There are so many uplifting and inspiring stories of hope from people who have used Recovery International’s self-help tools and support groups to change their lives. These stories inspire and show that there are answers to and ways of changing your quality of life for the better.<\/p>\n
My name is Bob and I\u2019m an alcoholic. I am also a nervous person and it helps me to address both issues in Recovery Inc.\u2014for me a beautiful blend of the two programs. In former days I can remember thinking to myself while alone drinking in a bar, \u201cYou should be doing so much more with your life.\u201d Well, today I am, but the road has not always been easy \u2013 it never is.<\/p>\n
I joined Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) in 1984 and I was on my path to wellness at long last, but it took several years of focus to stay on Sobriety Road. My major stumbling blocks were depression; anxiety and my anger had turned to rage. I struggled, but I lived and breathed the 12-Steps. I got on my knees and prayed until one day someone, seeing my challenge, suggested I visit Recovery Inc. Maybe it was a \u201cGod shot.\u201d I was certainly ripe for the picking.<\/p>\n
When I attended my first Recovery meeting, it was like someone told someone else to call ahead to make sure to \u201ctell him everything he needs to know about depression, anxiety, anger, helplessness, and fears.\u201d I felt like I had found a home and a family that understood, much like I felt when I first found AA. Wow! There are others just like me. I am not alone.<\/p>\n
Through the years when AA\u2019s \u201cturning it over\u201d and other slogans don\u2019t work for my symptoms, I pull out some Recovery \u201cspots\u201d from my toolbox. If that tool or spot doesn\u2019t work I put it back and use another AA and\/or RI tool. I do this until I find just the right tool that works. At last, I
\nfound a way to stop compulsively drinking and take control of my insecure thinking and my life. AA and RI are alike in so many different ways. AA has taught me to \u201cdon\u2019t sweat the small stuff.\u201d RI deals only with trivialities, and as one long-time AA\/RI person pointed out, \u201cTrivialities are the small stuff when we don\u2019t take ourselves so seriously.\u201d<\/p>\n
Several other AA\/RI people have offered the following: Recovery frequently talks about \u201cdoing the things that we fear and dread to do,\u201d while AA asks us to do the footwork or \u201crow the boat ashore.\u201d AA\u2019s \u201ceasy does it\u201d is not much different from Recovery\u2019s concept of \u201ccommanding the
\nmuscles to relax.\u201d \u201cRestraint of pen and tongue\u201d is similar to \u201ccommanding the speech muscles to speak or not to speak\u201d. \u201cGo into action\u201d is akin to taking things in part acts or simply \u201cplan, decide, initiate and act.\u201d<\/p>\n
When that black cloud of depression hovers over me, or the anxiety and temper drives me close to using and abusing, I find \u201cturning it over\u201d actually means I must take some action steps, like moving the muscles to use some objectivity and to change my insecure thoughts to secure ones.
\nThis takes a will to effort and a will to bear discomfort.<\/p>\n
I\u2019ve noticed along the journey that when our heads get so clouded with depression, anxiety, temper and hopelessness, we often reach out and seek outside help \u2013the professional who can prescribe a medication that will help us over the hump of our difficulties. It doesn\u2019t mean we will be taking medication all of our lives, it means we need a little help for a little while. That is where the dual diagnosis meetings of Double Trouble, Double Trudgers and some professionally facilitated dual diagnosis meetings are so valuable. In these meetings, the consumer is not judged and no one is taking his or her inventory. These beneficial groups are growing at an amazing rate. AA has approved literature for those needing extra help. The pamphlet is called, \u201cThe AA Member \u2013 Medications and Other Drugs.\u201d<\/p>\n
A long-time friend and one-time counselor of AA and RI told me years ago that Recovery Inc. is different from AA in that Recovery is actually the spoon and fork to get into the problem and toss it around until the solution is found or the symptoms cease. She often told her recovering clients to \u201cgo to Recovery meetings.\u201d She said, \u201cI tell them to go to Recovery so often that I hope they hear it in their sleep.\u201d<\/p>\n
I have come to believe that \u201cturning it over\u201d equates to taking action steps and commanding my muscles to move when the muscles are telling me they can\u2019t and won\u2019t move. At those times, it is the resoluteness of the muscles that can retrain the brain to where the brain responds by
\nsaying, \u201cOh, you really can do the things I thought you couldn\u2019t.\u201d Steps one, two and three of Alcoholics Anonymous claim, rather simplistically, \u201cI can\u2019t, he can, so let him.\u201d A long-time AA friend reduced the 12-Steps down to a single word for each step. Step One is about getting \u201cHonest.\u201d To admit there is a problem, whether it is an addiction or a mental challenge, is the first step to wellness. Step Two is about \u201cHope.\u201d Recovery Inc.\u2019s founder, Dr. Abraham A. Low, also addresses this when he says, \u201cthere are no hopeless cases\u201d and that \u201chelplessness is not hopelessness.\u201d<\/p>\n
Step Three is about \u201cFaith.\u201d We learn in Recovery that there must be a conviction behind our spotting technique \u2013 a faith that the Method will work in our lives. Steps Four, Five and Six are frequently about \u201cCourage with Integrity and Willingness.\u201d How often do we hear the repetition
\nof the spot, \u201cHave the courage to make mistakes in the trivialities of everyday life.\u201d Both AA and RI give us the motivation and the courage to change \u2013 change beliefs and attitudes. Step Seven equates to \u201cHumility.\u201d In this area, Dr. Low states, \u201cTo admit one\u2019s limitations is
\nhumility.\u201d He also says, \u201cThe road to humility leads through spotting to the determination to abandon the craving for the divine thrill of knowing better.\u201d AA speaks directly to humility in Acceptance of the Big Book.<\/p>\n
Steps Eight, Nine and Ten address, \u201cResponsibility, Brotherly Love, Justice and Perseverance.\u201d\u00a0The Recovery Inc. Method is all about self-help. We accept the responsibility to change; even though we may hate change, we do it because we want to do something healthy with our lives.
\nRecovery stands for \u201crealism, good common sense and an unspoiled way of life.\u201d We practice, practice, practice.<\/p>\n
Step Eleven deals with \u201cPatience and Spirituality.\u201d It is likely that none of us in AA or RI got this way overnight and we will not get well overnight. We must acquire the will to patients to grow at our own pace.<\/p>\n
Finally, Step Twelve is about \u201cCharity\/Understanding and Service.\u201d As we grow in both programs we gain a greater understanding of ourselves and being tolerate of others. Self-leadership directs us to be helpful to others.<\/p>\n
The Serenity Prayer offers three tools that we can use anytime, anywhere. \u201cGod grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference.\u201d The Recovery Method tells us we cannot control the outer environment; only influence our own inner environment by using the skills of the Recovery Method.<\/p>\n
“Today I do what it takes and sometimes it takes a lot of doing.” \u2013 Bob\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n Bob was a long-time participant in both Recovery International and AA. He lived in Los\u00a0<\/strong>Angeles where he was an RI Group Leader for many years. He is a former member of the RI\u00a0<\/strong>Board of Directors, and served on the Area Support & Training Committee, and is a previous\u00a0<\/strong>Chair of the Marketing Committee. Bob also moderated RI\u2019s online Forums.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" There are so many uplifting and inspiring stories of hope from people who have used Recovery International’s self-help tools and support groups to change their lives. These stories inspire and show that there are answers to and ways of changing your quality of life for the better. How Recovery International Helped Me Stay Sober My…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-116","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-recovery-stories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.neoninspire.com\/recoveryinternational\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/116","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.neoninspire.com\/recoveryinternational\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.neoninspire.com\/recoveryinternational\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.neoninspire.com\/recoveryinternational\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.neoninspire.com\/recoveryinternational\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=116"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/sites.neoninspire.com\/recoveryinternational\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/116\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":256,"href":"https:\/\/sites.neoninspire.com\/recoveryinternational\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/116\/revisions\/256"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.neoninspire.com\/recoveryinternational\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=116"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.neoninspire.com\/recoveryinternational\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=116"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.neoninspire.com\/recoveryinternational\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=116"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}