I got sober because drinking was interfering with my recovery. I say "I got sober," not just "I stopped drinking." Abstinence was as necessary for my sobriety as sobriety was for my recovery, but I don't equate sobriety with abstinence. Today, I have the occasional glass of beer or wine with dinner. I am still sober.
I mark the beginning of my recovery in 1990, when I began individual counseling with a trauma specialist. Though I've lost track of the specific date, it's sometime in May, so I'm coming up on 23 years of recovery.
A few years in, I came to describe my recovery in three stages:
- I can't do it alone.
- I don't have to do it alone.
- I don't want to do it alone.
Recovery is not an event. It's a path. It took me a long time to find my way. I'm still in transit.
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2 comments:
Nice personal essay. Congratulations. I'm curious how you feel about the title of Amy Stewart's new book, "The Drunken Botanist."
Beautiful words. Gardening can be such wonderful therapy - I wonder if you feel if tending your lovely garden has helped you on your path?
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