38 Years. So hard to believe. At that time, I was 37 years old, and life was very difficult for me. I was feeling depressed and suicidal, not knowing why I was on this planet. With great fear, I decided to reach out for help, which turned out to be the most important decision of my life. Now 75 – a young 75 – and things are easier. Life isn’t always fantastic, I still have problems and things to deal with, but – most days – I understand myself a lot more, which makes life much better. Less … [Read more...] about Celebrating 38 Years Clean and Sober
self-respect
The Vicious Cycle of Low Self-Respect
Self-respect is an ‘inside job’ – we develop it by doing the next right thing for ourselves and then the next right thing after that. I can’t give you your self-respect and you can’t give me mine. But we can encourage each other to take the best care of ourselves that we can, because active addiction and self-respect cannot coexist. I know which one I choose today – how about you? … [Read more...] about The Vicious Cycle of Low Self-Respect
Self-Care Leads to Self-Respect
When we take better care of ourselves, we begin to feel much better holistically. As we take our needs off the back burner - where they have never belonged in the first place - and take more ownership of what we actually can control (ourselves), we can stop rescuing others and thus help them develop their own resiliency. In this way, we can contribute to others feeling better about themselves as well. … [Read more...] about Self-Care Leads to Self-Respect
Holistic Self-Care Is Vital to a Healthy Recovery
The importance of balanced self-care cannot be overstated - both for you and for the addict you love. When we take care of ourselves, we develop our self-respect, which in turn lowers our need for choosing addictive behaviours. Whether it’s you deciding to stop any enabling you might be doing, or your addict making the decision to go into recovery, a sense of self-care and self-respect will be the springboard for these healthy choices. … [Read more...] about Holistic Self-Care Is Vital to a Healthy Recovery
My daughter’s boyfriend mistreats her
SK asks: I keep hearing stories from my daughter about how awful her boyfriend is, how bad he treats her and how miserable she is but she won’t break up with him. What’s going on and how can I help? Hi SK, The reality is that you can’t make her do anything, such as break up with him. That won’t happen until she makes the choice that she is worth more than the kind of treatment she’s getting, and that she is interested in building her own self-respect. It’s possible that the best way to help … [Read more...] about My daughter’s boyfriend mistreats her
