Sadly, we all know that relapse is all too common among recovering addicts of all kinds. One study (cited by Clinical Psychology in 2007, “Relapse and Relapse Prevention”) found that 85 percent of addicts relapse within the first year of sobriety. Yale University conducted a one-year study on 878 patients entering clinical recovery. They identified…
Today’s subject is something you probably aren’t going to like. If you will risk it all – your reputation, time, and secrets – in order to chase after recovery, you will find it. Otherwise, you probably won’t. Seneca said, “It’s not because things are difficult that we dare not venture. It’s because we dare not…
In the 1988 movie, Working Girl, Tess McGill (Melanie Griffith) stated her acute dilemma: “I have a head for business and a bod for sin.” That speaks to the inner battle each of us faces. Paul said it like this: “I do not do the good I want to do, Instead, I keep doing what…
Maya Angelou was right when he said, “All great achievements require time.” Solomon wrote, “Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise” (Proverbs 6:8). Anything worthwhile takes time to achieve. This is especially true of recovery from any addiction. There are early wins that you can achieve quickly. Others will take…
A great aspiration for any man or woman would be a life of authenticity. Socrates offered great advice to all of us. He said, “The way to gain a good reputation is to endeavor to be what you desire to appear.” J.B. Cachila wrote an article for Christian Post, “Three Ways to Be Authentic.” He…
“This isn’t a dream! This is really happening!” (Bette Davis, Rosemary’s Baby, 1968). That’s the funny thing about dreams. Sometimes, they do happen. Daniel was a dreamer – way back in Old Testament times. He spoke truth to power one day. “There is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries, and he has made known…
Stephen King wrote, “The thing under my bed waiting to grab my ankle isn’t real. I know that, and I also know that if I’m careful to keep my foot under the covers, it will never be able to grab my ankle.” Yogi Berra said, “The problem with my mind is that sometimes it gets…
In Paul Newman’s classic 1967 movie, Cool Hand Luke, the cruel prison warden justified his beating of Luke with this classic line: “What we have here is a failure to communicate.” A failure to communicate has been at the root of many failed relationships, especially in marriage. Author Julie Baumgardner offers several keys to good…
Beth, Heidi (our 14-year-old Westie), and I are planning our next vacation. Destination – Virginia. The more I plan, the more excited I become. We are plotting every day, in order to see as much as possible. The more I look at pictures and think about the historical places we will see, the more hyped…
In his groundbreaking book, TINSA (Trauma Induced Sexual Addiction), Dr. Michael Barta contends, “In my findings, the single commonality that sex addicts share is that they were all subjected to developmental trauma.” He further states that “most addicts suffer from abandonment and neglect.” Barta concludes, “The TINSA model theorizes that episodes of past trauma are…