LIFE PRIORITIES Life priorities are the values that drive our lives and define our spiritual essence. We all talk about our priorities in life. We can list them without a second thought. But sometimes our list of priorities falls into the same wastepaper basket as our New Year’s resolutions. We talk about them, but that’s as far as it gets. Out task is to put our life priorities into action. This is a very tough assignment. To begin this challenging task, list your top six … [Read more...]
Restitution to Self – WOMEN in RECOVERY
October 1, 2012 by
"Restitution is about 'making it right.' It is an approach to discipline which recognizes that young people will make mistakes and that these situations provide opportunities for students to take responsibility, choose effective behaviors and create positive solutions." BREAK OUT OF THE BOX ONE WOMAN'S THOUGHTS: "I never seem to be happy with myself, neither mentally nor physically. I can't walk past a mirror without thinking "Why do I have to be so ugly and fat?" Recently I've been … [Read more...]
Are you feeling ‘stuck and powerless’? – WOMEN in RECOVERY
September 30, 2012 by
How many times have you felt stuck in your recovery or in other areas of your life? Have you ever felt powerless against your eating disorder or powerless in areas of your life making you want your eating disorder even more? These two states of being are extremely powerful forces in one’s recovery, and in life as a whole. You can either allow them to debilitate you, or help move you to a better place. In the past month or so, I have felt these two states of being particularly powerfully, … [Read more...]
Assertiveness is a Journey – WOMEN in RECOVERY
September 29, 2012 by
Assertiveness is a Journey 'Moving towards assertiveness ... will reduce your stress levels and improve your confidence'. Assertiveness is a form of behavior characterized by a confident declaration or affirmation of a statement without need of proof; this affirms the person's rights or point of view without either aggressively threatening the rights of another (assuming a position of dominance) or submissively permitting another to ignore or deny one's rights or point of … [Read more...]
Truth or Dare: Are you an Addict in Denial? – WOMEN in RECOVERY
September 28, 2012 by
Truth or Dare! Let's begin with the Big Question: Are you an Addict in Denial? Denial and Addiction: Becoming Aware of the Inner Voice that Leads to Self-Destruction Anyone who has been around 12-Step programs for any length of time has inevitably heard the old saying “Denial is more than a river in Egypt.” Indeed, when it comes to addictive behaviors of any sort, denial is definitely a whole lot more than a slogan. It is often the underlying dynamic that … [Read more...]
Stroke, ‘an interruption of the flow of blood to the brain’
September 27, 2012 by
The primary goals of stroke management are to reduce brain injury and promote maximum patient recovery. Rapid detection and appropriate emergency medical care are essential for optimizing health outcomes. When available, patients are admitted to an acute stroke unit for treatment. These units specialize in providing medical and surgical care aimed at stabilizing the patient’s medical status. Standardized assessments are also performed to aid in the development of an appropriate care plan. … [Read more...]
Solitude is to be Embraced, not Feared – WOMEN in RECOVERY
September 27, 2012 by
Loneliness is marked by a sense of isolation. Solitude, on the other hand, is a state of being alone without being lonely and can lead to self-awareness. Solitude is a state of seclusion or isolation, i.e., lack of contact with people. It may stem from bad relationships, deliberate choice, infectious disease, mental disorders, neurological disorders or circumstances of employment or situation. Short-term solitude is often valued as a time when one may work, think or rest without … [Read more...]
Anxiety Be Gone – WOMEN in RECOVERY
September 26, 2012 by
“Angels fly because they take themselves lightly ...” Anxiety - Dealing with our Shame To recover from excessive anxiety means dealing with our shame. Carla had some help in getting over her fear of skiing. But neither her husband nor the ski instructor could have forced her to keep on trying. They could offer information, encouragement and support, but she had to do the work. The turning point for her wasn't the lessons. It was the moment when, in spite of her fear and her … [Read more...]
I will even make a way in the wilderness – WOMEN in RECOVERY
September 25, 2012 by
“Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall you not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert” (Isaiah 43:19). When I talk about the wilderness, when I talk about the desert, what am I talking about? Spiritually speaking, it’s that place where you feel all alone. It’s that place where you no longer have the sense of God’s manifest presence. That is, you know mentally that God is with you, but you don’t have the sense of it. Everything … [Read more...]
Only in Action do We Manifest our Nature – Women in Recovery
September 23, 2012 by
THE PROBLEM OF SELF At one pole of my being I am one with sticks and stones. There I have to acknowledge the rule of Universal Law. That is where the foundation of my existence lies, deep down below. Its strength lies in its being held firm in the clasp of comprehensive world, and in the fullness of its community with all things. But at the other pole of my being I am separate from all. There, I have broken through the cordon of equality and stand alone as an individual. I am absolutely … [Read more...]
Liberation from the Illusion of the Ego – WOMEN in RECOVERY
September 22, 2012 by
Devotion to the Authentic Self Illusion of Ego What is it in us that blocks our connection with the spiritual depths? INNER FRONTIER If heaven is real, why am I not in contact with it? All religions and paths address this central question, under a variety of names, the most common today in the West being “ego.” The term ego, in this context, alludes to our deeply ingrained self-referential, self-seeking disposition, our well-hidden and highly adaptable attitude that … [Read more...]
12 Signs that the time is NOW to LET GO – WOMEN in RECOVERY
September 20, 2012 by
Funny as it may be, most of the times, we aren’t even aware we need to move on from a relationship until it becomes evident. Some of us logically know we should move on – yet we linger on anyway. The truth hurts. Sometimes the truth is more than we can take. So to make things easier, we continue to live in our false reality. Some of my friends keep returning to ex-es who treated them badly or cheated on them in the past. They feel it’s much easier to believe in the faith of their ex-es than … [Read more...]
DIVORCE, Rising, Surviving and Thriving – WOMEN in RECOVERY
September 18, 2012 by
DIVORCE - Rising, Surviving and Thriving People going through divorce often focus on the endings it represents – the ending of a relationship, a dream, a way of life. To thrive after divorce requires you to look at divorce as a beginning – the beginning of a new life, of new possibilities for loving relationship, of a sense of self-empowerment and awareness you may have never have experienced before. One small suggestion for all of us that are or have lived through a separation or divorce … [Read more...]
Are YOU Your Own Best Friend, yet? – WOMEN in RECOVERY
September 16, 2012 by
When one hears the term “low self-esteem” their minds frequently take them to the extreme images of a woman who walks around with her head held down or the woman with a eating disorder. Our minds rarely go to the well-dressed woman sitting across from us on the subway or the no non-sense businesswoman we see gallivanting around the office. These false assumptions are where our society has failed us in some ways. The truth of the matter is that low self-esteem knows no race, social … [Read more...]
