Plan for helping your loved one in recovery while supporting your entire family.
Financing Alternatives for Recovery
The Affordable Health Care Act considers mental health and substance abuse disorders essential benefits that must be provided by any plan available in the health insurance marketplace.
Budget Busters 3
“Those who do not learn history are doomed to repeat it.” Winston Churchill Previously, we saw how both Mitchell and Martha progressed from denial to action. They are now faced with the task of developing a plan to achieve their goals. Mitchell is ready to get down to business. “I need to live on 1,200 calories per day. What is a calorie? How many calories do I currently consume? What else should I pay attention to?” Martha is ready to get down to business. “I make $10,000 per month. I want to save $2,000 per month. That leaves me $8,000. I need $5,000 …
Budget Busters 2
“If you don’t know where you are going, any road will get you there.” Lewis Carroll In my previous post, I demonstrated how difficult it is to acknowledge the need for discipline. Let’s see what happens when Mitchell and Martha are ready to act. Mitchell is stoked. “I am going on a diet. Not only am I going on a diet, I’m going to hit the gym. I will start tomorrow. In a month, I’ll be a new man.” Martha is stoked. “I am going on a budget. Not only am I going on a budget, I’m going to save …
Budget Busters 1
“What a fool believes, he sees.” Doobie Brothers Many of us have no idea how to go about creating and living within a budget. Yet many of us have been on a diet. Why does budgeting scare so many of us? Money influences our behaviors in ways we are not aware of. In a series of posts, I will demonstrate how many of the skills required to create a diet are the same as those required to build a budget. Skills that can be learned. Meet Mitchell. Mitchell just returned from his annual physical. Seems Mitchell put on some additional …
Is College Worth Going into Debt For?
One of the most impactful decisions many recovering addicts face is College. The financial implications should not be ignored. College is but one step in the road to recovery. There are many more unknowns that lie ahead. As families begin to comprehend the investment of time required heal as a family, it is important that they also comprehend the financial investment required to heal as a family. For many families, there is a sense of urgency, whether real or imagined. Before families make decisions that they may regret in the future, they need to plan, a unique plan reflecting their …
Budgeting vs. Planning: It’s About Time
For most people in recovery, budgeting is an exercise that in the end confirms what they already know. Their expenses are too high, and their income is too low. They are then consumed by feelings of helplessness, hopelessness, and despair. Budgets focus on the here and now. They are merely a snapshot in time. And for those in the early stages of recovery, from a financial perspective the picture is bleak. Early recovery emphasizes living one day at a time, which conflicts with the long-term perspective required to live a sober life. Dreams are big and take a long time …
The Hidden Costs of Addiction
Several weeks ago, a rehabilitation center in New Jersey invited me to speak at their weekly family group meeting. They believed that my combination of a successful Wall Street career combined with 15+ years (and counting) of life with a child in recovery could be both educational and inspirational. If I said I wasn’t nervous it would be a bold face lie; to do a presentation like this successfully would require my being open and vulnerable about the rollercoaster of pain and pleasure that comes with the journey. Reflecting back on the time, I came to the realization that as …