We all know someone struggling with substance use disorder. We might not know it, but since nearly one in five Americans older than twelve reported illicit drug use in 2018, someone in our life is struggling. And those numbers were before a pandemic threw our culture into further isolation. With those kinds of numbers, if you live in the United States, it’s nearly impossible for you to not know someone battling an addiction to drugs or alcohol.

It could be your aunt, cousin, neighbor, your high school classmate, or your best friend’s sibling, son or daughter. Or, it might be you. One way or another, substance use disorders impact our society as a whole, and each and everyone of us as individuals.

So first, why do so many of us still think that this crisis is someone else’s problem? And how can we shift that mentality and become members of the Church who bring Christ’s love and mercy to the souls most in need of it? Souls in our communities, our parishes, and our families?

In this episode, I’m sitting down with Keaton Douglas. She’s the co-author of a brand new book on responding to the crisis of addiction and we’re talking about what sets today’s suffering of addiction apart, what we can learn from St. Pope John Paul II’s Theology of the Body when it comes to accompanying someone struggling with an addiction, and practical ways that we can grow in our understanding of addiction as Catholic women today.

Accompanying those we love who are struggling with addiction is messy, challenging, and unfortunately too often, it’s devastating. But as Catholic women today, we need to do it. And for the sake of those we love, we need to start today.

So whether you’re tuning in to learn more about the epidemic of substance use disorders and come to understand it better or you’re wondering how to start making some real change in your family and community, sister, this letter is for you.

Topics we talked about in this episode:

• Keaton’s story as a Catholic woman

• The inspiration behind The Road to Hope: Responding to the Crisis of Addiction

• Why it’s tempting to think that addition is “someone else’s problem” and why we have a responsibility as Catholics to move beyond that mentality

• What makes opiod addiction different from other suffering

• The important element that’s missing from most resources available for people suffering from addiction—and what the Catholic Church can provide

• How to tap into St. Pope John Paul II’s Theology of the Body as Catholics accompanying those who are addicted

• How to communicate the dignity of those who die of substance abuse and how to acknowledge (and eliminate!) social stigmas around addiction

• Keaton’s advice for how to grow in our understanding of addiction and accompany those we love through this particular type of suffering

• How Keaton lives ou the feminine genius in her daily life

Resources you should check out after listening to this episode:

• Pick up a copy of The Road to Hope by Keaton Douglas and Lindsay Schlegel

• Learn more about iTHIRST

• Check out the sponsor for today’s episode, Sacred Heart Tea, and use the code LETTERS to get 10% off your purchase at checkout

• Pick up a copy of the Letters to Women book (and use the code LETTERS at checkout to receive 15% off your purchase!)

• Check out my monthly newsletter, Naptime Notes

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