Today, Elyse brings in our guest Arianna who describes her journey with gaining tools in recovery yet having trouble with accumulating clean time. She talks about the “switch” and how there seems to be a struggle between our old self and the one we’re learning to grow into. Elyse describes this as being something that we’re actually constantly doing throughout our recovery journey; there are many layers of surrender and changes that a life in recovery demands. Besides the desire to use a substance, there are other aspects of life that we find new tools to deal with as well, like romance and finance. Awakenings may happen for some in large climactic moments, but they can also be realizations that growth is required in more areas of life. Through discussion, we explore how a lot of areas still have similar basic needs- from substances to sex and relationships to finances- the core needs could really be fun, comfort, security, feeling loved...Luckily, the recovery journey directs us toward letting go of our old coping mechanisms and finding new ways to get our needs met. Arianna points out the importance of having a group of supportive people who can offer us security when we’re still working toward building it within. As we replace unhealthy things with the healthier versions, we learn to fill the void without the chaos. The side benefit? Realizing that the journey of growth is much more exciting anyways.

Tool References: The Switch (Toolkit 1), Core Needs (Toolkit 2)