Category: Blog

Smiling woman

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If every criticism cuts you to the heart, you may have a TTP (Taking Things Personally) problem. If you assume that everyone who fails to answer your messages is laughing

You think you know the truth. The truth is you know nothing.”– Harlan Coben With enough humility, you are teachable; without it, you’re stuck and you cannot grow. Of all

Relapse is always a danger for recovering addicts, especially in the first 6­–12 months after treatment. Complete avoidance, though the best defense against relapse triggers, isn’t always an option, so

Life without purpose is like a body without a soul.” – Tasneem Hameed I’m now in the second week of my new job as a behavioral health tech. I’m finding

Just about anyone in recovery knows that relapse can deal a blow to your self-confidence. Studies have also shown there is a strong link between poor self-confidence and addiction and

The grass isn’t greener on the other side. It’s greener where you water it.” – Anonymous It’s 5:00 in the morning. It’s still dark outside, yet this is my new

If you need proof that sticking with a plan of recovery is a big achievement, here it is: just eight percent of the nearly half of all Americans who usually

What is now proved was once only imagined.” – William Blake Tuesday was the slowest night of the week, yet the parking lot at my AA home group meeting was

“All the things I really like to do are either immoral, illegal or fattening,” the 20th century American critic and writer for The New Yorker, Alexander Woollcott, once joked. He

For every fear that shakes your peace, for every night you feel alone, for every moment, you lose a little hope, there is an angel who whispers: “I am here.”

A hero is no braver than an ordinary man, but he is braver five minutes longer.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson My mom is going to the hospital. She’s diabetic with

“Clean, as clean as I’ll be” croons the singer Martin Gore in the 1990 Depeche Mode hit — and the sentiment can resonate for those fresh out of rehab for

Lay a firm foundation with the bricks that others throw at you.” – David Brinkley The life skills I learned from AA led me to successful living in sobriety. So

During the holidays, most people think about giving to charities as well as to loved ones. Since the best holiday charities help people help themselves, you may be able to

This month’s theme is about “dual diagnosis,” meaning another mental illness that coexists with a substance use disorder (SUD). The term reportedly describes roughly half of all people in recovery

Transformation literally means going beyond your form”– Wayne Dyer Just like a butterfly, I feel newly emerged from my isolated cocoon. I am no longer darting off to rescue others

Fans of early-twentieth-century American literature often choose this time of year to reread “The Gift of the Magi” by O. Henry. In that story, a poor housewife sells her only

This month we’ve been looking at important milestones in recovery: sober anniversaries (and finding opportunities to celebrate them) were one; gratitude (and practical ways to cultivate it) were another; and

Did you survive Black Friday? Officially, the “black” in the name refers to “being in the black” economically, because it’s among the biggest business days for retailers and among the

The best way to find yourself is in the service of others.” -Mahatma Gandhi I’ve just joined the service and I’m chock full of patriotic fervor. I’m happily sober and

A sense of connection and connectedness to others helps to heal addiction. That’s a mantra that grounds so much of the therapeutic work we do here at Beach House Center

For a great number of Americans with opiate and/or heroin addictions, the story of how they ended up hooked on painkillers begins with what was originally a legitimate medical need

Awakening is not changing who you are but discarding who you are not.” -Deepak Chopra My last story was rather dark. I can’t put much lightness into a story about

In the post-treatment period, you likely feel better than you have in years. Your cravings for the next fix have dissipated. Your personal energy is renewed. And the days ahead

Willpower is trying very hard not to do something that you want to do very much.” -John Ortberg Somehow I managed to accumulate ten months of sobriety and I felt