Chronicles of Anger

Thanks to Alicia for this beautiful guest post about her experience with anger in recovery. Chronicles of Anger “Let’s talk about anger,” my therapist said. “Oh,” I shrugged, “I don’t really have any.  I’m not really an angry person.” “Really?  You don’t have anger?” “Not really… what I’m really worried about is…”   And on…

Details

Self-care or Selfishness?

Self-care. Like almost every principle of recovery, this concept was something that I just didn’t get before hitting my rock bottom. I am ashamed to say that in my former life I would sometimes feel critical or even superior to other women when I would see them taking time out for themselves. Instead of seeing…

Details

Is Recovery Even Possible Without Sobriety?

Recovery vs. Sobriety The question proposed is one I’ve thought about quite a bit; what I’m going to share is based on my own experience. To share my feelings about the question, I’ll start with a few questions: Why does the White Book say, “Without sobriety we have nothing to offer anyone.” (p. 185) What does…

Details

How to Help a Sponsee Who’s Struggling

Today’s men’s discussion is based on a question received from a sponsor regarding his sponsee. He wondered, “How do I help a sponsee who’s struggling?” If you have questions that you’d like to discuss, please submit them here. Thanks for all your interaction in the men’s SAL group discussion. How to Help a Sponsee Who’s…

Details

Video: What Does God-Centered Love Look Like?

SA Lifeline sees recovery as an ongoing process of living with God at our center, “One Day At A Time.” But what does God-centered love look like? For those of us who have lived with a loved one in addiction, we have often fallen into a model of dysfunction, putting our addict at our center. When this…

Details

To Remember or To Forget

Do you ever feel confused about whether recovery is a journey about forgetting or remembering? In the months following my husband’s big disclosure, the theme of “Remembering” came up over and over.  In fact, my husband wrote a list at this point of his goals for recovery.  It looked like this: Attend weekly Recovery meetings.…

Details

How Do I Share Triggers with My Wife or Significant Other?

This question has come up quite a bit, both for me personally as an addict working my own recovery, through the contact form here at SALifeline.org, and in meetings I’ve been a part of. “How do I safely share triggers with my wife or significant other?” Have you ever had this question? What’s the “right…

Details

Have you seen this TED Talk about Addiction?

When I heard this TED Talk, “Everything You Think You Know About Addiction is Wrong,” Johann Hari’s approach to this sensitive topic brought tears to my eyes. Johann mixes research with personal experience to shed light on the misinformation that almost monopolizes popular opinion on addiction. His insights rang true to the addict in my life…

Details

VIDEO: What is the Opposite of Addiction?

What is the opposite of addiction? How did I become addicted to pornography and all the other crap that comes with it? Why have I struggled for nearly my entire life to truly connect with other people and feel safe? Have you ever ask yourself these questions? They’re important questions for me to ask myself. The…

Details