September is National Recovery Month.
The focus of my blogs throughout the month of September will be on addiction and its life destroying tendencies. The writings derive from my own personal experiences of battling addiction and living a life of recovery.
These specific writings are focused on the ACTÂ acronym.
ACTÂ leads to sobriety…
A – Acknowledge you have a problem and you are powerless over it and you need help.
CÂ – Connect with a power greater than you and people who have solutions that will help you conquer your problem.
T – Take positive, recovery-oriented action every day.
We’ve spent 17 days looking at the Acknowledge and Connect stages of ACT. We will close out Recovery Month by looking at the most important stage and that is to Take positive, recovery-oriented action every day.
Today’s post is a continuation from yesterday (September, 20).
The withdrawal process had started and the primary difference between this particular journey through withdrawal and the others, is the people around me knew what was going on. The times I went through withdrawal on my own, I would simply tell people I had a bad case of the flu.
It’s important to note that having someone monitoring you through withdrawal is very helpful. The area I live in, Miami County, Ohio, has always been very progressive in helping people with substance abuse disorders. The Miami County Recovery Council started a social detox unit for male heroin/opiate addicts a little over a year ago and are having success with it. The best thing about having a place to go for detox, is upon discharge they will equip you with the tools you need in order to stay on the recovery road.
During the first couple of days of detox the nurses informed me that on Day 5 I was going to begin participating in the chemical dependency program. That thought scared me because I knew my withdrawal took anywhere from seven to ten days.
I remember a nurse waking me up on day 5 around 7 AM and telling me I had to go with the group to eat breakfast and then attend a devotional /prayer meeting by 8 AM. I looked at her and my face must have said, “Are you kidding me?” She said, “Seriously, you HAVE to eat and go to the morning meeting, and before you go, be sure to make your bed.”
Every day, for the next five weeks, I got up, ate a good breakfast, attended the 8 AM devotional meeting and made my bed.
This was the start of replacing a very destructive habit (my addiction), with good habits.
God put me right where I needed to be.
Addiction turns adults into children as we tend to become very irresponsible and undisciplined…I write from experience.
More to follow tomorrow.
What responsibilities are you turning your back on?
What ‘beds’ in your life are you leaving unmade?
Taking responsibility for your life requires action on your part.
If you struggle with taking initiative on your own, try praying to God for the willingness and desire to take positive action.
Hebrews 12:11, “For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.”
P.E.A.C.E.
Jay@EagleLaunch.com
