Two Professors Break Alcohol Stigma in Academia

After 20 years in recovery, Professor Wendy Dossett is helping academics realize they don't have to struggle with addiction alone. The University of Chester professor turned her personal journey into groundbreaking research on recovery, challenging the silence that keeps many scholars from seeking help.

Dossett remembers when a colleague first suggested she needed support in her 30s. She felt both horror and deep gratitude that someone cared enough to speak up.

That moment changed everything. Today, she's an emeritus professor whose work explores the spiritual dimensions of addiction recovery, bringing academic rigor to a topic many universities still treat as taboo.

Across the Atlantic, Victoria Burns at the University of Calgary is creating even more direct change. When she disclosed her alcohol dependence to her Dean, his response shocked her: she was the first faculty member to open up about addiction in his 26-year career.

That revelation sparked Burns to found Recovery on Campus Alberta, a support network specifically designed for academics navigating recovery. She's now researching how university leaders respond when faculty disclose addiction, working to build systems that encourage honesty instead of hiding.

Why This Inspires

Both women discovered that academia's culture of appearing brilliant and unshakeable actually prevents people from getting help when they need it most. By speaking openly about their experiences, they're showing other researchers that seeking support isn't weakness—it's courage.

Their work matters because alcohol dependence affects academics at significant rates, partly due to how normalized drinking culture is in many university settings. Yet the stigma remains intense, leaving people to struggle silently.

Now, thanks to pioneers like Dossett and Burns, universities are starting to have honest conversations about supporting faculty mental health and addiction recovery. They're proving that breaking silence creates ripples of hope that reach far beyond individual lives.