Overachieving, Anxiety, & Addiction
An interview with Lisa Smith
Lisa was a young, high-powered corporate attorney in the ‘90s, in denial of her alcohol dependency and hiding her spiraling addiction until she couldn’t. Unfortunately, Lisa’s experience isn’t uncommon in the legal profession—a quarter of lawyers qualify as problem drinkers. In this 2-part series, Lisa chronicles her own struggle with alcohol and substance abuse and road to recovery, and discusses the strategies and resources available to lawyers and employers to improve lawyer well-being.
Watch Part 2 of Overachieving, Anxiety, & Addiction.
About Lisa Smith
“Addiction, for one, does not discriminate. It’s all around us.”
Lisa Smith is the author of Girl Walk Out of a Bar: A Memoir, a personal story of her formative years as a high-functioning alcoholic and a drug abuser. She is currently the Deputy Executive Director and Director of Client Relations at Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler LLP in New York City. Prior to moving to a legal administration role, she practiced as a corporate finance attorney at a large firm. Lisa’s writing has been published in numerous publications, including The Washington Post, The Chicago Tribune, Addiction.Com, and Women’s Health. She serves on the Advisory Board of Law.com’s Minds Over Matters mental health reporting project. Lisa is a frequent speaker on addiction and recovery, having been clean and sober for over 10 years.
