We asked social workers who use our domestic violence software to help us understand what is going on with the sudden eruption of the #MeToo movement. Sweeping across the media landscape like wildfire, a tsunami of accusations began with Roger Ailes at Fox and Harvey Weinstein in Hollywood then quickly enveloped such well known T.V. personalities as Charlie Rose, Matt Lauer, Garrison Keilor, and Kevin Spacey. Even the most cynical among us was startled by the sudden collective outcry sent up by the women of Hollywood. What, we asked our colleagues, is going on here?

Twenty years-ago it seemed like every family in the country was struggling with a teenager suffering from an “eating disorder”. In recent years this serious social, mental health, psychological, and medical problem seems to be garnering a lot less attention. Did we lick it, or have we just stopped talking about it?

It seems that society has always struggled with substance abuse. The human animal is uncomfortable with the constant torture of his normal brain chemistry and now and then seeks to escape to a more comfortable altered state. This, however, is a dangerous game. Apparently, we easily become addicted to the substances that alter brain chemistry and quickly slip into substance use disorders.

Yoga

Permit me to excerpt the article, Yoga For Addiction by Kate Jackson in Social Work Today to discuss the use of yoga as part of the new therapeutic alternatives being tried by social workers facing the virtual epidemic of substance abuse.

FEAR is the social worker’s most formidable enemy. Vulnerable people at risk are the social worker’s constituents, and vulnerable people at risk are, of course, full of fear. Persistent fear always morphs into anger setting up a self-destructive spiral in the vulnerable. Whether working with a population of addicts, immigrants, children at risk, or the elderly, helping clients overcome fear is the first job of the social worker.