LeClair Bissell, MD, NCAC

Retired Sanibel physician LeClair Bissell, an internationally known expert on
addiction, died suddenly in Hartford, Conn. on August 20, 2008. She was 80 years
old and relished every minute of "being old!"


Born on May 18, 1928 to Clayton Bissell, a major general in the United States
Army, and Louise LeClair Bissell, she learned to ride horses from an Army
colleague
of her father's, Ike Eisenhower, who gave her lessons when she was a little
girl.

In an Islander interview in 1997, she described herself as "an Army brat with no
roots
'til I was old enough to fend for myself. Born in Virginia, left in six weeks,
and
Columbia [University] was my 23rd school!" After completing her education in
Library
Science, including an M.S. from Columbia in the 1950s, she was a librarian for
the New
York Public Library, later attending Yale's School of Alcohol Studies. During
this time,
she met her life partner, Nancy Palmer, and with Nancy's encouragement, returned
to
Columbia in 1963 and earned her M.D.

"A medical degree gives you license to treat anyone for anything," she said in
that 1997
interview. "Some of us felt there was more to treating the addicted professional
than
what we had gotten in med school, so we took the exam for counselor
certification to
make the statement that additional training is necessary to deal with this
problem."

LeClair was actively involved for 30-plus years with the American Society of
Addiction
Medicine. Her achievements include establishing an alcoholism program that, with
her
help, later became the highly regarded Smithers Alcoholism Treatment and
Training
Center at Roosevelt Hospital.

As a skilled teacher and lecturer, she traveled all over the world speaking on
issues
related to impaired professionals, ethics, AIDS, sexual behavior and various
addiction
topics. And she has written or co-written several books on the topic of impaired
professionals; Ethics for Addiction Professionals, Alcoholism in the
Professions,
and To Care Enough (Intervention with chemically dependent colleagues). Bissell
is also the author of The Cat Who Drank Too Much, a children's book.
She served as president of the American Society of Addiction Medicine and was on
the
Carter Mental Health Commission's Task Force on Alcoholism. "There's another
part of it,
too," LeClair continued. "After setting up the training center, I was
increasingly
frustrated by doctors and educators who thought all alcoholics were "derelict
men
under a bridge." There was an urgent need to acquaint them with professionals
who
were alcoholics.

We used AA members who were also professionals to make the point. It became much
less
scary when they related their terrible experiences and could now say they'd been
dry
for a year. "You tend not to turn in a colleague if you know your action is
going to
end her career," she added. "You're much more likely to get help for her if you
can
see a good prognosis in the future."


She was honored in June of 2007 by the Florida Commission on the Status of Women
for
her nearly 50 years of service on behalf of women in general and women in
addiction
recovery specifically. Her other numerous awards and citations included the
American
Society of Addiction Medicine Award in 2000 and the the American Medical Women's
Association highest honor - the Elizabeth Blackwell Award - for her outstanding
contributions to the cause of women and medicine, in 1997.

Steve Mullins, a fellow physician and internist who became friends with her over
25
years ago on Sanibel, said "She was a real expert and a pioneer in the treatment
of
alcoholics and substance abusers. She humanized their treatment. In fact, when I
started to work part-time for SWAFAS [Southwest Florida Addiction Services] not
so
long ago, I soon realized I didn't know anything about the treatment of
addiction -
LeClair mentored me, guided me, pointed me in the right direction. I really
appreciate
her kindness in sharing with me what she knew of her specialty." She was still a
staunch AA member, even after years of being dry.


"I don't think I quite realized just how much she meant to me until I got word
that
she had died," he added. "I was so shaken I was in tears."


She was an active member of Zonta; the Democratic Party (her answering machine
said,
"If you're a Democrat, you may leave a message."); the Unitarian Universalist
Church;
Parents, Families, and Friends of Lesbians & Gays; the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual
and
Transgender Coalition; a board member of Planned Parenthood; and was the
backbone of
Chihuahua Rescue.


"She was such a great lady," fellow Democrat Joy Dillon commented sadly. "And
she
had so much more to give. What a loss to all of us." "I think the most
extraordinary
thing about LeClair was that she did things because they needed to be done,"
said
Kate Gooderham, who knew LeClair from the local National Women's Political
Caucus.
"No limelight, no applause, no kudos - she saw a need and filled it. I really
admired
her dedication to her beliefs. She truly put her 'time, her treasury and her
talent'
into the things she cared about."


"I've known her for only six years - we both joined Zonta the same year,"
islander
Sue Denham said. "But I have the most incredible respect for her sharp, sharp
mind
and her take on various issues. She was passionate. She was outspoken on things
of
importance to her - she absolutely did not care what other people thought. She
could
be downright blunt but, at the same time, she was incredibly kind and
compassionate.
You could see that in some of the causes she espoused, always championing the
underdog."


She and Nancy came to the island some 40 years ago and bought the Burnap
Cottage, one
of the island's oldest buildings, at that time located on Woodring Point. In a
News-Press
interview in 1996, she said, "Rumor is that it used to be a small chapel." They
eventually got tired of its "antiquities" and donated it to the Sanibel
Historical
Village, where it has been restored and is open for tours.


LeClair herself successfully battled alcoholism as well as endured the
difficulties
inherent in being one half of a gay couple in the 1960s. She went on to champion
the rights of those fighting addictions and discrimination of all kinds.

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www.tonypowell.wordpress.com

http://www.theagapecenter.com/AA/Literature/Big-Book.htm

Thoughts

I am not responsible for what comes into my head.......I am responsible for how
long it stays there and what I do with it...........
````````````````````

Today is November 11, 2009
A Great Day for Recovery!
  PEACE
"Peace without justice is tyranny."
-- William Allen White
Peace at any price! Not for me today. For years I sought a peace that was based
upon the "no-talk" principle remaining quiet, rather than causing upset or
risking embarrassment. Such a peace was unjust. It only fed the disease and
helped to keep me sick.

Today I seek a peace that involves discussing or confronting painful situations,
often making me and others uncomfortable. Serenity is a peace that is arrived at
after periods of pain but a necessary pain.

In my life today I have the courage to speak out and make choices that are good
for me; God is alive in my choice.

May I forever search for the "peace" that is real. May I find "peace" in the
justice of my lifestyle.

What Does The BigBook Say About Resentment?
I see resentment crop up in meetings and out in the "world" every now and again,
as egos and personalities get to working before principles. The following is
from my archives ... something to read again and think about.

The word resentment comes from the Latin word "sentire" which means, "to feel",
and when you put "re" in front of any word, it means "again", so the word resent
means "to feel again". It includes people, institutions or principles with whom
we were angry, with whom we were hurt or threatened or interfered with, with
whom we felt had wronged us, with whom we stayed sore at, with whom we felt
"burned up" toward, and with whom we held a grudge.

I would like to add the following as well: People, institutions or principles
which we are annoyed with, agitated by, or let down by; and I also like to
suggest that this includes our regrets [from "gratan", to weep, i.e., to weep
again] because regret is resentment toward ourself.

I always thought that resentment was reasonable, acceptable, and almost fun at
times. Resentment became a way of life for me because it seemed like I had
problems with or was annoyed by most of the people, institutions or principles I
knew.

But, if we want to recover from alcoholism, the BigBook says, "We saw that these
resentments must be mastered," and here's why:

Resentment is the "number one" offender. It destroys more alcoholics than
anything else. From it stem all forms of spiritual disease. (Page 64)

It is plain that a life which includes deep resentment leads only to futility.
(Page 66)

It is plain that a life which includes deep resentment leads only to unhappiness
(Page 66)

To the precise extent that we permit these [deep resentment], do we squander the
hours that might have been worth while. (Page 66)

But with the alcoholic, whose hope is the maintenance and growth of a spiritual
experience, this business of resentment is infinitely grave. (Page 66)

We found that it [this business of resentment] is fatal. (Page 66)

For when harboring such feelings [resentment] we shut ourselves off from the
sunlight of the Spirit. (Page 66)
[There is a native word of greeting, Ky'hoo'ya, which means "Walk In The
Sunlight of the Spirit", and is also a fitting acronym for "Keep Your Head Out
Of Your Ass."]

[When we harbor resentment] the insanity of alcohol returns. (Page 66)

[When we harbor resentment] we drink again. (Page 66)

For alcoholics these things [including resentment] are poison. (Page 66)

We began to see that the world and its people really dominated us. In that
state, the wrong-doing of others [resentment], fancied or real, had power to
actually kill. (Page 66)

We have listed and analyzed our resentments. We have begun to comprehend their
futility. (Page 70)

We have listed and analyzed our resentments. We have begun to comprehend their
fatality. (Page 70)

We have commenced to see their [resentment's] terrible destructiveness. (Page
70)

Never forget that resentment is a deadly hazard to an alcoholic. (Page 117)

The greatest enemies of us alcoholics are resentment, jealousy, frustration, and
fear. (Page 145)

I can't afford resentments against anyone, because they are the build-up of
another drunk. (Page 325)

I realized I had to get rid of it [a resentment toward his mother], for my
reprieve was running out, and if I didn't get rid of it I was going to get
drunk. (Page 552)
After all this, it can't be denied that the Big Book paints a really definite
picture of the result of holding resentments. Is it possible that the more we
have them, the more we are moving toward our next drink, since we have used
alcohol before to help us deal with them? We must honestly ask ourself if we are
earnestly seeking to get rid of resentments in our life, or do we hold on to
some, considering them unavoidable. It's something to think about.

How will it affect you?
How will this affect you, and how will that affect you? That is completely for
you to decide.
What happens outside of you has an influence. Yet it is what happens within you
that has the final say.

You can choose to be brought down by the worst aspects of the situation. Or you
can choose to be lifted up by the best positive qualities of that very same
situation.

What do you think about the possibilities of this day? How do you feel about the
circumstances you're in?

What you think, the way you feel, the things you believe combine to create the
filter through which you experience life. What passes through that filter is
exactly what you allow to pass through.

You cannot change what already is, yet you can decide precisely what you will
take from it and what you will do with it. No matter what happens, you have the
power to make of it what you will.

-- Ralph Marston



Read more: http://www.greatday.com/motivate/index.html#ixzz0WbkZtINh

Sons of the Forest People
November 11, 2009 Story of the Day
December 1986

Vol. 43 No. 7


I am sitting at home here in Helsinki which situates in Finland. For many months
I've thought to write an article as a counterpart to that American Indian who
write to the Grapevine.[1] I have read that article from our "Grapevine"
(Ratkaisu) where it appeared into Finnish translation.

From my childhood I have felt very strong sympathetic toward the Indians and the
other native people. They have not easily got over the companionship of us.

Finnish people are sensitive descendants of the forest people, who have overturn
the marshes to the fields; their property is the toughness. But to me, as an
alcoholic, was also fear characteristic. Really, it was not a part of the real
me. In addition, we Finns are insociables and envious, and we alcoholics have
often grudge to bear--not always.

However, at the summer we awake, really someone too much. We begin to live, and
we can breathe the unique clear air in the country of the thousands of the lakes
and millions of the ponds.

In the childhood I had occasion to play Red Indians at the beach of a river.
Sometimes I still go there to look. Really, now it seems rather like a brook.
Here I can undergo the presence of the High Spirit, which we everyone have deep
in ourselves, in our hearts, and we feel missing if we don't know it. AA says
that it is the knowledge of God. In Finland we speak about it with the "little
letters," hushing.

We are not so brave and cheerful than I have heard that you are there in the
States. Although also we have often a good reason to be very glad, first for our
sobriety and then for our independent country. We are autonomous like you, but
do alcoholics be independent themselves? That's the question.

However, maybe we are more independent when we are sober than we were before,
when we needed charity of everyone and we had to be servile.

My Indian friend, it was really magnificent happening when you told that you had
seek work and at the same went to meetings. It was the same as I did, although
not by running over the country. Here can do so only the salesman.

As far as here I felt your gratitude, and I join with your tribe although I live
here. I'm proud for belonging to this very international race and tribe. This AA
is universally like love.

1"Son of Tall Man," February 1976 Grapevine



A. A.
Helsinki

Wednesday 11 November 2009

When we use time
as a means of acquiring a quality,
a virtue or a state of being,
we are merely postponing
or avoiding what is;
and I think it is important
to understand this point.

J. Krishnamurti

AA Grapevine, November 1968:
     Clarence Snyder, 'I've Never Quit Being Active'
     The following AA Grapevine article was originally published in the November
1968 issue and reprinted in the November 1999 AA Grapevine, under the category
of "Big Book Authors."
     Ron Long, El Cajon, California

'I've Never Quit Being Active'

The author of "Home Brewmeister" asserted that
in this life-changing program, the growth process
never ends.

     On February 11, 1938, I had my last drink. I was a chronic alky, and through
a long, involved miracle, I met my sponsor, Dr. Bob, one of our co-founders. He
put me in Akron City Hospital, where I met the alkies who had preceded me in the
Fellowship.
     Fifteen months later, I organized the Cleveland, Ohio AA group. The activity
in the Cleveland area was hectic. I spent practically all my time obtaining and
following up on publicity for AA, lining up cooperation with civic and church
groups, hospitals, and courts, and helping new groups to start.
     So what do I do now, thirty years later? I have never quit being active,
although my position in the Fellowship has modified over the years. I attend an
average of two meetings per week, when I am home. I am also asked to speak at
various groups. In addition, I am invited to take part in numerous group
anniversary programs and AA roundups around the country (and sometimes out of
the country). Many people call upon me for counsel and advice on both personal
and group problems. I have an extensive correspondence, since I have made so
many friends in AA from coast to coast. Once in a while, I sponsor someone.
Cases where about everything has been tried, by everyone else, often wind up in
my hands.
     I have not found the program to be difficult, and I maintain that if it does
seem difficult for anyone, he is not doing it "right." Certainly, when I came to
this Fellowship, I was in no position or condition to handle anything difficult!
I kept things simple. But I must add that when I first began I was well
sponsored.
     I took measures now summarized in the first nine Steps of the program:
admittance of need (the First Step), surrender (Second through Seventh), and
restitution (Eighth and Ninth). Having done this, I no longer had a drinking
problem, since it had been turned over to a Higher Power. Now I had — and still
have — a living problem. But that is taken care of by the practice of Steps Ten,
Eleven, and Twelve. So I don't have to be concerned about anything but a simple
three-step program, which with practice has become habitual.
     Step Ten enables me to check on myself and my activities of the day. I have
found that most things disturbing me are little things, but still the very
things which, if not dealt with, can pile up and eventually overwhelm me. My
daily checkup covers good deeds as well as questionable ones; often, I find I
can commend myself in some areas, while in others I owe apologies.
     Step Eleven is done after my daily inventory. I usually need the peace
resulting from prayer and meditation, and I do receive guidance for my life and
actions.
     Step Twelve, to me, does involve not only carrying the message, but
extending AA principles into all phases of my daily life.
      I learned long ago that this is a life-changing program, but that, after
the change occurs, it is necessary for me to go on making the effort to improve
myself mentally, morally, and spiritually.
     This is my simple program, and I recommend it to anyone who wants a good
life and is willing to do his share of helping.
                C.H.S., St. Petersburg, Florida

Recipe for Miracles

Ingredients
1 part of knowing who you are
1 part of knowing who you aren't
1 part of knowing what you want
1 part of knowing who you wish to be
1 part of knowing what you already have
1 part of choosing wisely from what you have
1 part of loving and thanking for ALL you have

Instructions
Combine ingredients together gently and carefully, using
faith and vision. Mix together with strong belief of the
outcome until finely blended.

Use thoughts, words and actions for best results.

Bake until Blessed.
Give thanks again

Yield: Unlimited servings

1. Alcohol and Cocaine Form Deadly Mix

Young adults who mix alcohol and cocaine are threatening their futures with
devastating health problems.

Combining alcohol and cocaine creates a third chemical, cocaethylene, which
builds up in the liver over time and causes major health concerns when users
reach their 30s and 40s. Few, if any, realize the devastating consequences of
their behavior.

Cocaethylene, which was discovered in 1979, is highly toxic and is the only
known example of two drugs forming a third when mixed in the body.

Many who take "recreational" drugs, mostly on the weekends, drink alcohol at the
same time because they believe the combination enhances their "high," which
lasts longer and is more pronounced than using each drug on its own. And they
consider themselves social drinkers and recreational drug users, so they don't
believe their weekend or monthly indulgences will affect their health.

But they are totally unaware of the deadly chemical that is building in their
bodies each time they combine cocaine and alcohol.

In addition to causing liver damage, cocaethylene is believed to cause heart
attacks in people under the age of 40 and can be especially dangerous in those
who have underlying heart problems that often are undiagnosed.

Drug centers are seeing increases in drug-related problems related to
cocaethylene. Drug centers have reported an increase in crime among people who
mix alcohol and cocaine, as well as an increase in risky sexual behaviors.

"There is no question that the use of both alcohol and cocaine is a growing
concern," Martin Barnes, chief executive of the charity DrugScope, told the
United Kingdom's Guardian newspaper. "Surveys show people who drink regularly in
bars and clubs are more likely to be using alcohol and drugs. This presents
challenges to health professionals about how to raise awareness of the health
risks because combining the two drugs is not seen as taboo. It's simply a
lifestyle choice."

The numbers of cocaine-related deaths in the United States are increasing. The
U.S. National Household Drug Survey estimates that 5 million people mix cocaine
and alcohol each month. The U.S. Drug Abuse Warning System stated:
"Cocaine/ethanol abuse is a major cause of emergency medical admissions" and
"the cause of increases in cocaine-related mortality," the survey stated.

Editor's Note:

Concept 11 (Short Form)

The trustees should always have the best possible committees, corporate service
directors, executives, staffs, and consultants. Composition, qualifications,
induction procedures, and rights and duties will always be matters of serious
concern.