Brain Basics
This almond-shaped brain structure detects danger and triggers the body’s fight-or-flight response.
Amygdala
This Step asks us to admit we are powerless over substances and that life has become this.
Step 1
This breathing technique involves inhaling for 4, holding for 4, exhaling for 4, and holding for 4 to calm the nervous system. Some people visualize a box.
Box Breathing
This psychological theory is often shown as a pyramid that explains human motivation through five levels, starting with basic survival needs and ending with self-actualization.
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
This client has 50 days of sobriety, today! Congratulations!
DJ
Located in the frontal lobe, this brain area is responsible for logic, decision-making, and impulse control.
Prefrontal Cortex
Step 2 challenges the belief that nothing will change and replaces it with this.
Hope
This grounding technique asks you to name things you can see, feel, hear, smell, and taste.
5-4-3-2-1 grounding technique
In DBT, this state occurs when emotional thinking and logical thinking work together to guide balanced decision-making.
Wise Mind
This client finds peace through nature, often enjoying walks outdoors and spending time gardening.
Danielle
This concept means your brain can be “rewired,” which is why healing, learning, and behavior change are possible.
Neuroplasticity
This is the opposite of control and is a major theme of Step 3.
Surrender
This coping skill involves tightening and releasing muscle groups to reduce physical tension.
Progressive Muscle Relaxation
In CBT, this term refers to inaccurate or unhelpful thinking patterns — like all-or-nothing thinking, catastrophizing, or mind-reading — that can negatively impact emotions and behavior.
Cognitive Distortion
This client has shared multiple times in group that his favorite quote is Carl Jung’s, “Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate."
Tim
These tiny “branches” on brain cells pick up information and help your brain form new connections.
Dendrites
This emotion is considered one of the biggest relapse risks and is heavily explored in Step 4.
Resentment
This mindfulness practice involves slowly bringing awareness to different parts of the body without judgment.
Body Scan Meditation
This therapeutic technique helps clients separate themselves from their problems by viewing issues like addiction, anxiety, or depression as something they experience — not who they are.
Externalization
This client recently earned their RAD-T certification and has expressed interest in working in the treatment field to support others in recovery.
Sterling aka "Duly"
This nervous system controls automatic body functions like heart rate, breathing, and digestion without you thinking about it.
Autonomic Nervous System
This Step asks members to make a decision to turn their will and their lives over to the care of a Higher Power.
Step 3
This breathing practice involves switching airflow between nostrils to regulate stress and improve focus.
Alternate Nostril Breathing
This concept involves treating yourself with kindness during moments of struggle, recognizing that suffering is part of being human, and responding with understanding rather than criticism.
Self- Compassion
This client named caring as one of their most important core values.
Oren