Stephen has worked for the past 17 years in Behavioral Health focusing on Substance Use Disorder and recovery support services. Stephen current lives in the Buffalo Area and he is a founding member of the Buffalo/Niagara Peer Collaborative. In 2019 Deb became self-employed to pursue other opportunities including training supervision. Her passion is to train and provide support to the addiction and recovery clinical and peer workforce. She is now the proud owner of Rhoades to Recovery Consulting, Training and Clinical Services and provides consulting and training services to Addiction and Recovery organizations across New York State.
Open champion whose only fear was not living up to his high standards. Entitlement is bred out of convenience that you fail to appreciate and start to expect instead. Gratitude should be consciously employed to battle the lack of appreciation. It’s true the path to recovery is fraught with challenges in the beginning. It’s work, discipline, commitment, peeling back layer of vulnerabilities, speaking our truth and more. However, you should volunteer with the caveat that putting yourself in a situation where you are exposed to persons who are still addicted and using may not be a good idea in the early stages of your recovery.
Take on Challenges with a Positive Mindset
Even if drugs or alcohol still tempt you, you missed your group session or you yelled at a dear friend — don’t beat yourself up. Many times people with an alcohol use disorder (AUD) or substance use disorder (SUD) can quickly go down this path of negative thinking. And, for those in recovery, this can lead to the development of resentments. According to the Alcoholics Anonymous Big Book, resentment is the number one offender and can kill those with AUD or SUD. In 2014 I surrendered to the disease of addiction, asked for help, and am now celebrating a life more adventurous than ever before. Problems with relationships, financial management, and legal issues have become solutions based in a true transformation of life.
- Most everyone has heard the question, “Is the glass half empty or half full?
- While acknowledging mistakes and making amends is vital for long-term recovery learning to love yourself is too.
- It reminds us that when things don’t work out, there is still a lot to be grateful for.
His professional background includes all aspects of organizational peer-professional integration and programming including training, coaching, and supervision as well as community and professional education and outreach. It is easy to feel overwhelmed and pessimistic when living through the challenges of addiction recovery. You may feel like you don’t have the strength or willpower to overcome your obstacles, and you might start to get caught up in negative thoughts and emotions like anger, self-doubt, or hopelessness.
Make a Gratitude List
Prior to Robert joining OMH, he was engaged in the private practice of law where he focused on regulatory and governmental affairs matters. Lisa Nichols, with ROCovery Fitness in upstate NY, is a peer advocate, CrossFit coach, nationally ranked Olympic weightlifter, mom, teacher, goofball, poet, and most importantly, a grateful human in recovery. Colleen DiLello is employed as a CRPA-P at Central Nassau Guidance gratitude and recovery with the Mobile Recovery Unit since January 2020. In recovery Colleen has gotten her GED, become a CRPA-P and has a passion for helping others with SUD and MH issues. Colleen is motivated to becoming a CASAC and learning and growing in this field. Barb is a professional life coach, meditation instructor, retreat leader, writer, wife and mom to two young men, one of whom struggles with substance use disorder.
When you communicate with other people, express what you are thankful for. If you accomplished something at work, don’t be afraid to pat yourself on the back and let people know how happy it made you. When others share their successes, listen, and let their gratitude rub off on you too.
How Gratitude Can Impact Addiction Recovery
The thoughts can snowball until we’ve worked ourselves into a state of restlessness and discontent. In a recent study, a one-time expression of gratitude increased participants’ happiness by 10% right away. After six months, however, the positive effects of thankfulness gave way to old levels of happiness. Mr. Kent previously served as an Assistant Counsel with the NYS Office of Mental Health (OMH).
It doesn’t have to be a grandiose feeling of appreciation every day. You can simply feel grateful that you made it through or that you didn’t take your bad day out on anyone else. “Practice gratitude” is one of those platitudes that seems like it belongs in script on a wall next to Live, Laugh, Love.
They didn’t get all of it — there was a risk of losing sight in his left side and the use of the left side of his body — but it was deemed successful on other counts. Woodland played 10 tournaments with the symptoms, eight times on medication, seven times after the diagnosis. Fear and anxiety were unfamiliar terms to this rock-chalk solid, three-sport star from Kansas, a former U.S.
- Gratitude allows an individual to celebrate the present and be an active participant in their life.
- Helping others goes hand in hand with gratitude to promote a positive outlook.
- Gratitude isn’t just a nice thing to practice — it’s essential for long-term recovery.
- Xavier is a dedicated and committed advocate in the recovery community and will go above and beyond to help those in, or seeking recovery.
- His professional background includes all aspects of organizational peer-professional integration and programming including training, coaching, and supervision as well as community and professional education and outreach.
- It doesn’t have to be a grandiose feeling of appreciation every day.
- It was there that she began working at the macro level on a variety of legislative advocacy issues focused on addiction and recovery.
They also worked out more and had fewer doctor visits than those who focused on what irritated or displeased them as well as the third group who wrote about the negative and positive events that affected them. During the journey, every step along the way can and should be a source of greater hope and optimism for the future you are working to create for yourself. Practicing gratitude allows you to “switch gears” mentally and see the positivity and hopefulness in the process. Through this change in perspective, you can renew your strength and regain momentum to propel you toward your goals.
The key is to not let the bad days take over or become too frequent. Many times people think, sure but I can’t control what goes on around me and what others do and say. And while this is completely true, what we can control is our thoughts. One of the best ways to overcome this spiritual malady is to practice gratitude.
Gratitude is an intrinsic element to many forms of addiction recovery. Whether you’re attending AA, any form of 12-Step, or science-based programs like SMART Recovery, gratitude is often a strong focus. Instead of focusing on material possessions this holiday season, these nine tips can help you practice gratitude in recovery and learn how to be thankful and content with what you already have. Addiction strips away all the good things in life; health, happiness, contentment … you name it. Taking a moment to think about something good you have now can serve as a reminder of how far you’ve come since your addiction. Remembering the way your life was when you were addicted doesn’t have to drudge up feelings of regret or sadness.
