Opportunity to Help

"I have a friend who's in recovery," the woman on the phone told me. And then she went on to tell me that this person had been in recovery for a while and was having a difficult time with the program. He found the meetings boring and wished there were more social activities connected with them.

I told her there were hundreds of meetings in the Valley each day. And many offered social activities of various kinds. He just needed to find the right meeting, one where he could meet people and get involved.

"Have your friend give me a call," I told her. "I'll be glad to talk to him."

This is a scenario that plays out often. I'll be in the middle of a business call, as I was with this woman, and the conversation will digress into someone she or he knows who has a substance abuse problem. And of course that’s my opportunity to help.

Since about 20 percent of the population has a problem with substance abuse it’s not strange that I would be having these conversations with people in the course of business. Once people find out what we do at TLC they often bring up a relative or friend who has a problem with drugs or alcohol. And from there, of course, we segue into what they can do the problem.

Opportunities to do 12-step work show up all the time.