Many people living in one day at a time recovery understand the reality of reality’s reliability. This reality is that if we don’t pick up that first drink, puff, hit, pill, or snort we won’t return to active addiction. We know (and most of us know from experience) that we can rely on this, and that this is grace, and that this grace keeps us living in one day at a time recovery. Another reliable reality is if we meet with others in the rooms of recovery they will tell us to stay away from that first one because many of us thought we could have just one only to find that we could not. It’s a dangerous thing to do. Some of us die because of it. We need to understand this. Please reach out. You’re worth it. Peace.
Many people living in one day at a time recovery know the reality of rising in the darkness. Rising in the darkness are such thoughts as I need help, God help me, no more, I have to stop, and how do I stop? In this darkness we rise and reach out. The more desperate we feel in the darkness the more apt we are to surrender to the need for help. When we reach out we sometimes we will be admitted to a hospital or a detox center. There are often times such places have saved our lives. We need to remember this and admit to our desperation. It takes courage to do so. In as such if we remain in recovery we will process how bad off we were, and we will see how rising in the darkness actually brought us the gift of desperation. It’s a reality many of us experience. Understanding the importance of needing continuing support, many of us turn to support groups, twelve step programs, and professional after care. They can help keep us healthy as we rise out of the darkness. Reach out. Life is a doable joy. Peace.
Many people living in one day at a time recovery discover that there are no neat little boxes that we can pull off of a shelf which when opened will sprinkle us with a magic dust that will make life and its adversities easy to deal with and easy to overcome. This is one of life’s realities. We have heard that nothing worthwhile comes easy. Many of us would like to tell people to just put the plug in the jug and life will be full of sunny sunny days but that would be doing a disservice to people looking to find recovery. We tell people to find their ways into the rooms of recovery where they will learn life lessons and coping tools to overcome adversities. The simplicity of recovery’s wisdom makes life doable. Not easy but simple and easier. We become inextricably connected in reality and we will have our fair share of sunny sunny days. We simply have to work for them. Peace.
Many people new to one day at a time recovery believe that once we (for lack of better words) put the plug in the jug their lives will be nothing but steadfast recovery which never waivers in faith, works, or beliefs. In time, and time takes time, they become we and in being of the we, we know true life, and real recovery is not like that. We all have the trials and tribulations and the doubts of one day at a time reality. We have heard that the most natural thing for us to do is use. Our best defense is we just don’t pick up that first one. We reach our and we give back. We trust grace. We think through the struggle and we remain abstinent one day at a time. In all of its imperfections recovery works bringing us just plain old freedom. Enjoy it. Peace.
Those of us who reach out to try and help others to feel a sense of belonging with those of us who have been living in one day at a time recovery do so with a realistic understanding that we were not the most righteous and responsible of individuals. Another reality that we understand is that for many of us we uncovered a reality of usefulness, and we cannot help but to have compassion and concern for other human beings. It appears that we now have a benevolent purpose today which is to help others to find and live in recovery and as we try and fulfill this role perhaps we will stay in recovery one more day ourselves. Today it’s our meaningful reality. Even though we are nobody’s role-model we know recovery is a gift we must share. That’s how we get to keep it. It’s all grace. Peace.
Most people who come into one day at a time recovery do so, or did so, because they are, or were, in trouble. Our situation, or the reality of our life eventually spoke to us and it said “We are empty and broken”. We know this reality far too well. Today, and many past days, one day at a time recovery shows to us, or has shown to us one humbling reality. This reality is yet to this day we are still held up by love. This is the reality of grace. Why? The answer is simple – We are empty and broken and we are held up by love. Love just happens. It’s a God thing. This is our reality. Today we understand that today, and every new day, is a gift. We simply need to open our eyes. Peace.
Some people living in one day at a time recovery understand the reality of being allergic to their own thinking. This happens when we become stuck in self-defeating thought which can become as natural to us as it is to put a splash of cream in our morning coffee. Our allergic reaction to self-defeating thinking is to break-out in periods of self-loathing and self-condemnation. Such thinking is an attack on healthy reality. We have heard that we should have no regrets but some of us do. It appears the gift of now, the reality of grace, and a life of one day at a time recovery is our best remedy. It’s more common than we think. In this we find reality, and in this reality we find the freedom of being human. Today we have a choice. Peace.
Many people living in one day at a time recovery either carry or carried a heavy load in regards to the realities and the non-realities of living our lives as human beings. Our realities are we try to carry the heaviness of life all by ourselves. As hard as we try to face our realities alone, we find aloneness is or should be a non-reality for recovering people. For some of us the heaviest load we carry is the noise in our own minds. We need to invite someone in to help us navigate through the realities and non-realities of life. Many of us have sought guidance from empathetic individuals who have been trained to help people deal with the heavy loads of being people. Perhaps then we will learn that too much aloneness can bring with it a fair amount of toxic thinking. In all humility we have been gifted with the reality of one day at a time freedom. Peace.
Many people living in one day at a time recovery understand the reality of being ransomed. People protect us and offer us safe environments in which we can experience one day at a time abstinence. In recovery’s reality we will eventually get to understand we had actually paid quite a price to hit a time in our lives where we knew we just had to stop. We lost the freedom of living healthy, adjusted and doable lives. Our pain was so abundantly immense that not only did we hurt ourselves but we also hurt our loved ones and those around us too. Time after time we were rescued and ransomed from the mess that we had made of our lives. When we cried out for help and when we finally realized how desperate we really were we realized the reality of total abstinent as being the only way to freedom from active addiction. In as such we knew that we needed support and we joined the rooms of recovery. In doing so we discovered that we had paid our dues. Then we learned that now we had to pay our own ransom and we had to pay for the ransom of others. Everyone does this in the rooms. We all keep each other free from the bondage of active addiction. We ransom each other. It’s part of being inextricably connected to the other. Peace.
Many people living in one day at a time recovery understand the reality of wanting to be of value in helping others to find the reality and the freedom of one day at a time recovery. This is the usual want of people who are fairly new to recovery (less than a year of abstinence). We call this the beginner’s picture. It happens to us because of our gratitude and the need to pay it forward. There is a fair amount of recovering people who become professionals who help people with our disorders find one day at a time wellness. This is the extension or fruition of the beginner’s picture. They’re a living legacy of one day at a time recovery. Many of them do this for many, many years. The rest of us – we’re grateful for them. They’ve helped save many lives. Peace.