This was not a fun article to write for me. I had to face my own tendency to take the safe route, to allow emotional triggers to ruin my day (and sometimes my week), and avoid the boring routines that add up to improved well-being. We all do it, I know. But that’s an easy … More Five Things that You Hate, but Need in Your Recovery… Right Now
Stop trying to find yourself. Instead, ask yourself what makes you feel alive? ___ “Without work we will not eat, but without purpose we will not live.“ Almost every day, I meet people who feel as though they have lost themselves. They look in the mirror but who they see is a stranger. They ask, … More Recovery is Not About Drugs or Depression. It is About What Makes You Feel Alive.
Two years. That is how long it has been. Two years ago I experienced the worst depression of my life. Sometimes it feels like it’s been 10 years and other times it feels like just yesterday. Depression and mental illness is an ever-living reality for me, just like it is for many people. Recovery is … More 4 Ways that Depression has Changed My Life
What am I grateful for? My life experience, I’ve done and seen a lot. Sure there are many more things to see and do, so many I will never get to over a thousand lifetimes. So I am thankful that I’ve seen so much, so far. I’m thankful for who I am, most of the … More Your Experience is Your Recovery
Life comes with a disclaimer: “You don’t have to suffer, but you should feel uncomfortable.” ___ It’s one thing we all share. We all get our start in Your Comfort Zone. Your Zone is a small one-bedroom apartment on the east side of town. It looks out onto the back lane with little more than … More When You Step Out of Your Comfort Zone, You Will Feel Anxious. But Do it Anyway.
10 Ways that you are not getting the most out of your failures at life ___ Failure. Relapse. Disaster. The end of life as we know it. No matter how you define it, failure has many nuances and a million emotions. When you have failed and you have dug yourself a very deep hole, it … More Recovery: Do You Know How to Suck, Successfully?
Want to know how to recover well? Begin with what NOT to do. ___ What is recovery to you? You may define it as quitting: drinking, smoking, drugs. Or not feeling: depressed, anxious or angry. Or not being: compelled to behave in self-destructive ways. Or making amends. However you define it, your recovery is personal. … More The Most Important Thing About Your Recovery is Knowing What Recovery is Not
Yes, you are becoming your parents… relax, that can make you even better ___ I swore I would never be like him. I dressed differently. I didn’t drink. I broke the cycle. But no matter what I did, I still have become like my father. It’s taken me a lot of years to admit it, … More Do You Hate Yourself For Being Like Your Parents?
How Knowing Your Limits Will Improve Your Life ___ The messages that we hear about our limits are confusing. Just read the two quotes below and you will see what I mean: Surrender to your limits. Peter Scazzero Whatever doesn’t kill me… had better start running Recovery is about learning how to accept your limits … More Recovery and Learning to Respect Your Limits, Part 1
Steve Austin shares how healthy self care helped him to let go of shame ___ Steve Austin is not who you think he is. No, he’s not a wrestler. He has come to learn that his life is not together and that is okay. Despite being a pastor in his church, he openly admits that … More Recovery and The Four Lies of Shame
Getting High on Recovery 