"Where's the time?" Our time is in the hands of "The Spirit of the Universe". And not our time, it his/hers. We have just put it back into his/her hands and now asking the question: What am I to do with this time you have given me?
Sobriety is abstaining from all mind altering chemicals, accepting oursselves, other people, and situations as they are, not as we want them to be, and getting underneath the thing and standing in the truth of what it is. That is Sobriety!
As the world’s attention is focused on the 2008 Beijing Olympics in China, our attention is on our eight women’s progress at Catherine’s Place. Over many decades, the Olympics have been a place where the world’s best athletes came together in their quest to win medals and to get new Olympic and world records. Michael Phelps’ name has become synonymous with some of the greatest Olympians and is now regarded as the most decorative Olympian Gold Medalist of all time. While Phelps is rewriting history in Beijing, the client’s at Catherine’s’ place are making history of a different kind. As an Adult Substance Abuse Counselor, and instructor, I have seen the same determination that Phelps displayed, in our client’s behavior as they are working on their recovery. These women are vested in changing their past unhealthy lifestyles, which were plague with alcohol and other drugs. The real challenge for women in recovery is not so much ceasing their drugs and/or alcohol use, but also maintaining and sustaining their sobriety. I salute our clients’ as they are continuously setting new records in maintaining their sobriety, which truly make them Gold Medalists in Recovery
Family members each play an important and different role in the lives of those who are recovering from alcoholism or drug addiction. It is both useful and important that family members gain a better understanding as to how their loved ones become addicted and the supportive role that the family plays in helping the addicted loved one in recovery. Get educated on the addiction, play a supportive role, be active and the prospects are that the addicted individual will remain in recovery.
This is a favorite passage from Generation to Generation, a wonderful book by Edwin Friedman on family process:
...A woman found her husband coming home from work more and more tipsy. Her anxiety increased. She tried everything...from constant warnings...to harangues in the evening. Worried that she might be left a widow with two children, she was encouraged to get out of the triangle between her husband and his symptom, to shift the pain, by telling him (when he was not drunk) in as calm a manner as possible, "Honey, I've been thinking things over. I have decided that you have a right to drink all you want, to enjoy life to the hilt, and to risk it. After all, it's your life. I would like to stop nagging you, but I've got a problem. It's fairly clear to me that you probably won't make it for too much longer, and I don't want to be stuck with the mortgage and the car payment, so I'll make an agreement with you. If you will agree to triple your life insurance, I will agree never to mention your drinking again." Sticking someone with the pain of responsibility for his or her own destiny is far more 'sobering' than giving the person black coffee afterwards.
What this passage reminds me of is that nagging someone about drinking or using is about the least effective thing we can do when we're worried about the person who's addicted. I think the above approach provides a great deal more promise because when we're dealing with an alcoholic/addict, we're not dealing with someone who's amenable to complaining, crying, throwing a temper tantrum, or just moaning continually. We need to be more creative than that. Recognizing the triangles in which we find ourselves entangled can be liberating. GREG
7 comments:
"Where's the time?"
Our time is in the hands of "The Spirit of the Universe". And not our time, it his/hers. We have just put it back into his/her hands and now asking the question: What am I to do with this time you have given me?
"What is Sobriety"
Sobriety is abstaining from all mind altering chemicals, accepting oursselves, other people, and situations as they are, not as we want them to be, and getting underneath the thing and standing in the truth of what it is. That is Sobriety!
As the world’s attention is focused on the 2008 Beijing Olympics in China, our attention is on our eight women’s progress at Catherine’s Place. Over many decades, the Olympics have been a place where the world’s best athletes came together in their quest to win medals and to get new Olympic and world records. Michael Phelps’ name has become synonymous with some of the greatest Olympians and is now regarded as the most decorative Olympian Gold Medalist of all time.
While Phelps is rewriting history in Beijing, the client’s at Catherine’s’ place are making history of a different kind. As an Adult Substance Abuse Counselor, and instructor, I have seen the same determination that Phelps displayed, in our client’s behavior as they are working on their recovery. These women are vested in changing their past unhealthy lifestyles, which were plague with alcohol and other drugs. The real challenge for women in recovery is not so much ceasing their drugs and/or alcohol use, but also maintaining and sustaining their sobriety.
I salute our clients’ as they are continuously setting new records in maintaining their sobriety, which truly make them Gold Medalists in Recovery
How do I manage stress?
Refer to one of the many website that provides comprehensive and useful information on keeping stress to a minimum.
http://www.stress-relief-exercises.com/index.html
Relaxation and exercising are recommended techniques until you find what works best for you.
Families Need to Recover Together
Family members each play an important and different role in the lives of those who are recovering from alcoholism or drug addiction. It is both useful and important that family members gain a better understanding as to how their loved ones become addicted and the supportive role that the family plays in helping the addicted loved one in recovery. Get educated on the addiction, play a supportive role, be active and the prospects are that the addicted individual will remain in recovery.
This is a favorite passage from Generation to Generation, a wonderful book by Edwin Friedman on family process:
...A woman found her husband coming home from work more and more tipsy. Her anxiety increased. She tried everything...from constant warnings...to harangues in the evening. Worried that she might be left a widow with two children, she was encouraged to get out of the triangle between her husband and his symptom, to shift the pain, by telling him (when he was not drunk) in as calm a manner as possible, "Honey, I've been thinking things over. I have decided that you have a right to drink all you want, to enjoy life to the hilt, and to risk it. After all, it's your life. I would like to stop nagging you, but I've got a problem. It's fairly clear to me that you probably won't make it for too much longer, and I don't want to be stuck with the mortgage and the car payment, so I'll make an agreement with you. If you will agree to triple your life insurance, I will agree never to mention your drinking again." Sticking someone with the pain of responsibility for his or her own destiny is far more 'sobering' than giving the person black coffee afterwards.
What this passage reminds me of is that nagging someone about drinking or using is about the least effective thing we can do when we're worried about the person who's addicted. I think the above approach provides a great deal more promise because when we're dealing with an alcoholic/addict, we're not dealing with someone who's amenable to complaining, crying, throwing a temper tantrum, or just moaning continually. We need to be more creative than that. Recognizing the triangles in which we find ourselves entangled can be liberating.
GREG
I find your posts very informative
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