Kurt Swensen - Portland, Oregon Alcohol and Drug Addiction Counseling Treatment - Drug Addiction, Alcohol Addiction, Sex Addiction, Food, Nicotine, Shopping, Gambling

I was reflecting on last Saturdays show with Rob and thought about what a difficult position medical people find themselves in when they are faced with addiction or relapse. The Addictions Professional who finds him or herself with an addiction issue after many years of recovery is also another very difficult issue to deal with. Clients I have worked with over the years have great shame associated with be in the helping profession and being somehow unable to find help themselves.

I remember a client that I worked with many years ago that was a nurse in a hospital. This nurse took a syringe intended for a patient, (containing her drug of choice) and injected it into herself. She then replaced the medication with a similarly colored liquid and left the syringe in the room. Another nurse came along and gave the patient the injection and the patient died.

This client lived with the guilt and fear that she had “killed” the patient with the substitute liquid. It was not until I directed her to contact the treating physician and consult with him as to the cause of death and to “come clean” about her actions that was she able to resolve her guilt. The cause of death was unrelated to the injection. But can you imagine the guilt? The fear??

Rob was a great guest and I was happy to have him on the show. His sincerity and willingness to speak about his addiction history was inspirational and we have received great feedback about his story and how helpful it was to hear from a recovering medical professional. I look forward to having him on the show again and he said he welcomes any questions people might have for him. You can reach him through me, at etohtx@aol.com I will make sure he gets your message.

Have a great week and join us again this Saturday for a new episode of Online Recovery Support Radio.

Be well,

kurt