Breaking the Chains of Addiction Relapse: This topic came up at a recent SMART Recovery Meeting. This is a good topic here. Kind of fits in with April’s Topic of Overcoming Challenges (Bill.S.)
Overcoming cravings in early sobriety can be a challenging but essential aspect of maintaining recovery. First, it’s crucial to develop a strong support system. Surround yourself with individuals who understand your journey and can offer encouragement and accountability. This may include friends, family members, support groups like Alcoholics Anonymous or SMART Recovery and ARMOR, or a sponsor who has experience navigating the challenges of sobriety. Having someone to lean on during difficult moments can provide invaluable strength and guidance.
Also, practicing mindfulness and self-awareness can be instrumental in managing cravings. Learning to identify triggers and the underlying emotions that fuel cravings is key. Engaging in activities that promote relaxation and stress reduction, such as meditation, yoga, or deep breathing exercises, can help alleviate tension and redirect your focus away from cravings. Developing healthy coping mechanisms to replace the urge to drink or use substances is essential. This might involve finding new hobbies, pursuing interests, or participating in activities that bring joy and fulfillment without the need for substances.
Finally, maintaining a structured routine and setting realistic goals can provide stability and purpose during early remission. Establishing a daily schedule that includes healthy habits like regular exercise, nutritious meals, and sufficient sleep can contribute to overall well-being and reduce the likelihood of succumbing to cravings. Setting achievable short-term and long-term goals can also foster a sense of accomplishment and motivation. Celebrating milestones along the way, no matter how small, reinforces progress and reinforces your commitment to achieving sustainable remission. Remember, overcoming cravings takes time and persistence, but with dedication and support, it is possible to build a fulfilling lifestyle free from chains of addiction.
April 2024
Here before the ocean, I’m feeling April’s emotion. Though it may rain, I will sustain. I hear a chorus, telling me I’m a Taurus. Just on the cusp, like others, I trust.
I don’t know much about astrology. Still learning my own biology. Things to take in, things to keep out. What is sobriety all about?
In April’s long past, staying sober didn’t last. Can a horoscope, be a reason to dope? Life can be a kick, an ever-twisting trick. A paradigm can become a paradine.
Aries are also members of this star filled group. They start earlier, as March begins their troop. No matter where your story starts, it will have multiple parts.
If you don’t like what the stars are showing, it’s up to you to change where you’re going. And if you need help along the way, help is waiting for you here today!
Ok, seedlings, listen up… it’s time to set your sights on the sky, hope for some rain now and then, and grow your shade leaves to properly take in sunlight. Did you ever notice how squirrels go nuts this time of year, running around in circles digging up their stash from last season? Well, the ones they miss turn into huge Oaks over the years. During winters, I prefer burning Oak wood, as it burns extremely hot. Later I put the ashes out for compost and then the squirrels bury more acorns before the snow arrives. And then, guess what, life begins anew!
With most things in life going in circles, or cycles, and having lived through New England’s four seasons most all of Doc’s life, it’s difficult for him to think linearly sometimes. This is especially true when assisting clients in healing from addiction disorders. It’s as though our own cognitive functionality of rational solution-based thinking is unavailable to the actively addicted human mind. It seems like active addiction disorders are lost in the woods blindfolded and think they can see while walking in circles.
Here’s an example: Havard Business Review: Linear thinkers get this wrong, much like current approaches to treating addiction disorders get it wrong. Here’s some cognitive mathematical dissonance for linear thinkers. Thinking outside the parameters of the norm requires a skill set inherent in cyclical thinking. Clearly, there is a time and place for each to maintain a healthy autonomy.
Linear Thinking in a Nonlinear World (hbr.org)
The Harvard review article looks at how and why the typical linear thinker, presenting as logical, is misled into making an unhealthy, self-defeating decision. Doc sees a similar rut active addiction thinkers get stuck in, while attempting to resolve their predicament on their own. Sustained Remission requires that ability to think outside the box too, that non-linear type of thinking, if you will. It’s the nonlinear direction that leads us out of the woods, so long as we avoid walking in circles.
Lifestyle Balance, in Doc’s view, is much more than mere physical positioning within the confines of our planet’s gravitational pull. In the context of ARMOR, lifestyle balance is governed by a dance our homeostatic compass does to regulate emotional turbulence, aspirations and/or tangents, or flow & distraction. Our compass does a molecular tango with our internal neural chemistry to guide us. It establishes an intimate resonance with our environment and with that cyclical fluency of a balanced lifestyle (Doc LaBranche, 2024)