Madison Psychologist Co-Founded Recovery Program Now Global

Morgan D. Stewart spent a decade hearing the same painful message: therapists wouldn't help her with substance use disorder until she got sober first. But getting sober was exactly what she needed help with, creating a crushing cycle of rejection and isolation.

Then Stewart discovered SMART Recovery, and everything changed. The peer support program welcomed her to meetings even though she wasn't ready to quit. Today, she facilitates her own SMART Recovery meetings in Madison, sharing tools that finally worked for her with others who felt shut out by traditional treatment.

What makes this story even more remarkable is the Wisconsin connection. Dr. Henry Steinberger, one of SMART Recovery's founders, lives and works as a psychologist in Madison. He helped launch the organization in 1994 with other psychologists trained in cognitive behavioral therapy.

"If you're using alcohol or heroin, you're trying to regulate your emotions," Steinberger explains. The program teaches that beliefs about events, not the events themselves, drive behavior. Change your beliefs, change your life.

SMART stands for Self-Management and Recovery Training. The program organizes around four key areas: building motivation to change, managing urges, handling thoughts and feelings, and what Steinberger humorously calls "getting a life." That fourth point emphasizes creativity and finding new ways to engage with the world that align with personal values.

Teresa Susmaras facilitates a SMART Recovery meeting for women and gender expansive people. Originally based in Eau Claire, she moved the meeting online during the pandemic. Now participants join from across the country and around the world.

Jamie Schaefer found Susmaras' meeting after a car accident and DUI strained her relationships. "No matter what mood I'm in when I go into it, I leave feeling better," Schaefer says. The meetings helped her shed shame and connect with people facing similar challenges without judgment.

Unlike traditional 12-step programs, SMART focuses on evidence-based, harm reduction approaches rather than religious or abstinence-only methods. A 2023 study found people participating in both SMART and Alcoholics Anonymous can optimize each approach's benefits.

The Ripple Effect

Stewart now facilitates Madison's Creative Recovery Lab every Monday evening, putting innovative spins on SMART tools. What started as one person desperately seeking help has become a facilitator opening doors for others. Susmaras' online meeting connects people worldwide. Schaefer found community after isolation.

The program's reach continues expanding. SMART Recovery now operates thousands of meetings globally, all volunteer-run and free to attend. Each facilitator creates ripples by sharing what worked for them, meeting people exactly where they are without requirements or judgment.

For people told they need to solve their problem before getting help solving their problem, SMART offers a different path forward. Wisconsin helped pioneer that approach, and continues spreading it through passionate facilitators who remember what it felt like to be turned away.

Stewart's journey from rejected patient to empowered facilitator shows recovery's creative potential when support meets science.