Recovery
My recovery process was long and arduous, probably most are. As I moved forward into learning a healthier way of living I realized how much false knowledge I had in my head. So many of the things that I thought I knew turned out to be false, skewed, twisted, or misleading. It was weird.
Eventually my motto became Question Everything. That was how I approached almost everything, from memories I had to so-called common knowledge to rituals to reasons why to motivations. I questioned all of it.
Excessive? Maybe.
But, today, I'm proud of that journey.
That motto Question Everything took me a long way into becoming a healthier person. One day I read another thing that absolutely changed my life. Something simple yet profound. I remember the moment I first read Autobiography in Five Short Chapters by Portia Nelson. I think of the content of this writing as being seminal to almost all recovery.
Anyway, as I was reading it for the first time I realized that I was almost up to IV, and I was feeling great that I could recognize my own recovery journey in the poem, when a question entered my head as I was reading. I thought, WAIT, I can see my journey up to here but I have no idea what comes next. I can't predict what the final, healthy step is; what is V? What is the final chapter?
It was a really weird moment to realize that I still wasn't where I wanted to be and I still didn't know how to get there. So I kept reading...X is so obvious to me now.
I am sharing it here with you because this writing, so popular in recovery circles back in the day, is very important to me.
Eventually my motto became Question Everything. That was how I approached almost everything, from memories I had to so-called common knowledge to rituals to reasons why to motivations. I questioned all of it.
Excessive? Maybe.
But, today, I'm proud of that journey.
That motto Question Everything took me a long way into becoming a healthier person. One day I read another thing that absolutely changed my life. Something simple yet profound. I remember the moment I first read Autobiography in Five Short Chapters by Portia Nelson. I think of the content of this writing as being seminal to almost all recovery.
Anyway, as I was reading it for the first time I realized that I was almost up to IV, and I was feeling great that I could recognize my own recovery journey in the poem, when a question entered my head as I was reading. I thought, WAIT, I can see my journey up to here but I have no idea what comes next. I can't predict what the final, healthy step is; what is V? What is the final chapter?
It was a really weird moment to realize that I still wasn't where I wanted to be and I still didn't know how to get there. So I kept reading...X is so obvious to me now.
I am sharing it here with you because this writing, so popular in recovery circles back in the day, is very important to me.
Can you relate?
Hello :)
ReplyDeleteI came across your website after my pinning session on pinterest where i found that many images that i saved to my cellphone storage were from your website. And so I decide to visit.
And I must say, WOW. I can so relate to many of your writings. And really, they gave me better insights. I'm a survivor of two abusive relationships, both physically and emotionally/psychologically. And I have read and learn many articles about narcissistic/psychopath/sociopath behavior ever since because I have got so many unanswered questions in my head and like I've read..the what so called (proper) 'closure' that I've been wanting and waiting for but never happened..
So I guess, now, I have passed my chapter III. And try my best to keep moving on, to next chapter :)
Thank you so much for sharing your stories, your insights, and encouragement. I wish and I am hoping I can be someone who can also help those who are suffering and under same circumstances, so they will see the light, and moving into it.
God bless :)