For Love of Recovery
For Love of Recovery
Podcast Description
A monthly dose of hope designed to help siblings and their families better navigate their loved one’s substance use. Each episode features either real-life stories from siblings who share their experiences and strength, or advocates and professionals who lend their unique perspectives from a mental health, substance use or community lens.
Host and founder, Dominique Dajer, shares experiences and sibling resources that have helped her navigate her younger brother's addiction and family experiences, as she continues her journey in self-healing.
Podcast Insights
Content Themes
The podcast focuses on themes including sibling dynamics affected by addiction, mental health advocacy, and practical coping strategies. Example episodes cover topics such as navigating sibling estrangement during addiction, balancing support with boundaries, and understanding the hidden connections between ADHD and substance use.
A monthly dose of hope designed to help siblings and their families better navigate their loved one’s substance use. Each episode features either real-life stories from siblings who share their experiences and strength, or advocates and professionals who lend their unique perspectives from a mental health, substance use or community lens.
Host and founder, Dominique Dajer, shares experiences and sibling resources that have helped her navigate her younger brother’s addiction and family experiences, as she continues her journey in self-healing.
If you were the kid who held it all together—the one who comforted your parent, kept your sibling safe, made things feel normal when they absolutely weren’t—this episode is for you.
In the first episode of our Parentification 101 mini-series, I sit down with therapist and author Whitney Goodman to talk about what it really means to be a parentified child—and why it so often falls on the eldest daughter.
We talk about the invisible labor kids take on in families affected by addiction and dysfunction. The emotional weight. The unspoken expectations. The way that “being the responsible one” can follow us into adulthood—shaping our relationships, our sense of self, and our deepest fears.
I share what it felt like to be the second mom in my family: the pressure to fix, to manage, to make everything okay—even when I was barely holding it together myself.
This conversation might stir up things you’ve kept buried for a long time. But naming it is how we start to loosen its grip.
Because once we see the role we were never meant to play, we can finally choose a different one.
🎯 This episode will help you understand:
What parentification actually is—and how to spot it in your story
The difference between emotional and logistical parentification
- Why eldest daughters so often carry this invisible burden
- How it shows up in adulthood as perfectionism, anxiety, people-pleasing
- And how to begin setting boundaries, letting go of guilt, and honoring the child in you who never got to just be a kid
📘 Free sibling e-book: 6 actions to help you navigate a sibling’s substance use journey.
Download here: https://www.forloveofrecovery.com/e-book
🤝 Join our sibling support community: A private group for siblings navigating a loved one’s addiction.
Join here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1001711494318102
Share your story
Connect with siblings who get it
Access tools, support, and ongoing conversation
Follow us on social for more sibling stories and tools:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/forloveofrecovery/
🎙 More from this episode
Listen to our Family Dynamics 101 episode: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5dVDA080Dx8SjrDR0Wx5GK
Download Whitney’s parentification workbook: https://callinghome.co/topics/the-parentified-child-workbook
More from Whitney’s work:
- Calling Home podcast: https://callinghome.co/blog/listen-to-the-calling-home-podcast
- About Whitney: https://sitwithwhit.com
Disclaimer
This podcast’s information is provided for general reference and was obtained from publicly accessible sources. The Podcast Collaborative neither produces nor verifies the content, accuracy, or suitability of this podcast. Views and opinions belong solely to the podcast creators and guests.
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