The Coleman Institute Blog

My good friend sends me articles she reads that have to do with addiction. This morning she sent me a quick story from the New York Times that describes a woman’s experience of having surgery in Germany: “After Surgery in Germany, I Wanted Vicodin, Not Herbal Tea.”

(more…)

When I write blog articles, my inspiration is drawn from the courageous patients who are re-writing the stories of their lives. Usually when I ask for permission to tell someone’s story, changing a few details to keep it confidential, people are willing to share. When I talked to Ben about sharing his story, he offered to write it in his own words. Clearly, I couldn’t have said it any better. (more…)

I was riding my bike when a huge flatbed roared past me. Stenciled onto the back of the cab were big red letters: TOWING and RECOVERY.

I thought, “Now that would be an interesting way to tout our own services at the Coleman Institute…”

(more…)

Last month, a long-awaited research study was published that will help patients and physicians make decisions on which treatment to use for opioid dependence. For quite some time, Suboxone, (Buprenorphine combined with Naloxone) has been the most recommended type of treatment for Opioid Use Disorder. Suboxone is a partial agonist, which means it turns on the opiate receptors, and so it is quite addictive.

(more…)

To choose nursing or medicine as a profession usually means that sometime in your career, you will be covering weekends and holidays. So when my children were young, I had to take my turns doing shifts on Thanksgiving and Christmas for many years.

As much as I loved being home during a holiday, from the beginning I was always grateful to be the one ‘wearing the uniform’ rather than being the patient when I did have to work. Being in the position to help someone who has to be stuck in a hospital over the holidays was actually pretty gratifying.

(more…)