Drug addiction is a chronic, often relapsing disorder that affects millions of people worldwide. Despite successful treatment, many individuals struggle to maintain sobriety and may relapse.

A young man in recovery from addiction once gave me his perspective on the painful consequences of relapse: “It’s not the relapse that troubles me,” he said. “It’s the self-beating that comes ...

I never get over the weirdness of introducing myself to a group of people at a 12-step meeting. “Hi, I’m T and I’m an addict,” is how I have started a lot of conversations. Other people in recovery ...