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Throughout my 20's and early 30’s I fancied myself the Great Artist, my ego swelling with each affirmation. When people gave me the compliment; You have a God-given talent, I would respond with; If you knew how hard I worked to hone my abilities you wouldn't say such a stupid thing! During ... Views: 4204
Here are some qualities to look for in a sponsor. I have set the standard high since this is a very important relationship for you and your recovery. You may not be able to find someone with all the qualities I suggest due to many factors including the size of your town, number of people who ... Views: 4152
People who don't know much about alcohol and other drug addiction, often buy into common myths and stereotypes about addiction and addicts. It is important to replace mistaken assumptions and judgments about addiction, so that you can approach those afflicted with the illness, with compassion ... Views: 4062
What is the meaning of Addiction?
An addiction, broadly speaking is a compulsive need for and use of a habit-forming substance such as heroin, nicotine, or alcohol. It is characterized by tolerance and by well-defined physiological symptoms upon withdrawal. Broadly speaking, it’s a ... Views: 4052
The Twelve Steps of AA
“Stick With the Winners”
Dick B.
Copyright 2012 Anonymous. All rights reserved
This article is written to show how one who believes in God, and certainly one who has come to Him through Jesus Christ, can look at “old school” A.A.—the original A.A. Christian ... Views: 4009
It is estimated that about three-quarters of the population drink alcohol. Of this number, about 10% will find that their alcohol consumption leads to serious problems involving their health, work, finances, and relationships with family and friends.
When a person uses alcohol despite ... Views: 3970
The emergent nature of reality is that all systems, whether it is knowledge, society, technology, philosophy or any other creation will when uninhibited undergo fluid perpetual change. What we consider commonplace today, such as modern communication and transportation, would have been ... Views: 3908
When facing the loss of most of one’s structure in situations like vacation or business trips, relapsive thinking can return, even in established, stable recovery. The relapse thoughts can include some of the below, but this is not an all inclusive lists. When planning a vacation or business ... Views: 3902
What is “dialoguing” with my Inner Child?
Dialoguing is talking with your Inner Child, caring for her/him non-verbally. The word dialogue implies a back and forth exchange between the two of you, rather than just “talking” which could be understood as a one-way communication.
When do I do ... Views: 3891
Christians in A.A.?
I don’t have any statistics! I don’t know of any statistics. And I’m not sure I care about any statistics that might exist. But I think it would be valuable if we knew for sure that, among the two-million members worldwide, the A.A. fellowship contains a ... Views: 3850
What comes to your mind when you think of an alcoholic and drug addict? Do you immediately envision a person on the side of the street, begging for change and holding a bottle wrapped in a brown paper bag? Do you envision a person in a crack house shooting up drugs and sleeping under a bridge? ... Views: 3830
Step nine of the 12 step program begins the process of the addict re-connecting with fellow human beings through the process of amends. After completing step 8 of the 12 step recovery program, the addict has a list of all the people and institutions he or she owe amends to. Amends can be made in ... Views: 3775
Step 1: Awareness!
This step is probably one of the most difficult to acknowledge for the alcoholic or addict. Long before a person realizes it, the grip of addiction has taken hold. At first, there may be occasional “problems,” such as a minor accident due to drinking, or the ... Views: 3768
Although definitions of "Addiction" seem to be continuing to evolve, addiction is still "a primary, chronic, progressive, and relapsing disease". The last decade of research has led to a refined definition of addiction as a "brain disease which is manifested by compulsive behavior".
Cross ... Views: 3766
Although forgiveness is an important part of working through feelings, and thus, a tool of recovery and the healing process, it is an often neglected topic. People often erroneously equate forgiveness with forgetting.
The best definition that I ever heard for forgiveness is simply "giving up ... Views: 3667
As a counselor for both classroom and online alcohol awareness classes, I have learned from my students their new affinity for mixing alcoholic beverages with caffinated energy drinks such as Red Bull. since I stopped drinking alcohol before energy drinks came into existence, I wanted to ... Views: 3544
This is the second post in the series of tactics used by addicts and alcoholics to avoid accountability. Accountability is necessary for all of us. People in recovery need to do everything in their power to remain accountable—this will help them deal with temptations and triggers when they ... Views: 3530
This book is on my “To Do” list, but it will be based on this Bill of Rights.
My Bill of Rights
1. I am Sacred Space and so is everyone else.
2. I deserve to be treated with respect every single second by myself and everyone else.
3. I get to be angry, but I do not get to treat myself or ... Views: 3509
Before describing how to use dialoguing with your Inner Child to increase self esteem, I'd better say what your Inner Child is, for those who may not be familiar with the term.
What is an Inner Child?
We all have an Inner Child. It is who we are when we were born, our natural core self. That ... Views: 3479
Isolation is often thought of in physical terms, as being a process where people physically remove themselves from other people and live apart, either from society or from family and friends and other people.
Isolation is sometimes thought of as a good thing, often in the context of someone ... Views: 3420
Throughout the first sixteen years of my marriage my husband, Dean, struggled with his addiction to alcohol, prescription pain pills, and crack cocaine. As his addiction continued to get worse, my ability to set healthy boundaries failed. This didn’t happen overnight -- it was a gradual process ... Views: 3392
The 12 Steps are tools that have helped millions of people overcome their addictions, whether it be to alcohol, drugs, sex, gambling or even food.
Originally, the 12 Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous were developed by Bill Wilson in the 1930's after he had a spiritual awakening and overcame his ... Views: 3381
Understanding Sex Addiction: A Depth Psychology Approach
An Introduction to Sex Addiction
It is well known among people in the 12-step sex programs that of all the addictions, sex is the most difficult to master. Far from the notion that sex addiction is the “fun” one, the suffering of ... Views: 3375
Most non-addicted people have routines and organizing structures in
their lives that help provide stability. An addict's lifestyle is often one of chaotic instability and disorganization. A general lack of structure and routine
contributes to this disorganization and chaos. An addicted ... Views: 3338
In the course of a week approximately 15 million Americans will attend some kind of self-help group. Why is this happening? Because people have discovered that talking and listening to their fellow sufferers has a soothing effect on the psyche, sometimes more so than doing the same thing in the ... Views: 3312
Signs of Sexual Addiction (Based upon Patrick Carnes work)
1. Loss of Control
• Out of control sexual behavior predominates
• The addict cannot control the extent, duration and regularity of his/her
sexual behavior
• Behavior excesses continue despite clear signs of danger ... Views: 3308
Nicotine addiction is a brain disorder primarily genetic in origin. There is evidence that environment can contribute to the addiction.
Nicotine addiction is reasonably easy to treat. Teach the person about their disease, give them the proper methods to withdraw from nicotine, teach them ... Views: 3302
"Enabling" can be described as a behavior pattern of the significant people in the life on an addict or alcoholic. "Enabling" involves rescuing the alcoholic/addict from the negative consequences of his or her behavior. When the addict has those negative consequences of his/her addiction ... Views: 3296
There is a solution to the madness of alcoholism and addiction; a solution that will restore sanity and health, repair relationships and rebuild finances. The solution will have different components for different people but the key to the solution is personal responsibility. If you can, for ... Views: 3291
One of the larger challenges in recovery is learning how to overcome a desire to use alcohol or drugs. In previous articles I've offered a host of tools to support recovery and encourage you to think about recovery in ways other than a conventional approach to sobriety. In this article I would ... Views: 3232
Your ancestors can have a tremendous impact on who you end up becoming as an adult. Click here to learn which surprising traits from parents you will inherit!
"That's exactly what your parents would say!"
It's something most of us have heard at one point or another.
Whether it makes you ... Views: 3230
A.A. History Brief: The Bible in the Big Book
By Dick B.
Copyright 2011 Anonymous. All rights reserved
Dr. Robert H. Smith was the cofounder of Alcoholics Anonymous. He is affectionately called “Dr. Bob” by many AAs.
Dr. Bob had much to say about the Bible in his talks with and ... Views: 3222
"Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction and faithful in prayer."
Romans 12:12
"Start by doing what's necessary; then do what's possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible."
You become what you think about most of the time. And the most important part of each day is what you ... Views: 3220
Recovery from sexual addiction is slightly different than recovery from alcohol and other (AOD) addiction. With chemical dependency recovery, the goal is to abstain from all mood altering drugs. The primary goal from sexual addiction is not abstinence from sex, but the development of the ability ... Views: 3217
“Success is the attainment of a worthy Goal or ideal” Earl Nightingale. Recovery begins at the onset of abstinence from the individual’s drug of choice. Successful recovery is the attainment of a worthy goal or ideal. There are two phases of the recovery process, ... Views: 3162
Various “triggers” can put people at risk of relapsing into old patterns of addiction. A trigger can be as simple as people, places, or feelings that initiate a desire, or craving or reminder of past addictive behaviors. Causes of relapse can differ for each person. Pay attention ... Views: 3146
One of the most frequent questions that I hear from family members is, “Why do I need to be in counseling, when she is the alcoholic/addict? The family members that do come into treatment willingly and eagerly at the beginning are most often motivated to “help” the addict. The idea that ... Views: 3118
Norman Vincent Peale was right. Years ago in one of his articles in Guideposts, he talked about the 12 steps, including the comment that they would work for most any problem. I then read his book, “The Power of Positive Thinking” which has since become a classic. Putting these two models ... Views: 3075
Holistic Drug & Alcohol Rehab Centers take many different approaches to treating drug addiction, as there are drugs. The holistic drug detox philosophy involves the transformation of the total person, as opposed to only dealing with the symptom, which is the addiction. Underlying the addiction ... Views: 3070
The holidays can be a magical time for families. It is a time for wonderful parties, great food, bonding, reminiscing about the past, and gift giving. Family members often travel great lengths to be together. For many people, it is the only time of year that their family is all together as ... Views: 3069