Recovery Room

[SoberSoul]

I am in the process of building a two bedroom bungalow and in the midst of recovery from my alcohol addiction. The second bedroom is small; 10 x 10' and will serve as a guest room with a futon in it. I am tucking a baby crib in the opening for the closet we don't plan on using as such.

I have made the bold decision to make this my "Recovery Room" and paint it a deep mauve, have candles, teas, incense, live plants and most importantly recovery and spiritual books on the shelves, inspirational quotes nicely framed on the walls and my native or other gentle music playing. I plan on installing a simple laptop not connected to the internet so I can work on my blog posts, creative writing and other non-cyber activities. I will knit there, play my keyboard, read my books, meditate and sip tea. I will bring friends in one by one for quiet chats. I will encourage my children to use the room when rocking their little ones to sleep or taking a nap when visiting so they can scan the walls and shelves and absorb the wise words.

This is more than a dream come true. I am so glad I thought of it. I have many apt quotes but would love to have suggestions. Please send me quotes that have inspired you in your sobriety quest.

I also welcome suggestions as to what might make this room even more serene.

Do you have a spare room? Would you consider dedicating an entire room in your home to your own nurturing and recovery?

I'll post photos.

[briseus]

Recovery Room

Hey SoberSoul,

What a great idea.
I have a spare room - it's my own little room and used to be quite a mess...and I used to go in there and hide my drinking...because it was all cluttered and I could hide my drinks behind that crap and my partner would never notice...when I became sober I cleaned that room out - top to bottom. I put a desk and chair in there, I got myself a bulletin board to post inspiring photo's and a new bookshelf where all my books sit (an array of genres, from spirituality to fiction to cookbook - anything that I enjoy). I need to work on it a bit more though. Add more photo's...maybe paint it. Definitely add more plants...just make it my personal space.
I haven't gone in there in a while - so I feel like I have become a bit complacent in my sober journey, so might be a good idea to revisit that room...wipe the dust off and try again.

I am not sure what else you could add...seems like you have it down pat!
Another room I am working on though is my bedroom...my bedroom makes me feel safe...so I am not sure which one to work on more, you know?

Some quotes that have helped me so far in my sobriety is "you are exactly where you are supposed to be" and more simply "pause". That's it, just pause...it has helped me a lot. But maybe I need to dedicate more time to my own spare room and do some meditation and whatnot in there...really focus on my sobriety.

Anyways...just thought I would throw my two cents in. You posted this back in April and I was wondering how your room was coming along???

Bri.

[MossRose]

Recovery Room

SS - what a timely post. I'm in the middle of doing the very same thing. When my son moved out recently, I decided not to turn his room into a guest bedroom. Rather, I decided to make it into a serenity room. So far, I haven't done too much except clean it from top to bottom. Then I organized all the closets in the house. Everything fits now. I couldn't believe how much difference one extra closet made. The energy in my entire apartment flows better because of the open spaces.

Finally, I realized that his room is flooded with sunlight - something I sorely lack in other areas. His door was usually closed so who knew. So I started growing microgreens and herbs in there. They are thriving. I picked plants that according to folklore have magical and protective qualities.

I've also been collecting inspiring quotes and plan to frame and hang them. It may be a good place for a vision board if I ever get around to making one. I even macramed some curtains. LOL. I couldn't find what I wanted so I decided to make them. It was fun. Felt like the 70s all over again.

I have decided to stop at this point and let the room breathe for a while before I add anything else. It's sparse, but I think I may like it that way.

Always wonderful to hear from you. Stay close. I miss you when you are gone for a while, although it sounds like you are very busy with the new house. I'm so excited for you.

edit: Briseus, IMHO, I would start with your bedroom. I never gave much thought to mine until I moved here and had a room of my own. Then I took notice. I made it as peaceful as possible - uncluttered - and I keep it neat. My ex was a slob, so this is totally new for me. I mentioned in an old post that I never leave the house in the morning without making my bed. It's not an OCD thing - it's a morning ritual that I find very comforting. I saw it on a blog, Zen Habits, and have been doing it ever since. At night, I climb into a freshly made bed. Heaven.