When a loved one begins falling deeper and deeper into the dangerous life of addiction, we are often left searching for answers as to how to help them embrace a life of sobriety. Our judgement is often clouded by our relationship with the individual and the love we have for them, and we may find…
The way that we react to the situations life presents to us depend entirely on our perspective. If we are pessimistic, a situation will seem much worse than it is. If we approach our day with a sense of optimism, however, the opposite is true. As a result of the suffering and hardships we have…
Prayer and mediation are suggested by 12-Step recovery fellowships as a means of improving “improving our conscious contact with God as we understood Him.” However, prayer and mediation can be effective tools of improving our overall well-being regardless of our chosen recovery program. When we pray and meditate, we are able to let go of…
Many of us develop routines in our recovery that keep us feeling safe and protected from anything that could potentially put our sobriety at risk. While these habits are wonderful for us, we can’t allow our lives to be controlled by such strict adherence to routine. There is an entire beautiful world out there, and…
Treatment is a time to develop the tools necessary to maintain sobriety when one reenters the “real world”. When we leave treatment, we are not cured of addiction. We are at the beginning phase of entering into a lifetime of sobriety and personal growth, free from the constraints of addiction. Our chances of maintaining our…
The Serenity Prayer— “God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference.” — is used to open up most 12-Step fellowship meetings. In recovery, we strive for a state of serenity in our sobriety so that we do not…
Inhalants, as the name suggest, are a group of drugs that are inhaled by user to achieve a high. These drugs are capable of doing tremendous damage to the brain and body, the effects of which can be far worse than many “hard” drugs. The fact that these drugs are legal to buy make greatly…
Everyone will have to face strong emotional experiences in recovery that can feel like a test to their sobriety. The unfortunate reality is that, because addiction is a fatal and progressive disease, men and women in the recovery community are very likely to experience the loss of a friend or loved one to the disease…
One of the greatest gifts of recovery is the ability to experience a spiritual awakening. The experience, although powerful, can easily be forgotten or diminished in our memory overtime. A spiritual awakening must be nurtured and maintained through a process of continuous spiritual growth if we are to stay happy, joyous, and free in our…
One of the first steps toward entering into a life of sobriety is detoxifying our bodies of any remnants of drugs or alcohol. The process is uncomfortable, but a happy future in sobriety it waiting for us at the end. Determining how long it will take for acute symptoms of withdrawal to diminish is difficult,…