Speaker Profile Rabbi Dr. Abraham J. Twerski

Dr. Abraham J. Twerski is the Founder and Medical Director Emeritus of Gateway Rehabilitation Center, a not-for-profit drug and alcohol treatment system in western Pennsylvania, cited nationally as one of the 12 best drug and alcohol treatment centers by Forbes magazine and as one of the top 100 rehab centers in the guide to treatment The 100 Best Treatment Centers for Alcoholism and Drug Abuse.

Dr. Twerski, an ordained rabbi, held a pulpit until 1959 when he graduated from Marquette University Medical School and went on to complete his psychiatric residency at the University of Pittsburgh Western Psychiatric Institute. For 20 years, he served as Clinical Director of the Department of Psychiatry at St. Francis Hospital , Pittsburgh , and currently is an Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.

Twerski is recognized as an international authority in the chemical dependency field. He began the first Pennsylvania program for nurses with alcohol or drug problems, "Nurses off Chemicals," served on the Governor's Council on Drug and Alcohol Abuse, and was Chairman of the Pennsylvania Medical Society Committee on the impaired Physician. He appears frequently as a radio and television guest.

A frequent lecturer on a broad range of topics, including stress, self-esteem, spirituality as well as chemical dependency, Twerski has also written 40 books to date including: Substance Abusing High Achievers ; Life's Too Short ; I'd Like to Call For Help, But I Don't Know The Number ; T he Spiritual Self ; and collaborative effort with Peanuts comic strip creator Charles Schulz, When Do the Good Things Start ?; Waking Up Just in Time ; I Didn't Ask To Be In This Family and That's Not a Fault.It's A Character Trait.

He appears in 8 videotapes, among which are Animals and Angels: Spirituality in Recovery; Like Yourself: Building Self-Esteem in Recovery; and his most recent, Liking Yourself: Part II.

Dr. Twerski's most recent undertaking is a rehabilitation center, located in Jerusalem . "Shaar Hatikvah" meaning Gateway to Hope, is a project of the American Jewish community in conjunction with Gateway Rehabilitation Center.

Scientific contributions and community efforts have earned him honorary degrees from St. Vincent's College, Duquesne University , Indiana University of Pennsylvania , and Touro College . Dr. Twerski was awarded the 1998 Caritas Award for Service by Catholic Charities of Pittsburgh. In 1997 he received the Pennsylvania Medical Society's greatest honor, the Distinguished Service Award, for his dedication in his work in the chemical dependency field. In addition, he has received the Martin Luther King Citizen's Award and a Citation for contribution to the integration of Religion and the Behavioral Sciences. Dr. Twerski was honored as a "Real Pittsburgher" in 1991 by Pittsburgh Magazine.

TOPICS:

  • PROBLEMS OF UNWARRANTED LOW SELF-ESTEEM
  • THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE 12-STEP PROGRAMS
  • PROFESSIONAL BURNOUT (OR COUNSELOR WELLNESS)
  • WHEN PHYSICAL ILLNESS PRESENTS WITH MENTAL SYMPTOMS
  • (MASQUERADE AS PSYCHIATRIC PROBLEMS)
  • SLIDE-SHOW ON PSYCHOLOGICAL TEACHING IN PEANUTS (CHARLIE BROWN)
  • FAMILY INVOLVEMENT IN ADDICTION
  • SPIRITUALITY
  • ADDICTIVE THINKING
  • ADDICTION OF DOCTORS AND NURSES
  • WHAT ELSE IS THERE?
  • DUAL DIAGNOSIS
  • ADJUSTING TO THE AGE OF TERRORISM

Speaker's Resources

Renewing Our Spirit 2007

Dr. William Kolbrener, Leah Malamet, Rabbi Dr. Abraham J. Twerski, Rabbi Dr. Aharon Hersh Fried, Rabbi Shmuel Klitsner, Rabbi Yehuda Gilad
Program
Jun 25, 2020

Finding Spirituality in Judaism

Rabbi Dr. Abraham J. Twerski
Audio
Sep 17, 2011
Audio
Sep 17, 2011