Sundays With Stories is a segment of the LPP podcast that Dr. Peele and Zach Rhoads created in order to illuminate the myriad natural recovery (recovery without support groups or rehab) stories all around us. They do so because...

Sundays With Stories is a segment of the LPP podcast that Dr. Peele and Zach Rhoads created in order to illuminate the myriad natural recovery (recovery without support groups or rehab) stories all around us. They do so because...

Welcome to the LPP Podcast Episode 41! We have a truly remarkable LPP “Sundays With Stories” — Aaron’s story. Put simply, Aaron’s life has been . . . well, it might be rejected by Netflix as unbelievable. And it...

Not so long ago, we (at the Life Process Program) published a blog comparing and contrasting SMART Recovery and the Life Process Program. Shortly after doing so, Dr. Tom Horvath (the  former president of SMART Recovery) wrote to us...

Welcome to the LPP Podcast Episode 39!   In today’s episode of Sundays With Stories, Stanton and Zach discuss current events. This week a New York Times article bemoaned the failure of addiction specialists to adopt a proven tool...

Welcome to the LPP Podcast Episode 38!   Zach Rhoads and I return to “Sundays With Stories.” We have created this series to replace the disease narrative for addiction and drug use. It is our last gasp effort to...

Welcome to the LPP Podcast Episode 35! What is Sundays With Stories? Stanton Peele and Zach Rhoads, an addiction and a child development specialist respectively, converse about the realities of addiction and substance misuse in their Sunday conversations. Stanton and...

Welcome to the LPP Podcast Episode 35! What is Sundays With Stories? Stanton Peele and Zach Rhoads, an addiction and a child development specialist respectively, converse about the realities of addiction and substance misuse in their Sunday conversations. Stanton and...

Welcome to the LPP Podcast Episode 34! This is a sneak peak at a new weekly segment by Stanton Peele and Zach Rhoads, called “Sundays With Stories”  You can listen to the audio version of the podcast HERE Stanton...

Welcome to the LPP Podcast Episode 33! This is a sneak peak at a new weekly segment by Stanton Peele and Zach Rhoads, called “Sundays With Stories”  You can listen to the audio version of the podcast HERE  ...

Welcome to the LPP Podcast Episode 32! Today’s episode is a segment of our interview with LPP Coach Dee Cloward. In this segment, Dee talks about her work at SMART Recovery and compares/contrasts it with her work for the...

Welcome to Episode 31! Today we want you to take care of you. So enjoy this 15 minute mindfulness meditation and free your mind so that you can make reasoned, responsible, and good decisions about how you’ll behave for...

Welcome to Episode 30! Today’s guest is Toby Sola. Toby is the CEO of Brightmind for a living; he practices and teaches meditation as a livelihood. Brightmind is a meditation app that helps people of all personalities, persuasions, and...

Welcome to Episode 29! Today’s guest is our very own LPP Coach, Dolores Cloward — Dee for short. Dee is an LPP coach with a range of interesting professional and personal experiences worth sharing, including her own experience with...

Welcome to Episode 28! Today’s guest is Mindy Vincent. Mindy is an addiction therapist and social worker; she is the host of the podcast “Therapeutic Madness“; and she is the founder of Utah Harm Reduction Coalition. Mindy spoke with...

Welcome to Episode 27! Today is actually an excerpt from another podcast – REBT Advocates. Today you’ll hear LPP coach and author Zach Rhoads talking with Michael Edelstein and Tommy Bateman about his and Stanton Peele’s latest book, “Outgrowing...

Welcome to Episode 26! On today’s program, Zach Rhoads speaks with Daniel Snyder. Daniel lives in Langley, British Columbia where he is a project and peer coordinator at Langley Overdose Response. He is also the founding creator of Mindful...

Welcome to Episode 25 – This is the fourth and final episode in out four-part series about Harm Reduction. In the first three episodes of the series, Zach spoke with Dr. Peele. Here are links to those episodes, in...

Welcome to Episode 24 – This is the third of a four-part series about Harm Reduction. The series opened with a discussion around the history of harm reduction for addiction and last week we heard Zach and Stanton discuss...

Welcome to episode 23 – This is the second of a four-part series about Harm Reduction. Last week, Stanton and Zach discussed the history of harm reduction for addiction. In today’s episode, Stanton wraps up his telling of Harm...

Harm reduction therapy is based on four principles: While absolute abstinence may be preferable for many or most substance abusers, very few will achieve it, and even that small group will take time to do so and may relapse...

Dr. Sandy Steingard is a psychiatrist and the chief medical officer of a statewide non-profit organization in Vermont called The Howard Center. She is also a blogger for Robert Whitaker’s online Magazine called “Mad in America” and she’s the...

Robert Schwebel is a psychologist, author, and the creator of a non 12-step program called “Seven Challenges”. Dr. Schwebel’s “Seven Challenges” are a practical guide for people, young and old, to really understand their relationship with drugs and alcohol...

Today’s episode is the final in a series of eight where Zach talks directly to Dr Stanton Peele, the founder of the Life Process Program. Each week they discuss one module of the eight-module program, and in today’s episode they...

Today’s episode is the seventh in a series of eight where Zach talks directly to Dr Stanton Peele, the founder of the Life Process Program. Each week they discuss one module of  the eight-module  program, and in today’s episode...

Today’s episode is the sixth in a series of eight where Zach talks directly to Dr Stanton Peele, the founder of the Life Process Program. Each week they discuss one module of  the eight-module  program, and in today’s episode...

Today’s episode is the fifth in a series of eight where Zach talks directly to Dr Stanton Peele, the founder of the Life Process Program. Each week they discuss one module of  the eight-module  program, and in today’s episode...

Today’s episode is the fourth in a series of eight where Zach talks directly to Dr Stanton Peele, the founder of the Life Process Program. Each week they discuss one module of  the eight-module  program, and in today’s episode...

Today’s episode is the third in a series of eight where Zach talks directly to Dr Stanton Peele, the founder of the Life Process Program. Each week they will discuss one module of  the eight-module  program, and in today’s...

Today’s episode is the second in a series of eight where Zach talks directly to Dr Stanton Peele, the founder of the Life Process Program. Each week they will discuss one module of  the eight-module  program, and in today’s...

Today’s episode is the first in a series of eight where Zach talks directly to Dr Stanton Peele, the founder of the Life Process Program. Each week they will discuss one module of  the eight-module  program, beginning today with...

Today Zach talks to Dr Rick Barnett. Rick is a doctor of Psychology – Clinical, Mental/Behavioral Health & Addiction Consultant. Rick has been accepted into the ‘class of 2020’ at the California Institute for Integral Studies in their Certificate...

Today’s episode is an excerpt of a conversation our LPP coach Zach had with developmental  psychologist and best selling author, Dr Ross Greene. They talk about how Dr Ross came up with a way to work collaboratively with children...

In todays episode, our LPP coach Zach Rhoads reads an extract from the book “Outgrowing Addiction: With Common Sense Instead of Disease Therapy” that he co-authored with Dr Stanton Peele. With drug overdoses continuing to rise at an alarming...

  In todays episode, our LPP coach Zach Rhoads talks to Bill Kinkle. Bill calls himself a ‘person in recovery’ although he is quick to explain that the term probably means something different to him than it does to...

  Today’s segment is an excerpt from Dr Stanton Peele’s recent appearance on a Texas radio station called Cultural Baggage, hosted by a man named Dean Becker. In this episode, Dr Peele discusses the simple truth that the majority...

  On this podcast, our LPP coach, Zach Rhoads talks to Brooke Feldman. Brooke is an addiction professional who earned her grad degree from the university of Pennsylvanian. Brooke currently manages methadone clinics in Philadelphia. Brooke openly identifies as...

  On this podcast, Dr. Stanton Peele delivers a talk to a group of helping professionals in Galway Ireland. His keynote addresses the importance of recognizing values– as well as motivation, skills, connection, purpose, and meaning– in overcoming addiction....

  Today’s episode is a throwback! Dr. Stanton Peele interviews harm-reduction therapists and authors of the book, Over The Influence, Patt Denning and Jeannie Little. These ladies were (and are) at the forefront of commonsense, harm-reduction based therapy. Their...

  Dr. Stanton Peele and Zach Rhoads answer the following frequently asked question: Is LPP a “trauma informed program”?  They offer a definition of “trauma” in several contexts. Then they discuss differences between traumatic events and adverse conditions in life. Peele...

  Rewrite your life story. The Life Process Program takes clients through a staged review of their life stories, focusing first on mistakes, continuing to how they might have acted differently to avoided these pitfalls, to reconceiving their life...

We’re pleased to launch the NEW monthly #LPP Podcast that our coaches Zach and Aaron have initiated. Each month, Stanton Peele & Zach Rhoads will tackle & discuss a clinical addiction issue. The first episode deals with this clinical...