Episode 34 - Susan Ousterman, Founder of Vilomah Memorial Gardens and Tyler's Mom

Susan Ousterman, Founder of Vilomah Memorial Gardens, speaks to the experience of walking with her son, Tyler, on his journey with addiction and his medical treatment while battling a substance use disorder. Susan describes how many of the laws that were actually in place, but not recognized, may have contributed to his passing. Many of us will relate with the stigma of substance abuse while navigating resources available to treat and heal addiction, the daunting monetary impact of treatment costs, or managing what our standard medical community understands about addiction. Nothing can truly capture the journey you're about to hear other than the words on the Vilomah Memorial Gardens' website,

Someday, society will come to fully understand the disease of addiction and those suffering will no longer be viewed as moral failures. They will be treated with the dignity and respect they deserve. The catalyst for this change will be those of us who spoke up, and the true heroes will be recognized — our children who suffered in silence, who paid the ultimate price.

Thank you for listening.

8:00 - Moms for All Paths of Recovery, run by Kathleen Cochran, Heart of a Warrior Woman
9:20 - It's not a hard sell to love your child
9:30 - Understanding addiction is multi-faceted and is often not attributable to one factor
11:00 - Our inner path of recovery can benefit our child
11:30 - Harm Reduction and how we can create a different approach to healing addiction
12:15 - Withholding support from an addict verses meeting them where they are
13:00 - The balance of unconditional love and protecting yourself
13:45 - Building a relationship while your child is both using and trying to heal
14:30 - Tyler's experience with Medical Treatment and the potential impact the stigma of using may have had on his care
15:15 - Safe syringe programs
16:15 - Tyler's Endocarditis, a life-threatening inflammation of the inner lining of the heart's chambers and valves, and his treatment experience
19:35 - How Tyler's Medical Marijuana License may have impacted his medical care
22:10 - Federal verses County regulations on Medical Marijuana treating Opioid Use Disorder
22:50 - SAMSHA's and the Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT)program
24:50 -Psychedelics and Treatment for Opioid Addiction
26:55 - Listen to Dr. Matthew Johnson on the Huberman Lab Podcast, Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, discuss the potential use of Psychedelics for treatment of depression, addiction, trauma, eating disorders, ADHD, and other disorders of the mind.
27:40 - Research on Ibogaine on Opioid Addiction, Ibogaine treatment outcomes for opioid dependence from a twelve-month follow-up observational study
29:00  - Dope

Thank you for listening and please visit www.siblinghoodofrecovery.com for free resources, links to organizations, groups and individuals who can offer help in the Journey of Recovery towards healing from substance use disorders. If you like this Podcast, please leave a rating on wherever you're listening. It will help to get the word out.

If there is one message I can leave you with, the best you can offer your loved one battling addiction is love and a healthier you.

Walk gently, my friend.