I thought the attached article might be good food for thought for all of us no matter where we are on our journeys. It's from one of my favorite recovery websites, Spiritual River, and just one of hundreds of articles available there on addiction and how to build a new life in recovery, along with free ebooks to download.
Reader Mailbag: How do we Motivate Ourselves to Get Sober with the Idea that We Can Have Fun Again Some Day?
I've been sober over 3 years now, but like the author, it was not the promise of a good life in sobriety that motivated me to stop drinking. It was all the pain and misery that my life had become and the promise that more misery, pain and DEATH would be my fate if I continued down the path I was on. So, even though I was terrified to live life sober, and I was, the fear of continuing to drink is what finally forced me to give 100% of myself to sobriety.
This statement from the article really resonated with me and was exactly how I felt on March 16, 2009 when I decided I had had enough:
“I do not know if I can be happy in recovery, but I know for sure that I am miserable in my addiction. There has to be a better way than this.”
So, yes, while I needed to hear about how wonderful it was on the other side for other people who had made it there, the only way for me to fully believe it could be true for me was to experience it for myself, and I'm so glad that I gave myself the chance.
How about you? What's your motivation? And, if you're stuck, what do you think is keeping you there? Are you more afraid of continuing to drink or never drinking again?
Sheri
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