"How it works"

[SunnyGirl]

"How it works"

“Rarely have we seen a person fail who has thoroughly
followed our path” (p. 58). The people who fail do so because
they cannot be honest with themselves. It’s called denial and
those who continue to deny their illness cannot recover. Those
of us who can make the decision to be honest now find that
even honesty is not enough. We must be willing to go to any
lengths and even then we are only ready to move forward. It
works when we can open our hearts and our minds and become
teachable. It works when we can acknowledge a Higher Power
to protect us even though we might not always turn everything
over to Him.

If you need support, the 12 Steps offer a new way of life.
Recovery is an opportunity to live a purposeful life in which
you choose to be the best person you can be on a daily basis.
Instead of going through the motions and letting life pass by,
the people in recovery have done the work to discover who
they are and what they want out of life. Find the meeting you
need and surround yourself with people you feel comfortable
with and "Keep coming back".....

Peace on the journey, SunnyGirl

[caressa]

HOW! How it works, honesty, open-mindedness and willingness. I thought I had honesty first because I thought I was cash register honest and thought I didn't lie, I was raised to tell a lie was a 'sin' and heaven forbid that I should bring down the wrath of God by doing such a thing. What I found out was that I stole attention, affecton, time, and many other things that were not mine to take. Self-honesty was the last things I was a process and as I worked the steps, I was able to get more and more honest.

My mind was open, but it was conditional. I knew that my best thinking got me to the doors of recovery. I knew that I had to change my way of thinking but I wasn't too sure that I was willing to accept yours any more than I was willing to let mine go. I learned that if I kept my mind open, that I would hear what I needed to hear, when I needed to hear it.

Willing! Willing to go any length to stay sober. Willing to go to meetings. Willing to work the Steps. Willing to get a sponsor. Even more important, was the willingness to call her, in good times as well as the bad times.

Not always sure, how it works, just knowit does. When I do the basics, do what is suggested, go to meetings, get a sponsor, get a group, get active and not pick up, no matter what. Not only not my drug of choice but not substituting one for the other. I stayed sick a long time because of it. I tried my way and my way didn't work.

[majestyjo]

H.O.W. still works in my life today. It is a one day at a time program and each day I must find the courage and strength to be honest, open-minded, and willing to face each day as it comes.

I can't base my todays on my past. That was then, this is now, and if I am working a program of recovery, I have the tools to work with to stay clean and sober in today. That isn't just physical, it means mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.

It doesn't matter what substance it is that is standing between me and God, it is but a symptom of my dis-ease, the problem has always been me. My sponsor told me to change problems to challenges. Problems you can stay stuck in, challenges you can overcome. To help me with the challenges in my life, I use the 12 Steps, Traditions, and Concepts to make for a better way of life, to the best of my ability each day. I read the literature, go to recovery sites, and I try to share my experience, strength, and hope with others. As I have said many times, "It doesn't matter which room you put me in, I can identify." I learned to identify instead of comparing. I compared and stayed sick.