Beating Your Addiction - How Do You Make Changes for the Better?

These steps really work. If you've been to NA or AA meetings then you know the do's & don'ts that are meant to help you stay clean & sober. Sure it takes commitment & hard work BUT you can be successful at depleting your addiction & staying clean. Plus the benefits of participating in these activities goes above & beyond just staying clean & sober. The health benefits both mentally & physically are phenomenal. Putting this into your daily lifestyle will make it become habit. A good habit too. As you progress with your routines if you start to feel like you're getting bored with the samething day after day...well, change it up alittle. But don't give up on it. Never give up on yourself. You are totally worth the effort. You deserve to live a happy life. You only get one, so make it count. Let go of the past mess ups, absurdities, addictions & guilt. Start a new life for yourself & loved ones Now! You'll find that as you go along with your changes, it does get easier to overcome the triggers & cravings. At times you may feel as though you're getting no where, but know this, with every effort you put into changing your lifestyle the stronger you get & more results you'll see as you go.  Learning to love yourself can seem difficult but given a chance you will learn to live & let go. And you'll be so much happier, you'll be able to deal with situations as they come along. Whether good or bad. You will have faith in yourself even more so. Its a matter of YOU taking the steps to MAKE the changes. It's your choice, you can't place blame on anyone or anything else. If you truly want to live a addiction free life...then make the choice to do so.

Do you believe in Love at first sight?.....

Ahhh...love, there's nothing better. When you're in "love" life is better, sex is better, company is better, all things are wonderful. We kind of float on air. Do you believe in love at first sight? Nah....it's impossible to be in love with someone at first sight.(right?). First off humans are attracted by what they see, so looks are the first thing we notice, then there is the way someone smells (meaning the pheromones) believe it or not, we spend billions of dollars each year trying to find ways to smell more attractive to the opposite sex. Some cultures in other countries would rather have their own body scent instead of dabbing on alittle scent enhancer like, cologne or perfume. 

The color of ones eyes or hair play as factors of attraction but once in love with someone, does the color of their eyes or hair really matter? Really? The way a person carries themselves, the character of the person and so on are also factors in what makes someone attractive and what we love about someone. My mother use to say "...the greater the need, the greater the love..." I'm not saying a person can't love out of need, but even that type of love takes time to cultivate and nurture. I think we all have need of some kind, whether male or female. It's impossible for anyone to know someone so well at first sight that they immediately fall in love. Perhaps what we're really falling for is the outward appearance of what we first see.
       
Although that may be the first indication that we are attracted to someone, it's not the best time to pledge ones heart without getting to know that person first. Have you ever met someone that was so pretty or so handsome they seemed magical? Then they began to speak and as soon as they opened their mouth and mind you saw their intellect, values or morals, and it made you want to get away from that person as fast as you could? That's why you can't have "love at first sight". Lust at first site for sure, but not true love.  Many people think you can have love at first sight...these are the people that usually end up...broke up.

Now maybe...once in a blue-moon you might be fortunate enough to find that one person in a million that you will get along with immediately and just know this is the one for you. But sorry romantics...that is too far and few between. I suggest getting to know the person well before you start with the "I love you's". Too many people make the mistake of thinking lust is love...then when that gets old, people are left heart-broken, so don't make that mistake, unless you can read minds...there is no such thing as actual "love at first sight."

Of course if you're looking for just a casual, fun, shallow relationship, that's fine, but be sure you're on the level about that with the other person. That way you both have an understanding as to what to expect in the relationship and no one get's hurt. Another example is: have you ever met a person that you thought was incredibly good-looking, drop-dead gorgeous and you think you're "in-love" really "in-love", then you start getting to know that person and you find out that they're about as compatible with you as you would be compatible sleeping with a catcus.

All I'm saying is if you're looking to be "in love" true love...take time to get to know yourself first, then you'll be able to recognize what you would like to have in a partner. Be honest with yourself and your love interest. Love them for who they are not for what you can change them into. These are key to enduring the tests of time and for achieving a lasting relationship. And don't be in such a rush to find true love, believe me you'll find it, and when it's right...you'll know. Enjoy the Day!
Written by: Sherrie Vitello

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Achieve A State Of Happiness.

This is one subject that we all think about once in awhile, and I have found that altho' difficult, we can achieve a state of happiness so long as we direct our thinking to that state of mind.  Sometimes I'll watch these talk shows that are targeted towards helping people with concerns of being overweight, being self critical, not knowing how to solve their problems, feelings of depression etc. and the one thing I find about these people with these problems is that they don't seem to know that it's their own thoughts, their own ways of seeing themselves, their own ways of focusing on more negative thoughts than positive thoughts that make them feel so helpless or inadequate. 

Let's face it....when you wake up in the morning and the first thought on your mind is, "Oh no...another day..." that's a hum-drum negative response to greeting the new day. Whereas if you were to greet the new day with a positive note, like, "It's going to be a good day..." you would probably feel alot better about starting the day. It's all a matter of what you tell yourself...how you're going to feel everyday. 

You can wake up every morning and say to yourself..."I'm going to have a good day today" or you can say to yourself, "I'm going to feel bad today". It's really up to what we say to ourselves.

I call that "Self Talk".  Some people ask "What can I do to achieve a state of happiness?"  For one, they can start writing a daily journal, take the time to write how you feel about the people in your life, your family, your job, your hobby, what made you happy today, what made you mad. Do this for about 2 to 3 months, faithfully, then read over what you've written, and take note of the things that made you feel negative, sad or angry and you'd like to change. There's your list to start making positive changes to.  Start with one thing at a time, take small steps and remember you have to walk before you can run.

So don't be too hard on yourself, you're not going to fix everything in one day, one week or even one month, it's going to take time to change the pattern of your thinking, but it can be done. Start trying to radiate an outward feeling of happiness. Feelings that are positive and happy will show outwardly and can create happiness around you and others. Divert negative thoughts into positive thoughts. Develop a positive outlook towards yourself. If you're unhappy because you're overweight, or your life isn't unfolding the way you'd like it to, start to make positive changes to those undesirable feelings and make it a goal to change to positive results. 

Remember, it's how you "Self Talk" to yourself that will set the course of your thoughts which will make the pattern of the way you think, change for the better. Which will help you achieve a state of happiness. It will take some effort on your part, but don't give up, don't fall into the pattern of being emotionally lazy, keep working toward a better outlook. See yourself as a positive effect on your surroundings and you will acheive your desired state of mind.
"As a man thinketh...so is he". Enjoy the day!

Wriiten by Sherrie Vitello

Angel or Devil on my Shoulder...?

Sometimes I really wonder if I had an Angel or a Devil on my shoulders'.  How many of you have felt that way or asked yourselves the same question?  When a person is addicted to drugs or alcohol (or both), it seems like there IS an Angel and  a Devil on there shoulders'.  I think back to my own experiences I went through when I was addicted to drugs and alcohol and the struggle I went through knowing what I was doing to myself, and my loved ones.

Although it's been over 5 years that I've lived a clean and sober life, I sure am glad I had that Angel. At those times of my "downside of life" I can remember doing things that I would have never done on a clean/sober mind.

I cringe when I think of the stupid, senseless, things I did that could have got me in alot of trouble, and I cry when I think of the times I stole money from my loved ones. I can't believe I gave into temptation so easily, I can't believe I did those things.

I know in recovery we're not suppose to think we'll never be that way again......but I have to tell you, it'll be a cold day in hell before I go back to being an addict.  I mean that with all of my heart and strength.  I'm sure some of you out there feel the same way and have had the same type of experiences. Or maybe you're still going through those experiences because you're just not ready to stop the craziness of being an addict.

You might even think you can't exist without your drug of choice or drink of choice.  Well, until you get sick of being sick and tired of your life just not working for you, you'll have that Devil on your shoulder until you change. There will always be a struggle between good and bad.  When you first start out to change your life to a clean/sober life, it's hard, I 'm not going to sugar-coat it, but with support, you can become stronger towards the cravings, you can learn to turn away from the triggers and that Angel...just gets stronger and stronger.

Some folks out there can never turn away from there addictions because they have led that way of life for so long....without professional and medical help, they probably wouldn't last too long on the clean/sober side of life. But even they can change their lives. The power of the mind can be a very formidable component to changing ones life. 

We all know that somethings in life are just too much to bare sometimes and we actually convince ourselves that there is no way out. But to all of you just starting to get clean, remember, you've already taken the first big step in improving your way of life. Just put one foot in front of the other and keep heading in 'THAT' same direction.

You'll see, you'll get to the point where you'll look back on your life and you'll wonder...."wow, was I really like that..?"  Let that be the motivation you need to stay clean and sober.  It does get better. Time does heal. We can become stronger in our convictions to live a clean and sober life, we can be happy.

Enjoy the Day.

To all my visitor's please take into consideration that the Angel and Devil description used in this post is used as a metaphor to describe the struggle of becoming clean and sober.

 

High Expectations.

For those of us who have had to deal with being let-down by our expectations, this article is for you. I'm positive that we have all been let-down at onetime or another because we didn't get what we expected.  As we have come to stop abusing ourselves with drugs and alcohol, we sometimes expect our lives to become this magical, wonderful place to be, right away. It's like trying to win the Indy500 with a racecar that has fouled sparkplugs. We have to remember, for all the time we spent using, we also closed off alot of the things that could have made our lives better.  Sometimes we probably didn't even realize just how messed up our lives became while abusing ourselves. 

Although some of us were functioning addicts...we believed we were doing just fine when we had our drugs or had our drinks.  Until the next time we ran out of our drugs, or didn't have our drinks.  We had gotten so clouded by our addiction that we lost the true perception of the world around us.  We don't really realize that until we're clean and sober just how clouded we truly were.  We have to remember that it took us time to get that way and it's going to take some time to get back on the right path and begin to see our lives in a more positive light.  But it does happen. 

The best way to get through this, without relapsing, is talking about it to others and learning that it's not just you that has had this problem.  You can also read up on how to motivate yourself.  I believe that if we surround ourselves with positive outllooks and attitudes that we will attract the positive things in the universe. Plus we must also learn that negative things do happen at times, and we must learn to cope and deal with the negative things using a positive resolve.  It's like having the attitude that we are not going to let any negative things turn us back into those addicts we once were. 

So don't be affraid to make goals and stick to them in order to improve your life.  Sure you may have some set-backs, but that doesn't mean you have to regress back to your addictive ways.  Realize it's going to take some time for you to re-establish relationships, of any kind, that you may have damaged during your addictive times.  Know that this can be accomplished by the actions we take now once you've made the decision to break away from your addictions.  Like I tell my daughters even to this day, "Believe in yourself, do your best, and you'll be alright."  I find that to be so very true.  Until next time, enjoy the day. 

  

A Moment of Inspiration

I Prayed for you Today

I prayed for you today, gave thanks for your life, wished
you the best, asked the heaven to bless you with good health
and happiness.
I sent you good thoughts, surrounded you with hope and faith

and love.

I asked that you be prepared for whatever life hands you or

whatever you're going through.

I asked that your spirit be strong and lead you and guide you

each step of the way down every path you take.

I asked the universe to confirm for you that you're very

special.

I asked the earth to be good to you, and I asked God

to show you his perfect way.

I prayed for you today.

Poem by:  Donna Fargo