Living Courageously
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Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Northeast
Posts: 441
Living Courageously
I just booked an appointment with an addiction counselor who has a great reputation in my area. She is the head of the addictions center at a hospital near me, too. The only problem is that I couldn't get one till April 30th.
I was watching the OWN network last night and caught Oprah's Lifeclass with Tony Robins. He was talking about fear and said something that I have been thinking about since I watched the show: "When I can't, I must. Every time you say, 'I can't do it,' you're going to immediately say, 'I must do it.'" This brought me to thinking about my fears of attending AA meetings. I know it is probably really frustrating/annoying for those of you who are familiar with AA and work the program and know that it is not something I should be fearing this intensely.
I know in my heart that starting a program of recovery in real life is what I need for true personal growth. Something keeps holding me back, though. I'm my own worst enemy.
It was a really good show on fear and living more courageously - it can be watched online for free if anyone is interested. It has definitely planted a seed in my head that I have been contemplating all day.
I was watching the OWN network last night and caught Oprah's Lifeclass with Tony Robins. He was talking about fear and said something that I have been thinking about since I watched the show: "When I can't, I must. Every time you say, 'I can't do it,' you're going to immediately say, 'I must do it.'" This brought me to thinking about my fears of attending AA meetings. I know it is probably really frustrating/annoying for those of you who are familiar with AA and work the program and know that it is not something I should be fearing this intensely.
I know in my heart that starting a program of recovery in real life is what I need for true personal growth. Something keeps holding me back, though. I'm my own worst enemy.
It was a really good show on fear and living more courageously - it can be watched online for free if anyone is interested. It has definitely planted a seed in my head that I have been contemplating all day.
~sb
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: MD
Posts: 15,967
I felt as if I couldn't do anything in early recovery. I also knew I had to change everything. Every time my gut said "I can't" well, that is when I knew I had to. I walked through a lot of fears. Once I worked the steps, everything changed and that "I can't" just didn't seem to exist. It was awesome!
Even walking into a meeting was scary, but I did it anyway!
Keep moving forward!
Even walking into a meeting was scary, but I did it anyway!
Keep moving forward!
Member
Join Date: Aug 2011
Posts: 2,308
Janie you are going to have to step up and eventually do what needs to be done.
You need to tackle your drinking and not just pussyfoot around it.
Many of us on this forum had avoided getting sober but when we finally got it together to commit to a program our lives turned around.
I believe the first step is the hardest.
Don,t keep your life on hold.
CaiHong
You need to tackle your drinking and not just pussyfoot around it.
Many of us on this forum had avoided getting sober but when we finally got it together to commit to a program our lives turned around.
I believe the first step is the hardest.
Don,t keep your life on hold.
CaiHong
Self recovered Self discovered
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Toronto Canada
Posts: 5,148
Tony Robbins? Phhhhhhhhht. He said, 'When I can't do it, I must do it'.
You have seen me say this for months: 'I can do this, because I must do this.' I like mine better!
You have seen me say this for months: 'I can do this, because I must do this.' I like mine better!
Sober Alcoholic
Join Date: Aug 2011
Posts: 3,539
"Courage is …..the judgement that something else is more important than fear." ~Ambrose Redmoon
It is a judgment that something being risked is more important than the status quo. As per the above definition, courage is a principled decision, a decision to change something for the better. It involves risk.. or there would be no fear.
The last time I drank I had just experienced severe disappointment. Within days I was back to being drunk around the clock. I drank to deal with that disappointment. I also drove drunk to get more alcohol. This was something I SWORE I would never do….. yet it happened again. I came to realize that I had endangered lives with my decision to use alcohol to cope with this severe disappointment. Though I did not so much care what happened to me at the time, I was risking something that did not belong to me. I came to the conclusion that no matter how I FELT it was not worth the life, or health, of another human being. The decision to have even a single drink was risking just that. I had to make a decision that I was just not that important, much less my emotions.
That decision, I later realized, gave me a freedom from the boundaries of self. It’s a freedom I still have….. and cherish
It is a judgment that something being risked is more important than the status quo. As per the above definition, courage is a principled decision, a decision to change something for the better. It involves risk.. or there would be no fear.
The last time I drank I had just experienced severe disappointment. Within days I was back to being drunk around the clock. I drank to deal with that disappointment. I also drove drunk to get more alcohol. This was something I SWORE I would never do….. yet it happened again. I came to realize that I had endangered lives with my decision to use alcohol to cope with this severe disappointment. Though I did not so much care what happened to me at the time, I was risking something that did not belong to me. I came to the conclusion that no matter how I FELT it was not worth the life, or health, of another human being. The decision to have even a single drink was risking just that. I had to make a decision that I was just not that important, much less my emotions.
That decision, I later realized, gave me a freedom from the boundaries of self. It’s a freedom I still have….. and cherish
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