What does recovery mean and what does it give us? The only promise of the recovery definition is freedom from active addiction. And the message is hope. Hope that a life worth living is possible without the use of drugs or alcohol. From hopeless to hopefuls, we do recover. One day, hour, and sometimes right down to the minutes- we get through whatever it is that has shown up for us.
Regardless if you have only known a few days or months clean or if you have been in recovery for years, there is nothing we have to go through alone. 12 Step Recovery has been around since 1935 with the birth of AA (Alcoholic’s Anonymous) and the founding of NA (Narcotic’s Anonymous) in 1953. Recovering addicts and alcoholics have been helping each other stay clean and sober for just short of 80 years.
What is Your Story of Recovery
Everyone comes into recovery with a story. A story of how it began, what it was like and how we came to be in recovery and lastly, what our life looks like today as a recovering addict and what we do, daily, to stay clean. When we share our experience, strength, and hope we carry the message and the recovery definition to others. Our very own life stories become another’s hope of staying clean. Being a member of a 12 Step Fellowship and working the 12 steps with the help and guidance of a sponsor, we give ourselves the chance to begin to change from the inside out. In the early months of recovery, we may start to get some color back in our face. Smile and laugh a little more and outwardly begin to show some physical changes.
But the magic happens when we begin working the 12 steps. The first step invites us to discover acceptance of our powerlessness of drugs and alcohol and admitting we are an addict. Honesty within ourselves, and surrender to the disease of addiction. We go on to work steps two and three to get an internal understanding of hope and faith. From here we have built our foundation for our continued recovery.
What Does Recovery Definition Include – The Process
As our awareness, understanding, and application of the principals behind each of the 12 steps deepens, our lives begin to take on a new shape. What does the recovery definition mean to you? It’s a new way of life. That’s the message of being an addict in recovery. A sense of gratitude is felt, after some time, for where our active addiction took us. We wouldn’t be where we are today without the experience. Surely, we could have done without a lot of the damage we may have caused to others, and ourselves. But that’s where the steps come in to play. Restoration and inspiration for bettered and repaired selves and relationships. Our second step, part of the foundation of our recovery and our message, enlightens us on the possibility of these restorations.
A message is communication that utters information of relevance. What you do with that information is up to you. For individuals recovering from addiction around the world, that message will continue to be the hope of freedom from active addiction from alcohol.
For more information on drug and alcohol addiction treatment, call Serenity House Detox & Recovery at 866.294.5306.