Vulnerability is a triggering and challenging word for men. The expectation of the male identity is to be strong, solid, unwavering, rational, unemotional, and adaptable. In a group of men who are recovering from their individual pasts full of shame, guilt, remorse, addiction, and mistakes, it is critical to be vulnerable. By embracing vulnerability as a male you open the gates to the past and accept what has brought you to this point in your life. If you were still in denial about who you have been and what you have done, you would not willingly be seeking treatment for drug and alcohol addiction. Vulnerability is what helps you connect with other men who are processing their past experiences as well. In a way, being vulnerable is like paying it forward. You let go of your past more when you talk about it more because you take away its power. The more you open up about your past the more other men are encouraged to do the same, thereby inspiring more men to become vulnerable in their experiences. A stronger, braver, wiser man emerges. We often try to skip the struggle in recovery. Our character is not to go toward what is difficult and intimidating, which is why many of us avoid getting clean and sober for many years. Despite great success in our personal lives or our business lives it is our underlying tendency to try to skip the struggle. Yet, we are plagued by the story of our struggle. We feel sentenced to a lifetime defined by our struggles and the many ways we did not succeed through them- according to us. Our struggles are not a sentencing. Struggles in life are instrumental in helping us develop our resiliency and strength in life. Within every struggle is new information, new experience, and new wisdom. If we skip the struggle and try ignore that part of our lives, we neglect the wisdom and information inherent in that struggle. We all struggle. Everyone has some kind of struggle. As addicts and alcoholics we are given a gift to have our struggles be brought so glaringly to our attention. The struggles we go through don’t sentence us, they strengthen us. Once we realize we are not burdened by our “befores” we can become more accepting of our “afters” while staying firmly rooted in the present, because the past is gone.
When you change the story of your past of addiction into the story of your future in recovery, your life can change. At Oceanfront Recovery, we are guiding men and women through residential treatment programs which empower them to change their stories and their lives. Offering detox, long-term treatment, and dual diagnosis care, our program is helping men and women change their lives for good. Call us today for information: 877.279.1777
