20 Lessons Learned

A lot has changed in the past year. It's been a roller coaster ride. Up, down, all around. Throughout all the chaos though, I've managed to come out with a lot of lessons learned and I thought I'd share 20 that I came up with today.

1. Don’t give up before the miracle happens: it’s more then just a quote I’ve heard a thousand times. It’s truly a motto I’ve learned to live from and something that has come true in my life. I’ve been so close to giving up on life and have given up on recovery at times but this past December, I was just about ready to give up on recovery yet again. My depression was just so bad, recovery was so hard, I didn’t know if I could do it. But I kept pressing forward and things started to change. My miracle happened and my turning point hit.

2. Always follow my mentor’s advice. There has yet to be a time that my reason to not follow it turned out to be reasonable and the right choice.

3. Alcohol does not fix problems, it only adds to them and changes your sobriety date.

4. Always bring 3 sizes of pants into the dressing room.

5. I truly am insane without my higher power.

6. I deserve forgiveness.

7. I really am not that special- Thanks to Thom Rutledge for that one!

8. I DESERVE recovery

9. The simple joys in life make it worth waking up every morning. These can be as small as doggy kisses, enjoying coffee with a friend, having a shoulder to cry on and actually feeling better for crying, noticing the colors of a sunset and feeling the sun on your face on a nice spring day.

10. I can survive without coffee. In fact, I now am not awake until I eat breakfast.

11. I can accept myself where I am. Afterall, I’m not going to move forward if I can’t accept where I am in the now first.

12. Peanut butter goes with everything! Ok, maybe not EVERYthing, but A LOT of things.

13. God is my strength and without Him, I would not be where I am today. I have to start and end my day with Him.

14. Feelings don’t kill, what you do to avoid feelings can.

15. It is possible to eat fast food as well as other meals out in one week, and not engage in other behaviors, and still not gain weight.

16. By nature, I am selfish and self-centered, but with God’s help, I can work to overcome these defects and become a more helpful person.

17. My perception of my body is truly skewed. What I see in the mirror is NOT reality no matter how many times Ed tries to tell me it is.

18. I’m ok with things not being perfect. Yes, it might still bother me at times, but overall, I actually like not feeling like I have to put so much pressure on myself all the time.

19. Having to take a leave from school for a year is not the end of the world. In fact, it has allowed me to gain my life back.

20. Others believe in me, and I believe others, therefore I can believe in myself.