Patti Clark - Author
Author Patti Clark has been described as a cross between Elizabeth Gilbert and Julia Cameron.
Patti Clark is the award-winning author of
This Way Up: Seven Tools for Unleashing Your Creative Self and Transforming Your Life.
She has been featured on TVNZ’s Breakfast Show, a number of podcasts (Drunkalogues, ODAAT, Through the Glass, Confident Sober Women, Ruthless Compassion, This is Women’s Work, Linda’s Corner)
Her work has been featured in numerous publications including: The New York Weekly, The Wall Street Journal, The Boston Globe, The Mindful Word, and Thrive Global.
Her own experience as a middle-aged woman in recovery is deeply reflected in her new book,
Recovery Road Trip: Finding Purpose and Connection on the Journey Home.
Patti was born and raised in Northern California, lived in New Zealand for many years, and is now living in Portugal.
This Way Up is the Winner of International Excellence Self-Help Book of the Year.
FUSION RECOVERY
Fusion Recovery
What it is and Why the Concept is Important
Fusion: a union by or as if by melting: such as a merging of diverse, distinct, or separate elements into a unified whole.
—MERRIAM-WEBSTER’S COLLEGIATE DICTIONARY
If you’re in a 12-Step program, as I am, perhaps you have had some frustration, as I have, about some of the rigidity experienced in 12-Step rooms. When I first got into recovery in 1988, my main addiction was to alcohol, and I stayed focused on AA for my first couple of years. But after a few years of recovery, I realized that a few other addictions were rearing their heads. In my using days, I had also experienced addiction to speed and cocaine, and crippling codependency.
But when I spoke about my past addictions or pain around codependency, I was told to go to another room to talk about it. There was one room to deal with alcoholism, another room for the drugs and yet another for my codependency. So, I started going to NA, ACOA and Al-anon meetings, as well as the AA meetings.
And in each room, I was told to not even mention the other addictions or problems beside the one that that particular room was focusing on. In early sobriety, I could stay focused on alcoholism, but other problems kept emerging, especially around codependency and growing up in an alcoholic home.
I eventually found ‘Double-Winners Meetings’ (meetings where members spoke about their addiction to alcohol and their codependency) and that was a great start.
But I kept thinking, addiction is addiction is addiction! We are all striving for the same thing, to be able to live our life without the use of whatever substance or behavior that we had used to escape our life. That might be a substance like drugs or alcohol; a behavior like controlling everyone around you to create a sense of security; eating to fill the perceived hole in your life, or shopping to fill that hole; or gambling to change your life; or perhaps sex and/or porn to fill the emptiness … the list is long. Basically, we were all looking to build a life that we don’t want to escape from!
The more I thought about it, the more I wanted to fuse the concepts together. At first, I thought if doing this like a patchwork quilt, sewing all the the different pieces together and trying to make a whole. But then one day, I was on a podcast called Podcast Recovery, talking to the hosts Eric and David, and this topic came up. And the more we talked about it, my vision started to change. I started to see the difference between a patchwork approach and a fusion approach; almost like imagining a quilt versus a blender. A quilt has all the patches different and quite distinct, whereas a blender mixes everything together to make the final liquid. I pictured it as a dance instead of a static piece!
On that podcast, we were all so enthusiastic about it. And I thought, I bet there are a lot of us out there thinking about this. So, I wrote about it in my book, ‘Recovery Road Trip’ and I thought I would share it here.
I think of Fusion Recovery as taking all the important elements from 12-Step recovery that we need to stay clean, sober, healthy and consciously grow, without all the limited thinking involved in some 12-Step rooms. I envision how it could work: allowing all addicts to work together, whatever their drug or behaviour of choice, since it’s all addiction. Identifying, practicing, and supporting each other in ways to stay healthy . . . not just abstaining from drinking or using but also adding important elements. Elements like:
· A Holistic Approach – considering Mind, Body, and Spirit. Fusion Recovery considers the whole person, addressing physical health, mental well-being, and spiritual growth: Eating well and exercising for a healthy body; reading good books and watching good films to nourish our minds; and perhaps most importantly for ongoing sobriety, meditation, contemplation, and staying connected to our higher power, (whatever that is for each individual), to nourish our spirit.
· Community and Connection – Connection is such an important aspect of 12-step work! So of course there would be an emphasis on the importance of building strong, supportive relationships within the recovery community, no matter the addiction.
· Empowerment and Personal Growth - Encouraging individuals to take an active role in their recovery, and if counselling or therapy is needed (as it so often is) to encourage and support individuals in that endeavour.
I like the term Fusion Recovery, because by definition “fusion is a union or a merging of diverse, distinct, or separate elements into a unified whole.” I think of Fusion Recovery like Alchemy!
I’d love to hear from you about your ideas regarding Fusion Recovery. Does this concept make sense to you? If so, please let me know why. And conversely, if you have a problem with the idea, I would love to hear about that too. I am sincerely interested in your opinion on this.
And if you are interested in reading more about this concept, you can get Recovery Road Trip here, in different formats: paperback, E-book or audiobook. Or you can find out more about this topic and others on my website: patticlark.org
I look forward to hearing from you!
In this heartfelt and inspiring episode, host Mike Carlon sits down with Patti Clark, award-winning author of This Way Up and Recovery Road Trip. Patti shares her journey from addiction and recovery to embracing creativity and connection as vital tools for healing. Together, they explore how tapping into our creative selves and inner child can lead us to a life filled with joy, authenticity, and purpose. Tune in as Patti offers profound insights on building the life you truly want to live.
Buy Recovery Road Trip Amazon: https://amzn.to/4fFxf5H Bookshop.org: https://bookshop.org/a/54587/97816474...
Substack: https://patticlarkwriter.substack.com/
Connect with Mike Website: https://uncorkingastory.com/
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSvS...
Key Takeaways: 1. The Power of Connection: Connection is a vital antidote to addiction and a source of creative inspiration. 2. Creativity as Healing: Practices like journaling, painting, or cooking can help us process emotions and connect with something larger than ourselves. 3. The Inner Child: Reconnecting with our inner child through play and creativity can bring joy and healing. 4. Facing Discomfort: Transformation begins by acknowledging dissatisfaction and stepping into the discomfort to explore what brings joy. 5. Meditation Myths: Meditation doesn’t have to follow rigid rules; find what works for you to quiet your mind and listen to your inner voice. 6. Writing for Writing’s Sake: Writing is a gift—whether or not it’s published. Follow the nudge and write for the joy of it. 7. Overcoming Addiction: Addiction often stems from trauma and discomfort. Healing begins by addressing the root causes and creating a fulfilling life.
Join Teri Wellbrock and I on this great podcast. Teri narrated and produced the Recovery Road Trip Audiobook! She is an amazing woman, and her podcast, The Healing Place Podcast is a really wonderful and healing podcast.
‘In this special episode of Outer Circle Inner Stillness, we sit down with author and recovery advocate Patti Clark. Patti shares her deeply personal experiences, spanning decades, including relapses, reconnecting with herself, and building a fulfilling life in recovery. We delve into the challenges and nuances of recovery, particularly the unique experiences of women, and the creative tools and practices Patti has embraced along the way. From journaling to multi-addiction meetings, Patti offers hope, practical wisdom, and inspiration for anyone navigating the complexities of recovery. This is a conversation about resilience, growth, and the power of connection—perfect for anyone seeking insight and encouragement on their own journey.’
Join me in a lively discussion with Dr. Marcia Sirota about recovery, well-being, and transformation.
Dr. Sirota is an interesting and interested women.
I hope you enjoy listening to this conversation as much as I had participating in it!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IUo2iDs7dsI&ab_channel=YourMentalHealthwithDr.MarciaSirota
Ruthless Compassion with Dr. Marcia Sirota is a podcast about people who've turned their emotional shit into fertilizer for success. It's about seeing our darkest moments as opportunities for learning, growth and transformation. We'll cover topics like addiction and mental health, isolation, and loneliness, narcissism versus self-care and difficult family and work relationships. For more, visit http://marciasirotamd.com/.
'Acclaimed wellness author Patti Clark shares her journey to recovery'
Join me on this episode on The Drunkalogues with Nick Morton.
He is a funny, wise, wonderful human being!
And it was an absolute pleasure being on his show!
Please let me know your thoughts after you listen. I'd love to hear from you.
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/acclaimed-wellness-author-patti-clark-shares-her-journey/id1441223951?i=1000679870122
Patti Clark on Rising Alcohol Use and Health Risks for Women
NY Weekly Staff
“Women are drinking more than ever… And it’s killing us!” – Patti Clark
“You’ve come a long way, Baby,
To get where you’ve got to today.
You’ve got your own cigarette now, Baby.
You’ve come a long, long way!”
– Philip Morris Tobacco Company; Virginia Slims Advertisement, 1968
I was ten years old when the commercial for Virginia Slims cigarettes came out on TV. I thought the ad and the women in it were so cool. I wanted to be that liberated, free woman in the ads with her own cigarette. My own mother smoked boring Lucky Strike cigarettes, and she looked nothing like those modern women in the commercial.
Little did I know, at ten years old, that cigarettes were toxic and deadly. However, it was four years earlier, in 1964, that the Surgeon General released a report that cigarette smoking causes chronic bronchitis and cancers of the lung and larynx. But the ads were so alluring and enticing, and who really reads a surgeon general’s report anyway?
I’m often reminded of that ad and my youthful innocence when I look at how alcohol advertising is targeting women now.
Just spend a bit of time on Facebook or Instagram, and you’ll see groups like:
Mommy Needs Vodka (#VodSquad) with 5 million plus followers; Mommy Needs Some Wine; Mommy’s Gin Fund; Why Mommy Drinks Wine, Or all the merch and memes about women and booze: Moma needs some wine on a t-shirt or hoodie.
And there are the groups: Women wine and hiking, women wine and wealth, and, of course, women, wine and books, with too many links to count. There are so many jokes online that book groups are just an excuse to get together and drink.
With memes like:
Our book club reads wine labels
Come to my house for book club, and by book club, I mean wine
Mommy started a book club to drink wine
Not so loud kids, Mommy had book club last night
Oh, you read important books at your book club; how sweet! We just drink wine
My book club can drink your book club under the table
This might all be a bit of a laugh, just a bit of fun … if it wasn’t so deadly.
According to recent data, the number of women dying from alcohol-related causes in the United States has increased by more than 85% from 1999 to 2020.
There are many reasons for this rise, but a significant factor is the targeted advertising and the normalizing of heavy social and binge drinking for women.
Alcohol companies are designing ads that target women. They are making ads that associate drinking with empowerment, echoing those Virginia Slim Ads. This alcohol marketing emphasizes social bonding and has messages that resonate with women about self-care and stress relief. This new ad focus can be referred to as the feminization of alcohol marketing:
One sector in particular has turned its eyes on female buyers: the alcohol industry. “Chick beer” comes in pink packaging with fewer calories. Pastel cocktails dazzle on Instagram to woo women drinkers. Booze, named “Mummy’s Time Out,” targets mums starved for happy hour. And even clothing stores are cashing in, offering T-shirts with slogans like “wine time” drawn in whimsical calligraphy.
So, how does alcohol impact women’s health, and why is it different for women than men? First, there is the difference between body composition and metabolism. Women usually have more body fat and less water content than men, and because alcohol is water soluble and not fat soluble, alcohol is more concentrated in a woman’s body, which leads to a higher blood alcohol concentration. Women also tend to have a slower metabolism, so they metabolize alcohol more slowly, so alcohol stays in a woman’s system longer, increasing its effects and its harm. Hormonal factors can also play a role in how women process alcohol. Higher estrogen levels can intensify alcohol’s impact.
The way that women’s bodies process alcohol leads to increased health risks. Women are more susceptible to alcohol-related liver damage than men. Women are at a greater risk of developing alcohol-induced cardiovascular diseases than men. Alcohol consumption also increases the risk of several types of cancer in women (including cancer of the mouth, throat, esophagus, liver and colon.) And drinking alcohol is associated with breast cancer in women, even at low levels of consumption.
And yet, with all of this information available, women continue to drink to excess, and the number of women dying from alcohol-related causes continues to rise … But who really wants to read all these medical journals about alcohol-related disease and cancer anyway?
Not when the ads and the memes are so fun, alluring and enticing!
Hmmmm, have we really come such a long, long way after all?
NY Weekly Staff
Author Patti Clark has been described as a cross between Elizabeth Gilbert and Julia Cameron. As the author of This Way Up: Seven Tools for Unleashing Your Creative Self and Transforming Your Life, Patti has been featured on various TV shows and podcasts, including TVNZ’s Breakfast Show, and her work has been featured in numerous prominent publications. Her own experience as a middle-aged woman in recovery is deeply reflected in her new book, Recovery Road Trip. Patti was born and raised in Northern California, lived in New Zealand for many years, and is now living in Portugal.
Published by: Martin De Juan
Join Julie, Steve and I as we explore Why We Relapse and What to Do After a Relapse
Join Julie, Steve and I as We Explore Relationships and Sobriety: How Recovery Affects your Relationship
Join me as we discuss Relapse and Women in Recovery on ‘One Day at a Time Podcast’
with Arlina Allen
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vTdDVZbH17Y&ab_channel=TheOneDayAtATimeRecoveryPodcast
Listen to Julie and Steve, from ‘Through the Glass Recovery Podcast’ and I discuss Relationships and Sobriety and how it affects friends, family and others in your life:
https://throughtheglassrecovery.com/podcast/relationships-and-sobriety/
NZ Breakfast Show interviews Patti Clark about Drunkorexia:
Drunkorexia refers to someone who restricts food calories to make room for alcoholic drink calories.
Trudi Sheridan interviews Patti Clark about her book - This Way Up
Patti Clark interviewed on The Beat Goes On
