Episode 23: Gretchen Bergman – a mother’s story of healing and surviving her sons’ struggles with addiction

Drugs and Stuff: A Podcast from the Drug Policy Alliance

Gretchen Bergman, executive director of A New Path, joined Drugs and Stuff recently to share why her work around addiction and treatment is intimately personal. She shares her personal story and shows the power of a mother’s love.

Bergman served as state chair for California’s Proposition 36, which mandated treatment instead of incarceration for nonviolent drug offenders. A native of San Diego, she is owner/director of Gretchen Productions, a Fashion Show Production Company started in 1979.

Her articles on treatment vs. incarceration have been published nationwide, and she has spoken before countless audiences on the topic of therapeutic justice for substance abusers. She has two grown sons who have struggled with addictive illness.