the notion of self in the journey back from addiction

On the second list, write down all the reasons you think you can. First, list all of the reasons you think you can’t do the task ahead. Be honest with yourself, then sit down and make two separate lists. They will sabotage your efforts to pull yourself up. People who diminish your efforts by filling your life with negative thoughts are to be avoided at all costs. In the same way, identify the people who tear you down and avoid them. This will help you silence your inner critic. Enlist them to build you up by talking to them about the good they see in you. Talk to them about your fears and self-doubt. Find the people who recognize your abilities and will help you to succeed. Finally, by celebrating even small successes each day, you will continue to build confidence that you can stay on track and erase those feelings of self-doubt. Additionally, breaking your plan down into daily “chunks” will make you feel more capable of achieving your goals. By keeping your perspective, you will realize one mistake is just that - one mistake - and it doesn’t spell catastrophe. While both short- and long-term planning are important, taking each day as it comes makes it easier to be positive about your ability to reach your goals and more accepting of any failures.

This may seem in direct opposition to tip #1, but it’s not. A plan will help you stay focused and grounded, making you feel a little more in control. As you progress and achieve your small goals, you can add larger, long-term goals to the list. Developing strategies will make reaching your goals a little easier. Start with five small goals you would like to achieve and what you need to achieve them. The road to achieving and maintaining recovery is filled with challenges. Here are seven steps to help you erase self-doubt.

It takes effort to eliminate self-doubt in your life, but it’s important to do if you want to create a productive, happy and healthy life. By taking a realistic look at your capabilities, you will decrease your doubts and improve your confidence. Then look at the reasons why you think you are able to achieve it. You need to objectively examine your feelings and determine why you think you aren’t able to achieve a certain goal. If left unchecked, self-doubt can keep you from making the changes you need to get and stay healthy.įeelings aren’t facts. Those insecurities keep you from facing the challenges in life. When you don’t believe in yourself and constantly question your abilities, it can be difficult to accomplish your goals. Self-doubt is an insidious feeling that makes you believe you’re not good enough, strong enough or capable enough to succeed. It’s how we deal with the self-doubt and, indeed, the failure that makes all the difference. Let’s face it: We all suffer from insecurity and self-doubt at one time or another. Does this sound like you? If so, you’re not alone. In the long term, it is worth the effort.Are you afraid of failing? Do your insecurities and fears prevent you from making decisions in your life - even small, everyday decisions - and keep you from accomplishing your goals? Fear of failure can paralyze you, keeping you from trying anything new or even remotely risky for fear of embarrassing yourself. Learning to respond to life on life’s terms, as the expression states, gets easier with practice.Įach element of the new definition contributes to the addict’s ability to stay sober and clean, grow personally, and give back to the larger community. Watching someone else deal with serious problems and staying clean and sober, can give the addict courage and strength. Witnessing others’ problems can give a fresh perspective on the addict’s sense of trouble. The feedback provided by others is important, as is the ability to observe another individual struggling with life issues. What an addict thinks may or may not be accurate. When the addict is cut off from those who work to stay sober and clean on a daily basis, the valuable tool of perspective is stopped. The worst thing a recovering addict can do is to isolate. While not all addicts in recovery participate in 12 Step programs, those that do often find the sense of community strong enough to help them through difficult personal times. Learning to live one day at a time with purpose, a sense of community, home, and health are not generally accomplished in isolation. Community: Relationships and social networking that give support, love, friendship, and hope.Purpose: Participate in daily activities that provide a sense of purpose: volunteer, school, job, family caretaking, participate in society.Home: Creating a safe and secure place to live.Health: Managing one’s disease, and living a healthy life emotionally, physically and financially.

The notion of self in the journey back from addiction