Houston had enough flooding last spring to give anyone chronic ombrophobia (fear of rain). While the high waters have long since receded, periodic “flash flood watches” continue—as do nervous glances at the afternoon sky. Will we relapse into fear of rain? The Storms of Life Are Out to Get Me “At least Houston doesn’t have […]
A major key to finding freedom from chemical dependency is to avoid emphasizing “freedom from” at the expense of “freedom to.” Many people fail to stay clean because, on the subconscious level at least, they think that giving up drugs also means giving up stress relief, enjoyment, or other good-in-themselves things that they’ve come to […]
A key element of recovery is being open about your struggles, temptations, and doubts. Another key element is mixing that openness with a level of discretion. You can share yourself, but be careful how you do that. You’ve probably met people who seem addicted to bragging about their faults: within ten minutes of meeting them, […]
After months of dealing with substance abuse and recovery, you may be up to your ears in sobriety advice. When you still didn’t want to hear it, everyone advised you to cut down or quit. When you began to seriously consider quitting, everyone recommended a different approach. And still, everywhere you turn, people air their […]
Anyone coming out of substance abuse has extensive experience with disagreement. You disagreed with friends who told you you were overdoing it. You disagreed with authorities who said recreational drugs were bad for everyone. You disagreed with your own conscience when you “borrowed” to finance your habit. You disagreed with your better judgment and insisted […]
The quote “With great power must come great responsibility” may have originated as recently as the twentieth century, though many attribute it to the eighteenth-century philosopher Voltaire. Long before that, Jesus said, “Unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required; and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask […]
Independence Day may be over for another year, but celebrating freedom is something worth doing daily. More valuable even than political freedom is freedom of the soul: Celebrating Freedom to Know What’s Right and Do It Just about everyone who makes it into substance-abuse recovery has sworn many times, “I’ll never do that again.” Then they […]
The first known person to use the “eternal vigilance” quote—in that wording—was Wendell Phillips, speaking to the Massachusetts Antislavery Society in 1852. It follows that vigilance in sobriety follows the same vein as the quotes below. The sentiment is at least as old as the Founding Fathers: “They that can give up essential liberty to […]
In recognition of July’s status as Independence Day month, our next several posts will focus on the theme of freedom and the will to recover. Like all major life changes, freedom from addiction is easier to dream of than to achieve. Anyone can wish for a better life; relatively few are willing to work for it. It’s […]
Strictly speaking, stress “drives” no one to drink—the actual decision is the drinker’s alone. Practically speaking, there’s no question that chronically stressed people are the highest-risk group for becoming addicted and stress management is essential to recovery. If they don’t start using to escape the stress itself, they may become addicted to medications prescribed for […]
The better your focus on the task at hand, the less space will be left in your mind for stress—and the more productive you’ll be. The ideal is a “flow” state of consciousness, keeping your mind in the moment, where you become completely absorbed in your work and are fully enjoying it. Sound impossible? To […]
A substantial portion of drug abuse now starts as legitimate painkiller prescriptions. Time Magazine even gave the problem front-cover status. In light of that, addiction treatment and non-chemical pain relief are practically conjoined twins when it comes to pain prevention. We’ve talked before about painkiller addiction, about mindfulness-based pain prevention, and about Dr. Flowers’s expertise […]