Daily Reprieve

From Courage to Change of February 26;

We all make mistakes. But hopefully, as we apply the Al-Anon program and continue to grow in self-awareness, we will learn from those mistakes. Amends can be made for any harm we’ve done, and we can change our behavior and attitudes so that we won’t repeat the same errors. thus, even painful past experiences can help us learn to create a better future.

The greatest obstacle to this learning process is shame. Shame is an excuse to hate ourselves today for something we did or didn’t do in the past.  There is no room in a shame-filled mind for the fact that we did our best at the time, no room to accept that as human beings we are bound to make mistakes.

If I feel ashamed, I need a reality check because my thinking is probably distorted. Even though it may take great courage, if I share about it with an Al-Anon friend, I will interrupt the self-destructive thoughts and make room for a more loving and nurturing point of view. With  a little help, I may discover that even my most embarrassing  moments can bless my life by teaching me to turn in a more positive direction.

Today’s Reminder

Today I will love myself enough to recognize shame as an error in judgment.

“The ultimate lesson all of us have to learn is unconditional love, which includes not only others but ourselves as well.” ~ Elisabeth Kübler-Ross

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[Elisabeth Kübler-Ross was a Swiss-American psychiatrist, a pioneer in near-death studies and the author of the groundbreaking book On Death and Dying, where she first discussed her theory of the five stages of grief discussed in detail in the Kübler-Ross model article.]

I have recently finished reading a book by a friend I met in the 12 Step recovery rooms in my area. He survived a suicide attempt and as a result, had a near death experience (NDE). I have read of several NDEs and the experience has some common threads of leaving or separating from the body but still aware of the surrounding environment of the body, the translation to a spiritual plane such as a tunnel, a light, a passage and then finally there is the encounter with some form of enlightenment that conforms to the spiritual inspiration of the Earthly experience.

All such revelation from across the veil is in antithesis to shame. Guilt and taking responsibility for cleaning up my side of the street have nothing to do with suicide and shame. Guilt can lead to action, but shame crushes the heart needed for self-improvement and recovery. I would like to read the works of Kübler-Ross. The book I finished reading was entitled I Saw Love by Tim Holmes. It has much to say about addiction and recovery. I recommend you take a peak as well. I found it on Amazon.

This entry was posted on January 20, 2018 at 2:28 am and is filed under Uncategorized with tags Addiction, Alcoholism, Courage to Change, Journal, Life, Personal, Recovery, Spirituality. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.