- Get really good at the “buffet approach.” Take what you like and leave the rest is not just a quaint expression. It’s an important skill to learn. Too many of us do the opposite – we hear things that make us feel inadequate or hopeless and we miss all the good stuff.
- Social anxiety, feeling insecure, having mental illness, “trust issues” and a boat load of shame about the past are the norms in early recovery. You are not any more or less of a person than the rest of us.
- No one recovers alone. There are very real limits to what any of us can do in isolation. What we can do in fellowship with kindred spirits is exponentially greater.
- Recovery, spirituality, healing and growing are all very personal choices and experiences. We learn from the experiences of others, but one size does NOT fit all.
- What works for you is going to be an ever-evolving thing. There is no finish line and there is no all better.
- Being a work in progress means it’s ok to make mistakes. When you don’t know better, it’s a mistake. When you do know, it’s a choice. (Knowledge creates responsibility).
- It’s not a “slip.” A slip is something you do unintentionally on ice. A relapse is drinking/using and it’s not an accident.
- Before we relapse, there almost always are a host of things we stopped doing.
- You are not “terminally unique.” You are not hard to understand and millions of us can relate to you and identify with you if you let us.
- There is always hope. If you are vertical and breathing, then congratulations, you have another chance to get it right.