Sobriety Survival101

Build Self-Esteem Self-esteem is a feeling of confidence, self-respect, and satisfaction. Acknowledging that you have the disease of addiction can be hard on your self-esteem because you may believe some of the media stereotypes that portray addicts as lowlifes or losers. Step One helps you move beyond guilt and shame when you accept that addiction is not about strength, weakness, moral character, or willpower. Addiction is about how you’re wired, which leaves you powerless over the substance to which you are addicted. You are different from a nonaddict. You can’t stop using, even when faced with horrendous loss. Reminding yourself of this powerlessness will help you build the positive self-esteem that is necessary for spiritual development. A ction for the Day Read Step One out loud. We admitted we were powerless over alcohol—that our lives had become unmanageable. Think about the ways the idea of powerlessness can help you redefine your idea of strength and help you develop more acce

Step One “We admitted we were powerless over alcohol [or other drugs]—that our lives had become unmanageable.” Keep in mind that we don’t just work the Steps once and then never return to them. Recovery is about continuously working the Steps. Each time you work a Step, you can gain more from it because of this new perspective. Step One asks us to admit powerlessness, which means acknowledging that we can’t stop at just one drink or hit. Others who use drugs or drink alcohol can stop if they get sick or it interferes with their family or work life. But those of us who have a substance use disorder can’t stop using even when we are faced with losing everything: our job, our family, our friends, our life. This is because we can’t control the addicted way our mind and body reacts to alcohol and other drugs. Once we understand that addiction is a disease, we’re no longer baffled by why we’re using. We can let go of shame and guilt and start to work toward our recovery. When we admit powerl