Tag Archives: Addiction treatment

Daily Reading from Recovery Days May 25th by Chris B

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Silence

The ancient Greeks had nine muses. The early Roman king, Numa Pompilius, wisely added one more – Tacita, the muse of silence. For silence can be as powerful as the loudest of noises. Anyone observing two minutes of silence on Remembrance Day would agree. The value of communal silence is not appreciated as it used to be. Mediaeval monks valued silence greatly:

Everywhere peace, everywhere serenity.

Aelred, Abbot of Rievaulx.

Do I recognise the power of silence?

The Prophet Elijah in his cave, listening for the sound of God’s voice, said:

It was not heard in wind, earthquake or  fire, but in the sound of sheer silence. 

Silence isn’t empty, it’s often full of answers. Just a few minutes of silent meditation each day gives our brain and more importantly, our soul, a chance to rest and regenerate. Today I will find time for silence and I will appreciate the peace it brings.

Daily Reading from Recovery Days May 21st by Chris B

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Remember Mindfulness – enjoy the moment

Higher Power

When considering Higher Power, some people get very tied up with what this means. Are they dealing with a religious God and if so, which religion? What does this Higher Power look like? They ask. The point lies in the word ‘Power’. There is a power that helps us, a power in the meeting rooms that you can sometimes feel. Trying to put a label on this power is missing the point. It is enough for us that the power is there, and it works through other people. Empirical knowledge of a Higher Power is not possible, so let us just accept that it exists, if only because something must make the planets go round the sun. Why do we need a label? How important is it? Am I content to accept my Higher Power as an unknown but powerful source of help?

People of every outlook, background and belief find support and success in the Twelve Step fellowships. Atheists do as well as religious believers. I must look at the similarities and keep it simple. The urge to complicate things has been my downfall in the past. A Power greater than myself is all I require. Today I ask God for wisdom to keep things simple.

Daily Reading from Recovery Days May 15th by Chris B

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Remember Mindfulness – send positive thoughts


Serenity Prayer


Roman emperor Tiberius Claudius Nero was a drunk, known to his mocking soldiers as Biberius Caldius Mero (bibulous drinker of unwatered wine). He never changed. His near contemporary, the Stoic philosopher Epictetus was meanwhile teaching his students a lesson in acceptance: Make the best of
what is in our power and take the rest as it naturally
happens. Its message is similar to the serenity prayer, written two thousand years later, by Reinhold Niebuhr: God, grant me the serenity, to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference. Emperors come and go, but addiction is always with us. Am I ready to change the things I can?


The serenity prayer has great power to calm the troubled mind. The simple words lead us to trust that our Higher Power has things under control, even if we do not. Learning to say the prayer whenever we have to make a choice that worries us, is a great habit to acquire. Today I ask that I may make a habit of reciting the serenity prayer daily.

Daily Reading from Recovery Days May 6th by Chris B

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On this day in 1946 the AA Twelve Traditions were published

Twelve Traditions
The Twelve Traditions were formulated by early members of AA in response to the need to clarify certain principles and attitudes, for the sake of the integrity and long-term survival of the movement. Broadly speaking, these cover issues of administration, finance, aims and relations with other groups and society at large. They have fulfilled their purpose because since that time, the basic tenets and beliefs of AA have remained unchanged. We tend to take things for granted but in truth, it’s a record that not many institutions achieve. Am I grateful to the founders of AA?
An organisation that advises its members that compromise is fatal for recovery must match its actions to its words. So much of history tells of well-intentioned people who gradually failed to measure up to their original principles. It is part of my responsibility as a grateful beneficiary of this fellowship, to do my utmost to uphold the Twelve Traditions so that future generations will enjoy the fruits of this wonderful organisation. Today I give thanks to the founding fathers of all the Twelve Step fellowships.

……………………………………………………….

Daily Reading from Recovery Days May 2nd by Chris B

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Remember Mindfulness – enjoy the moment

Head to heart

Think of the worst experience that you can remember, perhaps something that made you angry or ashamed. If you could have it cancelled, but on condition that everything that happened as a result would also be cancelled – would you do it? How much did you learn from that negative experience? The worst experience is often the greatest opportunity for growth. Change does not happen through the passing of information alone, but through the way things make us feel. Willingness to change means learning from the bad as well as the good. Am I truly willing to change?

The beauty of the Twelve Step programme is that you can keep growing in it for the rest of your life. When you hear someone speaking at a meeting and you think: That’s what I want, then you are feeling something as well as hearing it. The message goes from the head to the heart and that is how spiritual growth comes about. Today I am grateful to grow in the Twelve Step programme that never stops giving.

Today I Will……..……………………………………………

Daily Reading from Recovery Days May 1st by Chris B

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Remember Mindfulness – close eyes briefly

Good life

We are the heroes in the story of our lives. But, like in a Greek tragedy, the hero is usually the one who is the problem. Greek tragedy is about rage and grief and right and wrong and consequences that inevitably happen. It’s all a bit reminiscent of active addiction. The Greeks didn’t go in for happy endings much. They left that sort of thing to the imagination. They were desperate to explore morality and responsibility because they believed the only acceptable life was one lived with integrity, honour and virtue. We could all benefit from a study of Greek tragedy but few of us will manage it. But we can still be heroes. Am I ready to live as a hero in the story of my life?

Purging the emotions in Greek tragedy was known as ‘catharsis’. It is followed by a feeling of relief. Steps Four and Five are cathartic because by identifying and sharing our character defects, we are able to let them go. But life doesn’t have to be all about dramatic catharsis. Zen for example, is a way of meditation that lets go of feelings through gentle meditation – a sort of catharsis without the drama. Some of us prefer it that way. Today I ask God for a life without too much negative drama, whatever the possible benefits.

Today I Will………………………………………………………………………………..

Daily Reading of Recovery Days April 27th by Chris B

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Remember Mindfulness – close eyes briefly

New ideas

Addiction means giving up everything else for the sake of having just one thing. Recovery is about giving up just one thing for the sake of regaining everything else. It should be so easy to choose between addiction and recovery, but so many of us cannot let go, so as to make the right choice. It’s like the old monkey trap story – the monkey’s hand fits through the hole to pick up the rice but the hand with the rice can’t fit back out. For the monkey, like us, it’s a mind problem – not being able to let go of old ideas. Am I ready to let go of old attitudes and embrace new ideas?

The difficulty lies not in the new ideas, but in escaping from the old ones.

Maynard Keynes.

We don’t want to give up our old ways because we can’t imagine that anything else would work for us. We can’t imagine life without our drug or behaviour of choice, and we certainly can’t imagine enjoying life without it. Today I ask God for the strength of mind and insight, to be able to let go of the old attitudes that are stopping me from embracing the new.

Today I Will

Daily Reading from Recovery Days April 24th by Chris B

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Remember Mindfulness – review expectations

Openness

If you try to explain Shakespeare’s Hamlet to a group of African tribesmen, as an anthropologist did some years ago, you will get a different interpretation of its twisted plot from that of an Oxbridge graduate. Perhaps Hamlet really was bewitched by his uncle and perhaps Laertes killed his sister Ophelia to sell her body, as the tribesmen insisted – who really knows what Shakespeare was thinking? The point is that we must keep an open mind and embrace new ideas because in truth, our own ideas and attitudes have not served us very well in the past. Am I prepared to keep an open mind and embrace new ideas rather than being dogmatic and judgemental?

Open-mindedness leads us to admit the possibility of error on our part and allows us to think that even long held beliefs might be incorrect. It gives us the courage to change our minds and accept our own fallibility. Intellectual and spiritual progress depends on the discussion and adaptation of ideas without rancour, blame or shame. The alternative is stagnation. Today I ask God for openness of mind so that I can enjoy new ideas.

Today I Will

Daily Reading from Recovery Days April 17th by Chris B

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Remember Mindfulness – Breathe calmly

Helping others

Richmond W, author of the inspirational AA meditation book Twenty-four Hours A Day, also wrote poetry. His lines on helping others from his poem Not Enough run as follows:

To hear is not enough…

…I must give wherever need appears And learn to live unselfishly.   R.Walker

Richmond was as good as his words and is said to have helped hundreds of struggling addicted people during his years of sobriety. A man of true integrity and a shining example to us all. Am I ready to help others in need, without hesitation?

If you want happiness for a day, go fishing. If you want happiness for a lifetime, help somebody.

Chinese proverb.

Altruism is pleasurable, it builds connections that benefit both giver and receiver. When we look beyond ourselves, we see that we are not alone, and we realise the limitations of staying within our selfish comfort zone. If I help others, I help myself. Today I ask for the courage and insight to be proactive in helping people in need.

Today I Will…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Daily Reading from Recovery Days April 14th by Chris B

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Remember Mindfulness – send positive thoughts

Fellowship and connection

We few, we happy few, we band of brothers; for he today who sheds his blood with me shall be my brother.

Shakespeare, King Henry V.

Whether we have actually shed blood or not, all of us addicted people have been in a fight and this common experience gives us a strong sense of fellowship and a sense of purpose too. Brotherhood and sisterhood are great words that bring us a sense of connection and togetherness at a crucial time in our lives. For most people, doing something as part of a group or team gives more satisfaction than doing it alone. Am I glad of the feeling of team spirit and involvement that I get from belonging to a Twelve Step group?

Attending a fellowship meeting and sitting alone at the back of the room, we can observe the other members and we can learn from their words of wisdom, but do we feel comfortable? If we feel welcome and if we interact with others, it is likely that we will enjoy the meeting more and leave with a warm feeling of having been a part of something, rather than having been just a spectator. Others, perhaps with more experience, have a responsibility to extend the hand of friendship but we have a responsibility to ourselves to make an effort to connect. Today I ask God for the courage to make the extra effort needed to come out of my isolation and meet new people.

Today I Will…………………………………………………………………………………