Alumna Uses Airwaves to Address Addiction Recovery

On Sunday evenings at six o’clock, Boston Talks Radio switches gears from “The Garden Guys” and “PlanStrong Financial Forum” to “Right Turn with Woody & Abby,” a show that explores topics such as compulsive gambling, drug dependency and sex addiction and is co-hosted by School of Social Work alumna Abby Dean (MSW ’81, MPH ’82).

“It’s a talk show radio station,” said Dean. “People call in not with their problems but with their politics. There are people ready to argue and people who are in trouble. Some people have no idea how to get help.”

Helping people is how Dean got involved with the program, as Right Turn Radio is just one component of an entire treatment program. A social worker specializing in treating addictions and mental health disorders for 20 years, Dean develops and manages programs for Right Turn, a comprehensive recovery service that includes therapy, support groups, and recovery programs.

Co-host and Right Turn founder Woody Giessmann, a former drummer in the rock group The Del Fuegos, asked Dean to join him in creating the program after receiving phone calls from people looking for help.

“With her experience developing treatment programs, Dean seemed like the right fit,” Giessmann said. “Abby was the perfect person for the job.” One of the program’s practicing clinicians, Dean meets one-on-one with patients and believes motivational enhancement therapies are the most effective when working with patients.

“There’s not a lot of research in complimentary therapies,” she said. “We think we’re really onto something. The fact is, people get better if you are nice to them.”

On Right Turn Radio, Dean and Giessmann add a creative aspect into their program. Many of Right Turn’s clients are musicians or artists, and for those who are not, according to Dean, “everyone has that piece to them.”

“There is something missing in a lot of treatment,” Dean said. “I don’t want to say it’s the soul, but it’s the heart of your recovery. There needs to be a place that’s healing to you. ”

Tune in to Right Turn Radio on Sundays from 6 to 7 p.m. on Radio 96.9, listen to their shows online at www.969bostontalks.com/podcast/.