Mary Beth O'Connor: From Junkie to Judge

Dancing in the Discomfort Zone with Anne Bonney

Trauma. Addiction. Uncomfortable topics, but ones that are vital to talk about so we can get through them ourselves, or so we can support our loved ones and fellow citizens, so this week I welcome Mary Beth O’Connor, former junkie, retired judge, and now an advocate, speaker and trainer on all things addiction and trauma recovery. This episode is JAM PACKED with incredibly valuable data on addiction and trauma, and some very surprising!!

Did you know that

• 75% of addicts will recover from their addiction? (probably not on the first try, but most do eventually recover!)
• After 5 years of sobriety, addicts have an 85% chance of never relapsing?
• There are quite a few different substance abuse recovery programs that are as effective as the most common 12 step “anonymous” programs?
• Drug overdose is the top killer of adults age 18-45 (https://www.elpasotimes.com/story/news/2023/02/02/fentanyl-overdose-cause-of-death-among-adults-greg-abbott/69867350007/)
• 110,000 people died of drug overdose in 2022, an all time high.

There is so much misinformation, and this episode will help give you the reality of the situation from someone who has been on the substance abuse side as well as the legal side! If anyone knows, it’s Mary Beth.

Want more from Mary Beth O’Connor?

Website: junkietojudge.com
X/Twitter: @MaryBethO_
Linked In: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mary-beth-o-connor-8aaa4b121/
Her memoir (From Junkie to Judge: One Woman's Triumph Over Trauma and Addiction): https://a.co/d/hS8vTms
Beyond Addiction book https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Beyond-Addiction/Jeffrey-Foote/9781476709482
SheRecovers Foundation: Just one more recovery support option: https://sherecovers.org/
Stanford Teenage Substance Dependence resource for parents: https://med.stanford.edu/childpsychiatry/parenting/topics/substance.html