# Recovery
the thing I did that seemed completely impossible at the start was this: I started to live my own life, the one that was meant for me.
I stopped listening to what other people said, I stopped listening to what I imagined people were saying. I stopped listening to the nonsense I said. I started listening to my heart. I stopped pretending and started... See more
I stopped listening to what other people said, I stopped listening to what I imagined people were saying. I stopped listening to the nonsense I said. I started listening to my heart. I stopped pretending and started... See more
substack.com • Chinese Food, Serenity and Five Years of Sobriety
"True acceptance is very, very, very had; but true acceptance has been the key to my recovery, to my tranquility and happiness. I needed to accept that things, at this particular moment, are exactly as they should be—including me. I had to let go of the idea that it was up to me to traverse the chasm between what I was and what I should have been.... See more
What other people might think seems like vital information when you have rarely had a felt sense of belonging in the world. I wonder what it's like to just get out of bed, put clothes on, grab your keys, walk out of the house, go to a place, and not think anything of it. Like, not think about any of it. AT ALL.
What other people might think
Note to Self: Maybe the real flex is letting people feel, say, and think what they want about you, while you continue living with ease, knowing their projections aren’t yours to carry. Remembering who you are and what your truth is can protect your peace.
The live bough bends. The dead twig snaps.
Mark Nepo
I thought the self-loathing, anxious, ‘not enough’ aspects of my personality were integral to who I was. But they weren’t. Turning to alcohol to cope with that inner critic was a bad decision.
Your best days are ahead of you
I am willing to not know, look stupid, make an ass of myself, get it wrong, be awkward, be uncomfortable.
I am willing to do all that so I CAN BE FREE.
I am willing to do all that so I CAN BE FREE.
What other people might think
Defeating the Enemies of Sobriety
substack.comI don’t how shame came to be part of the equation of who I am—but it ran pretty deep. I think that sense of inner shame is pretty common among us alcoholics and addicts; it’s true that drinking and using let us escape other people and external obligations—but it was mostly me that I was running from.