Sunday, November 21, 2021

Nov. 21, 2021 - Readings in Recovery: Today's Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation

 

Sunday, Nov. 21, 2021

Today’s Gift from Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation is:

For, although it is true that fear and despair can overwhelm us, hope cannot be purchased with the refusal to feel. — Susan Griffin

Most of us have slips in our recovery. It’s true that the stronger our abstinence is, the further we get from the possibility of slipping. But being human as well as powerless over our addiction, we must face the real possibility of slips.

We can be honest if we slip, both with ourselves and with others in the program. They, along with our Higher Power, will understand how we feel. We need never bear alone the remorse, alienation, and shame we feel after acting out. We can also resist the impulse to anesthetize ourselves with alcohol or something else to avoid the pain of a slip. Through the program we’ve learned how to make amends, especially to ourselves. We can put this knowledge to work again if we slip.

While a slip is painful, it’s not a reason to fall back to where we started. Instead, we can recommit ourselves to sanity and manageability, letting go of the past and being abstinent today.

My abstinence exists from this moment on. I can handle the present and find sanity here and now.

Hazelden Foundation

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