Those of us who live in one day at a time recovery know that there can still be a bit of noise in our heads even after substantial time in recovery. Often this noise is what we call self-defeating thinking. We become trapped in the idea we are not worthy of love and belonging. Our thinking tells us that we don’t measure up. We catastrophize our humble purpose and put shame on ourselves by telling ourselves others master their fears and rise to the occasion by being heroes and fighters brimming with the courage, the confidence, and the strength of warriors. When we do this we are destroying any sense of inherent dignity that is ours to have. We are being unkind to ourselves. Today we know this, and we know we would not do this to another person. We give ourselves grace and love. We let go of guilt, shame, and remorse. And we do not let fear consume us. We reach out and we breathe. Sometimes we pray. Some of us need medication. We don’t have to be a warrior. We just let go and we know we are worthy of love and belonging so we treat ourselves with inherent dignity. It takes time but it gets better. Trust in the process.
