https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBMbJZK_zgk
Author: Brittany
Beach House Center For Recovery-Healing
So what I say here isn’t earth shattering- it really isn’t. It is just a simplified version of my truth. A lot of people don’t realize how difficult it can be to let go, and allow love in. To learn how to love ourselves, to accept love from others, and to express love in various…
Alcohol, I’m Aware.
Late at night, when all is calm, and our house is taking a rest, I see your face in my mind. My heart aches for who you might be, or who I know that you are, hidden underneath all of your scars, and beneath the pain that you carry on your shoulders. You would hate…
Our Young Addicts
I am excited to share this one with you guys. I am honored to share anything on this site, OurYoungAddicts.com. The message and mission there is inspiring and encouraging. I am becoming more and more comfortable about talking about my experience with being a mommy/parent who struggled with drugs and…
Beach House Center For Recovery-Trauma
Guest: Candace- Her Weight Loss Journey!
I was skinny as a child. It wasn’t until the age of 8 or 9 that I really started to gain weight. That is also about the time my mom started to work outside of our home, so she wasn’t around, and my older brother didn’t really care what we (younger brothers and myself) ate. I…
Guest: SoberMJ -An Mom, An OverComer
Have you ever woke up after a long night of partying to realize that you have no clue what happened? Have you ever spent a whole night in total black out to find yourself the next morning in bed with someone you don’t know? Have you ever blacked out and done something that you totally…
Simple & Personalized Key Holder.
I am borderline compulsive when it comes to certain things. Things like organizing any closet that I walk by, hanging clothes in color and seasonal order, or grouping my book collection by genre because it’s so super important. But I am also never late, but always right on time, I have always had a bad habit…
2 Reasons to Fight Stigma:
For years (way too many) people have been allowed to freely assume, to judge & generalize, and to categorize & marginalized the people out in the community who struggle with addiction. This is called stigma. We (people who have struggled with addiction) are finally standing up to tell people that it’s wrong. If you have…
My Personal Decision to Shed the “Addict” Label
Often, addiction as a disease, is compared to diabetes. People will say that people with diabetes aren’t being stigmatized for their condition. And you’re right. I agree with that. People develop it. Sometimes it’s random, other times it is a lifestyle combined with genetics. What would happen if you met a person, let’s call her…
Guest Rose: Battling Addiction, Fighting for her Children.
Like any other Mom, I love my children fiercely. Honestly, the depth of the feeling cannot really be put into words. The two happiest days of my life were the days they came into this world. I looked into their faces and vowed to do my best to protect them in every way possible. Unfortunately…
Project: Books For Recovery; One Man, Giving Back.
I recently heard about a project called Books For Recovery, and I thought it sounded like a fantastic idea. Reading really helped me to get through some of the toughest parts of early recovery. Those hours that felt like days were a little bit more bearable when I had a good book to keep me occupied….
Guest: Mark- Sober Parent, Smart Phone
Twitter has become my new drug of choice. Sorry coffee, the tweets pour in before you percolate. My wife has noticed a change in me since I got on twitter six weeks ago. Here’s our conversation in the car the other day: At a stop light I thumb “notifications” on my black rectangular wonder…
From Broken to Awesome.
http://www.worshipsong.com/songs/songdetails/at-the-cross1 I am one of those people. I hear a song, and it takes me somewhere. That link will take you to an old song, from 1996. When I listen to this song, it takes me back to a meeting that I was sitting in. This particular worship song played at the beginning of our…
5 Common Roadblocks in Recovery
You know that saying “Nothing worth having comes easy?” When it comes to being a newly sober person this couldn’t be more true. A person who is has become chemically dependent on a substance has a tough road ahead when it comes to long-term sobriety. They will need a strong support system behind them. Here are…
I’ll Have What I’m Having.
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration (SAMHSA) offers this definition of Recovery: “Recovery from alcohol and drug problems is a process of change through which an individual achieves abstinence and improved health, wellness and quality of life.” My personal journey through sobriety and long-term recovery has changed many times over the last eight…
Dear Young People.
You just can’t see it coming. This was me. Before stealing. Before juvenile court. Before jail. Before lawyers. Before counselors. Before programs. Before isolation. Before suicide attempts. Before overdoses. Before tickets. Before judges. Before emptiness. Before probation. A junior in high school. -I had just won an award for a photo that I entered…
Prevention Plans
I talk a lot about the difficulties relating to my addiction, recovery, being an ACoA, and also being a recovering codependent and enabler. As the years have gone by, and as my family has grown, my personal recovery focus has shifted from focusing solely on myself, to me taking care of myself so that I…
Appreciating Diversity.
How can things like vacuuming cracker crumbs two billion times a day, accidentally stepping on squishified bananas, playing peek-a-boo and throwing cakes in the pan periodically throughout the day, while the faint sound of random nursery rhymes loop in the background from deep inside of the toy box from a toy that just won’t die-…
6 Things to Remember in Early Recovery
Recently, an anonymous person wrote to me and told me that they were interested in giving rehab another try, but they didn’t think that they could do it. Sobriety was something that she had tried a few times, and thus far, she has relapsed every single time. But she is motivated to try again and feels like she…
Recovery Experts
This is a very well researched article on RecoveryExperts.com. There are many Recovery experts & advocates who had the opportunity to contribute to this article, and I was honored to be one of them. Here is an excerpt: “The Drug War has lasted for decades and accomplished little. Thousands of individuals get hooked onmultiple abusive…
Recovering Out Loud.
I have received a ton of positive and uplifting feedback in reference to the “guest posts/shares” section of this blog. I really wanted to take a second say thank you, and share my thoughts on why its important to share our stories as people who are living in recovery from drugs and alcohol. Among all…
Merry Christmas from Discovering Beautiful!
Discovering Beautiful isn’t about outer beauty. It is a bunch of writing shared from my heart to yours. My blog emphasizes the beauty that is nonexistent & unnoticed when living an empty life addicted and hopeless. Sobriety and Recovery both allow us to embrace life. Because of God’s Grace, we are alive, and are given a second…
Guest: Alexandrea- Choosing to Live a Sober Life
I’ve never written about this. Most of the people in my life know nothing about it, yet here I am, penning an entire article about the dirty little secret my family adamantly ignores as much as possible. Whenever we gather, there’s an elephant in the room. I grew up with him. For the first decade…
I Don’t Belong In a Church
I have been reflecting on my time and my experiences with Celebrate Recovery, and although I don’t attend meetings anymore, there are so many things that this program taught me. It is okay to be *exactly* who you are inside of an actual church: During one of the very first large group sessions that I…
Boundaries are for safety, health, & stability. It’s OKAY to have some.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=inpMzeTKrCo
Addiction Destroys Families. Change starts with you.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IxsR8HHx7a0
How To Easily Hem Pants:
Since I had Maxwell, I have been on a new -to- me fitness journey. (Read about that here if you are interested in forms of self-sabotage that I have indulged in) Anyway I am working hard and am losing at least a pound or two every couple of weeks. (or 6 or 7 or 8 weeks)…
My (Slow) Fitness Journey:
I have never really worried or cared if I was ‘fit’ or not. Until now. As a child growing up I was usually one of the shortest people around, and I was skinny, and thankfully, healthy. As a teen, my addiction to drugs kept me skinny skinny, not ‘fit’, and very weak & malnourished. I also had…
Hot Mess, Party of One.
October and November were uncharacteristically difficult for me. Like really crappy. I mean we all have stress, and we all have our fair share of ‘lifey’ kinds of things that are always happening. Hell I know and have been praying for some families who are really struggling with some serious things right now. But I…