Kenneth Anderson

Kenneth is the founder and CEO of HAMS (Harm Reduction, Abstinence, and Moderation Support), the world’s only lay-led, free-of-charge support group for harm reduction for alcohol. He is also the author of How to Change Your Drinking: a Harm Reduction Guide to Alcohol; BETTER IS BETTER!: Stories of Alcohol Harm Reduction; and the book series The Untold History of Addiction Treatment in the United States—which currently consists of Strychnine & Gold (Part One), Strychnine & Gold (Part Two), and From Inebriate Asylums to Narcotic Farms, with more to come.

Post-Acute Withdrawal Syndrome After You Quit Alcohol: Is It Real?

Post-acute withdrawal syndrome is a hypothetical condition in which a set of symptoms persist long after a person has undergone…

May 4, 2023

Not All Substance Use Disorders Are Rooted in Trauma

Thanks largely to Gabor Maté, it has become popular to say that addictions are overwhelmingly rooted in trauma.  However, the…

April 11, 2023

The Story of Aversion Therapy for Alcohol Use Disorder

On June 30, 2022, Schick Shadel Hospital in Burien, Washington, closed its doors for good. It was the last facility…

March 17, 2023

Epigenetics, Trauma and Addiction: What We Do and Don’t Know

Ever since Gabor Maté discussed epigenetics in his book In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts (2008), it has become a…

December 21, 2022

The History of the “Allergy” Myth of Alcohol Addiction

In 2022, it is still not uncommon to hear people claim that an addiction to alcohol is an “allergy.” Little…

December 2, 2022

Rehab Profiteering and Abuse: The Lesson of National Medical Enterprises

It seems like every other day we see a news story about a profiteering addiction rehab engaging in unsavory conduct,…

October 28, 2022

How 12-Step Programs Became Embedded in US Hospitals

When I first went through treatment for an alcohol problem back in the 1990s, I was shocked to find out…

September 7, 2022