Acceptance
Acceptance is the beginning of the journey of recovery from addiction. It is where we begin to live on the actual canvas of the life that is ours for living. By staying inside the space of our own life, we are able to be in partnership with the flow of life, supported by the whole of life and give up swimming against the tide.
However, for many people in addiction, acceptance can be hard-won. In some cases, people find acceptance in a moment and live inside of that perspective from one point forward. In other cases, people have a relationship with acceptance that involves a regular and necessary pattern of renewal. While permanent acceptance may appear desirable, it is important to consider both patterns of acceptance ‘normal’ to the recovery journey.
The other side of acceptance is denial and denial is at the heart of addiction. It is through denial that many people stay in their addiction long after it is apparent that their behavioral choices are devastating their lives and stealing the potential of their beautiful life. Denial is very cunning in that it is obvious to those on the outside of it. Within the person in denial, it is very foggy and fuzzy often with an authoritative voice to the self. Denial can sound compassionate, analytical or even sound like justified indignation. With many unique voices, denial is often challenging to pin denial down. Since denial changes forms so rapidly, once we have cornered it, it may simply appear again in a different costume.
However, once we are on our journey of recovery for some time, we will learn which costumes that our particular denial boogey-man usually likes to wear. This will help us cue into when denial is seeping back in and do the awareness work necessary to come back into a position of acceptance.
Acceptance is simply one stage of recovery and needs to be honored as such. There are people who can find acceptance for the fact that they are an addict without discovering the willingness to embrace a recovery process and lifestyle. However, simply arriving at acceptance beyond the stage of denial is progress and we want to acknowledge it as such.
Beyond acceptance, it is hoped that person who needs recovery can find a place within themselves to surrender to a recovery process and lifestyle. The experience of surrender is like being in the ocean and fighting against the waves and then suddenly finding the moment where you breathe deeply, relax your body and let it float to the surface of the water. Surrender is when you give up the fight and allow the recovery community around you to buoy you to the safety of oxygen at the surface of the water.
Enlightened Recovery Solutions offers a harmonious approach to holistic treatment, bringing together the best of evidence-based, alternative, and 12-step therapies. Call us today for information on our transformation programs of treatment for addiction and alcoholism: 833-801-5483.
