Brian Serna: The Addiction Treatment Method That's 2-3X More Effective Most Therapists Don't Know

Brian Serna started working at LifeLink in Santa Fe while putting himself through college—a six-year journey marked by his own raging substance abuse issue, an aggravated DWI arrest, and losing a close friend to suicide. Just eight months from his last bender, he began answering calls from families desperate to help loved ones with addiction. These women were different versions of his own mother, and their stories confronted him with the pain he'd caused his family. That experience set him on a path to become one of the nation's leading addiction treatment experts, specializing in CRAFT (Community Reinforcement and Family Training)—the only evidence-based practice available to help families with a loved one struggling with addiction. Research shows CRAFT gets two-thirds of treatment-refusing individuals to actually walk through the door, yet most therapists have never heard of it. Brian trained under Dr. Robert J. Meyers, a Vietnam veteran who created the CRAFT method at the University of New Mexico after watching his own mother struggle to help his father. Now Brian has trained behavioral health programs in over 20 states, five countries, and 16 tribal communities. He sits on Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham's Council on Racial Justice, Senator Ben Ray Lujan's Mental Health Consortium, and co-authored a book chapter with Dr. Meyers himself. The approach works by disrupting patterns—not through interventions, guilt, or shame, but by teaching families to identify what addiction does for their loved one and creating competing behaviors. Like the teenager smoking weed after school who started MMA training instead—developing new friends, new purpose, and reducing his use in half overnight. Brian founded Serna Solutions in 2013, which now operates four locations across New Mexico, treating addiction, trauma, OCD, and more using evidence-based practices. His work challenges everything most people think they know about addiction treatment. CHAPTERS: 0:00 - Introduction 1:01 - What is CRAFT and Why Most Therapists Don't Use It 3:15 - Why Traditional Interventions Don't Work 3:54 - Meeting Dr. Robert Myers at LifeLink Santa Fe 5:14 - The Stories That Changed Everything 6:26 - Eight Months from His Last Bender 7:41 - From Learning to Being Consumed 8:52 - The Woman with Rage: Early Client Story 10:27 - Stop Yelling, Stop Taking It Personally 11:38 - How CRAFT Works: Disrupting Addiction Patterns 14:17 - The MMA Story: Creating Competing Behaviors 17:14 - Marijuana Legalization: Net Positive or Making Things Worse? 18:31 - Working with Tribal Communities: Breaking Stereotypes 22:08 - Founding Serna Solutions in 2013 23:33 - Global Perspective: Ireland vs. Russia vs. Native Communities 25:29 - Rapid Fire: Motivational Interviewing in One Sentence 25:48 - Biggest Misconception About Addiction 26:29 - Scotland Training: The English They Spoke 26:46 - What Every Parent Should Know About Teen Substance Abuse 27:14 - Talking to Your Teen: Establish Credibility, Don't Freak Out 30:04 - The Fear of Being Too Lax 32:28 - Consequences Must Have a Way Back 33:46 - The Next Chapter: Online Learning Platform CONNECT WITH BRIAN SERNA: Email: [email protected] Website: https://sernasolutionsllc.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brianserna/ Phone: (505) 333-0436 Main Office: 4001 Office Court Dr, Suite 201, Santa Fe, NM 87507