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Take a moment to pause and ask yourself what your relationship with control looks like. Do you believe that you can control what happens to you in life? Whether you’re struggling with addiction and self-control or recovering from trauma and want to control the world around you, people have varying beliefs about how much they can influence their own lives. By first cultivating an awareness of your relationship with control, you can then start working towards a more balanced relationship with life.

Journaling is one of the most common forms of writing therapy for those in recovery, and with good reason. It offers writers space to freely process and express themselves and their story, something which the emotional numbing of addiction works directly against. Beginning a regular journaling practice in recovery will invite a time for consistent self-reflection and self-development to help grow the connection to yourself. Journaling can make sense of the chaos in early recovery and continue to be a powerful stress-relieving tool in aftercare.

The onset of spring brings with it a wealth of new opportunities. As temperatures warm, new therapeutic options become available to explore for all those looking to either begin constructing new daily routines in their sobriety or looking for new ways to tackle the complicated and difficult process of maintaining one’s aversion to drugs or alcohol. Gardening, while a seasonal practice, can also be a profound therapeutic outlet that can reward an individual’s determination and effort, all while helping them continue to practice responsibility in their lives and adding a needed element of structure and consistency to a daily routine.

Feeling like you are living in a dream may sound like a good thing, but for those living with a depersonalization-derealization disorder, it is a frightening reality. Many who abuse substances can vouch for having experienced depersonalization or derealization before. However, when these feelings happen increasingly often, it can indicate a more severe problem. Identifying the difference between depersonalization and derealization from other substance use-induced symptoms helps to understand if depersonalization-derealization disorder may be affecting you.

After you’ve left the emotional strain of an abusive relationship, you may walk away with a fragile heart scarred from the deep emotional agony of the relationship. Many, out of protection, close their hearts off and may also feel scared, angry, hopeless, or depressed. In times like this, when your heart feels small and hurt by others, you have the greatest opportunity for creating heart space. Your heart space is a place of pure love and acceptance within you where healing for yourself and others takes place. Holding heart space in your life happens through nurturing love in what you choose to witness, listen to and become, and happens when you are aligned with your values. Only when your heart space is open can you have a full heart of love, joy, and gratitude.

Addiction looks different from one person to the next and believing that you don’t have a problem because you may not be passed out all day doesn’t mean you aren’t struggling with addiction deep down. People with functional drug addiction maintain some of the normalcy of daily life and still maintain busy careers, relationships, and activities, yet live a double life and conceal their addiction to substances. Their addiction is a big part of their life but can seem camouflaged by other aspects of their life to outside observers. Identifying the tell-tale signs of functional addiction can help bring the truth to light.

For those suffering from an addiction to alcohol, engaging in a recovery program can be invaluable for learning more about oneself and one’s goals within a safe, supportive and sober environment. However, it is essential to remember that the recovery sphere is a tightly curated setting that is intentionally devoid of specific stressors that a person may otherwise encounter in their daily lives. When making the transition back into the “real world,” or even when a person meets with family members, it is possible that aspects of drinking culture can seep their way into one’s mind. Addressing drinking culture is a crucial point in recovery. Therefore it is essential to identify what the culture looks like, how one intends to interact with it, and safe ways to avoid harmful practices or establish a new culture focused on sobriety as a whole.

Our modern lifestyles don’t offer us many ways to spend time outside naturally. Make a conscious effort this spring to get outdoors to enjoy the beauty this season offers. Spending time outside supports the health and well-being of every person. For those in recovery, the advantages of time outdoors bring an even more profound beneficial impact. Although time outside cannot cure addiction independently, it builds upon the healthy lifestyle that recovery encourages and provides a space for healing and connection. Here are some ways spending time outside promotes your recovery.

Living with alcoholism is already a battlefield. Coping with alcoholism during a global pandemic complicates sobriety. COVID-19 has forced millions into “locking down” in their homes due to job loss, providing home-schooling for children, or health issues. People are dealing with isolation from their friends and family. They find themselves with a lot of extra time on their hands. Due to the uncertainty of the pandemic, stress and anxiety rise, creating a perfect storm for leaning on unhealthy coping mechanisms to deal with their scary “new normal.” For those already struggling with alcoholism, these changes can be a recipe for disaster.

Someone who has ever struggled with a drug or alcohol addiction knows that they might have said or done anything they needed to get their next fix. When you are caught up in the addiction spiral, you may not see the dysfunction behind any manipulative or abusive behavior displayed that helps to maintain your addiction. Learning to identify “gaslighting” can help put an end to this traumatic and abusive behavior.

When we experience trauma in our lives, we might begin to experience anxiety or PTSD afterward, but why does this happen? Is there a physical component to it, or is it all psychologically driven? Understanding what the limbic system is and what limbic trauma loops are can help answer these questions.

Achieving lasting recovery becomes complicated when your ego still rules you. The ego is one major contributor to addiction for some people, leading them to believe they don’t have a problem or push others away since they don’t think they need their advice or help. If you are in recovery and still have your ego assuming an influential role in your decisions and life, know that it affects you on many levels, not just in your recovery. Likely, it is also preventing you from truly connecting with yourself, your partner, and others.