Olivia Pennelle (Liv) has a masters in clinical social work from Portland State University. She is a mental health therapist, writer, and human activist. Her writing has appeared in STAT News, Insider, Filter Magazine, Ravishly, The Temper, and Shondaland. She is the founder of Liv’s Recovery Kitchen, Life After 12-Step Recovery, and Tera Collaborations. She lives near Portland, Oregon. Follow her on Instagram @Livwritesrecovery and @teracollaborations
Recovery is about learning how to live life not just without the use of drugs and alcohol, but also how to deal with the range emotions and feelings we’ve been suppressing for years. The same is true of anxiety: we have to learn how to live with feeling anxious without trying to avoid it.
The cost of leaving 12-step fellowships was losing my in-person community.
Practicing gratitude in hard times can actually help us the most: we might notice that more things are working for us than against us, and that life might be challenging but it’s a whole lot less challenging than dealing with it while loaded.
My annual depression — Seasonal Affective Disorder — has just started to rear its ugly head this week. The hardest part is that I know what I have to do to take care of myself, it just feels impossible to make it happen.
Cold and flu season is upon us. It’s the time of year that we pick up anything from a common cold, to full-blown flu which keeps us in bed for a week. But fear not, there are a host of things you can do to boost your immunity and keep viruses at bay.
Coping with depression can be a challenging process, especially for those in early recovery. Olivia Pennelle of Liv’s Recovery Kitchen recounts her own experience with depression, and her own strategies for managing it today.
Olivia Pennelle of Liv’s Recovery Kitchen explains why meditation has been one of the transformative tools she’s used in her recovery.
In honor of National Recovery Month, we look at why stories of recovery matter. It’s important to share recovery stories, during National Recovery Month, and every other month.
Olivia Pennelle of Liv’s Recovery Kitchen explains why she doesn’t identify with the terms alcoholic or addict.
Achieving work-life balance in recovery isn’t easy, but Olivia Pennelle of Liv’s Recovery Kitchen offers strategies that have helped her set boundaries with work and prioritize self-care.
How can you build self esteem after addiction? Olivia Pennelle explains how journaling helped her build her self esteem in recovery.
What is recovery? If addiction recovery is self-defined, why do we so often consider abstinence the only definition of recovery?
Every time I read yet another article about the suicides of Anthony Bourdain, or Kate Spade — or anyone else who tragically took their life — it stings.
We’re often told that the act of service is a crucial aspect of our recovery; it’s referred to as a pillar of sustainable recovery. But what should service look like?
Dealing with trauma is tough. It’s more than tough, it’s heartbreakingly challenging and it shakes the foundation of your recovery.
How can we handle dental pain in sobriety? Olivia Pennelle from Liv’s Recovery Kitchen talks about making the decision to take pain meds to handle her pain from extensive dental work.
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