Addiction and Recovery: Etiology and Physiology

Until early 2018 John de Miranda was Associate Director of Door to Hope and addiction treatment and recovery program in Salinas, California, which specializes in family treatment including services for drug-exposed infants and children. Previously He served as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Stepping Stone of San Diego, an addiction treatment and recovery program that serves primarily, but not exclusively, the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities. He is also the pro bono Executive Director of the National Association on Alcohol, Drugs and Disabilities, Inc., a network of individuals and organizations dedicated to improving access to substance abuse prevention and treatment services for people with disabilities. Previous executive leadership positions have been with the San Francisco Child Abuse Prevention Center, American Red Cross, Bay Area Chapter, Youth Power, formerly “Just Say No” International, and Join Together/Boston University School of Public Health. Mr. de Miranda is certified as a Recovery Coach by Friends of Recovery Vermont, and was certified (2011-2017) as a Licensed Advanced Alcohol and Drug Counselor by the California Certification Board of Alcohol and Drug Counselors.

With a professional background in the human services field that spans 45+ years, Mr. de Miranda has served as program administrator, management consultant, therapist, educator, government official, quality leader, researcher, and trainer. The son of a Cuban immigrant he graduated from the nation’s oldest public school, Boston Latin. Following graduation from Wesleyan University (Middletown, Connecticut) with a B.A. degree in Sociology, he earned a Masters degree in Counseling & Consulting Psychology from Harvard University. He has conducted research and published on topics as varied as special education, responsible alcoholic beverage service, consumer self-determination, legislative policy, healthcare cost containment, prevention, legal protections for people in recovery, disability rehabilitation, and advocacy for people with disabilities. Mr. de Miranda is a regular contributor to Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Weekly. He served six years as a member of the Board of Directors of Faces and Voices of Recovery. He has taught at the Nanjing Foreign Language School, University of California, Berkeley & San Diego, California State University, East Bay, the University of San Francisco and San Quentin State Prison. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration selected Mr. de Miranda as their “Ask the Expert”. In August 2010. Awarded a 2019 Tobacco Harm Reduction scholarship from Knowledge Action Change a program of the Foundation for a Smoke Free World.