Unconditional Self Acceptance

Known as USA in Smart Recovery this concept can go a long way to advancing Addiction Remission in an individual by boosting Self Esteem.

Have you ever seen the movie Groundhog Day? It’s about a Weatherman that gets sent to cover the annual Groundhog Day celebration in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. He ends up getting caught in a seemingly never-ending loop where he is forced to relive the same day (Groundhog Day) over and over again. The movie is pretty funny and in the end, has a happy ending.

The same type of situation can occur to someone with low self-esteem trying to gain and or remain in remission. If the individual is in early remission and loses a job, they may irrationally assume the job loss occurred because they haven’t lived up to their boss’s expectations, or for whatever reason, they just don’t deserve the job. This more than likely is not the case, but this stressful situation may be enough to cause a lapse or relapse. The relapse adds to the individual’s assumption of self-worthlessness which leads to further “self-medication”, and the downward spiral syndrome is set into full motion.

If this scenario sounds familiar, Smart Recovery offers a tool known as Unconditional Self Acceptance (USA) In a nutshell, USA reinforces that we are all good human beings that might not always practice good behaviors.

If you want to learn more about this essential addiction remission tool please log on to the Smartrecovery.org website and search for USA. Watch the short video, “Unconditional Self Acceptance – Tips and Tools for Recovery That Works”. Read the PDF on USA that on the site.

After you have learned a little bit more about USA come back to this blog and post how accepting who you are as a person and acknowledging that you are not your behaviors can help break you out of the “Groundhog Day” spiral of self-defeat. I’m looking forward to discussing this concept further.