Seeking Redemption As we’re working to recover, we can struggle to know how hard to work, how hard to push ourselves, when to ease up on ourselves and give ourselves a break. We’ve been feeling so down on ourselves about our struggles with addiction that we want to push ourselves to do as well asRead More
Addiction is a series of mental and emotional associations between our drug of choice and how we want to feel. We become attached to our addictive substance because we associate it with happiness, inner peace, calm, and relaxation. Sadness is one of the most triggering emotions for our addictions. By using our drug ofRead More
Limiting and Unrealistic Expectations As we’re working to change our addiction stories, and therefore our lives, we often have all kinds of expectations around our recovery that can end up being limiting and detrimental to our healing. When we have rigid expectations, it’s often because we’re experiencing fear – fear of losing control, fear ofRead More
Many of us just starting out in recovery, find ourselves resistant to the idea of rehab, for many different reasons. We might be afraid to identify as addicts. Going to rehab would solidify that identity for us. Recovery also includes hard work. It requires us to go inwards and explore our addictions, our histories, andRead More
The Emptiness We Feel Feeling unfulfilled in our lives can be a major contributing factor in our addictive patterns, and can serve as a trigger for relapse. When we’re unfulfilled, we feel devoid of purpose. We feel as though life has no meaning, as though we have no reason for living. We can question ourRead More
We know that our addictions cause severe damage and destruction. When we’re under the influence, our thinking becomes clouded, and our judgment is impaired. We’re making unhealthy and dangerous choices. Addicted people are not in control of their thoughts or behaviors. By using addictive substances, we’re limiting our cognitive function over time. The longer weRead More
The loved ones of addicts know all too well how hurtful and damaging the cycles of addiction can be. The addicts in our lives have caused us tremendous difficulty and harm over the years. They’ve betrayed our trust and hurt our feelings. At times they’ve angered us and even pushed us out of their livesRead More
One of the things that can trip us up in our recovery is wanting a quick fix, an immediate cure, an overnight resolution to a years-long problem. Our addictions have been plaguing us for much of our lives. Expecting that we’ll recover instantly and have all of our problems solved right away is unrealistic. We’reRead More
Consumed by Insecurity A common symptom of emotional imbalance is when we become consumed by our inner demons, the insecurities caused by our deeply rooted fears. The voice of our fear dominates our thinking. It’s hard to think of anything else. We’re constantly obsessing about how we’re not good enough, how we’re destined to fail,Read More
The recovery process can be daunting, intimidating, and overwhelming. If we plan too far ahead, we find ourselves filled with worry and anxiety, unable to move forward at all. We worry about the future of our sobriety and doubt our ability to make our recovery last. The prospect of returning to work or finding aRead More