Navigating Sobriety During the Holidays
If you're here, you or someone you care about is likely navigating the challenging terrain of sobriety, especially during the holiday season. I'm here to provide some insights and strategies to help you stay on track during this potentially tricky time.

The Holiday Challenge: Staying Sober Amidst the Festivities

Holidays, though joyous, can pose a significant challenge for those on the path to recovery. The festivities often involve disruptions to our regular schedules, increased social gatherings, and a general shift towards a 'vacation mode.' In a recent video on relapse prevention, I discussed the importance of keeping the gate closed to vulnerability, a crucial aspect of maintaining sobriety.

Identifying Triggers: Three Categories

1. **Vacation Mode and Substance Use Escalation:**
The most obvious trigger during the holidays is the widespread shift to vacation mode. People tend to indulge more in substances, making it a potential stumbling...

Finding Motivation to Overcome Addiction: It's Not Always About Wanting to Change

You know how we often hear people say, "I decided to quit because I didn't want it anymore," or "I just decided to change." Well, let me tell you, that's not always how it goes down when it comes to overcoming addictive behaviors. As someone who has been on the front lines of this issue for a long time, I can confidently say that most individuals choose to change their addictive behavior not because they suddenly stop liking it but because they find themselves in a difficult situation. The consequences of not changing become greater than the consequences of changing. In this blog post, I'm going to delve into the nature of addiction and how you can motivate yourself to make a change, even when it feels like you're not ready.

Understanding Addiction:
Addiction is a complex beast. We're drawn to it because, at some point, it served a purpose in our lives. It offered something positive, even if...

Three Clear Signs of True Recovery: Beyond Abstinence

Welcome to another insightful episode on our journey to understanding addiction and recovery. In this video transcript, we'll delve into the three solid signs that someone is truly on the path to recovery beyond mere abstinence from addictive behavior. Amber Hollingsworth, a seasoned master addiction counselor with over two decades of experience, shares her wisdom and knowledge to help individuals and families navigate the complex terrain of addiction recovery.

The Quest for True Recovery

By the end of this post, you'll know for sure if you or your loved one is solidly in recovery because I will show you the three surefire signs that someone's doing the work. I mean more than just abstaining from addictive behavior. I mean, a person is in recovery—they're healing, growing, and doing the work.

Defining Recovery: Beyond abstinence

The traditional understanding of recovery often centers around abstinence from substance use or...

Navigating the Path to Recovery: Do You Have to Keep Going Forever?
Recovery is a journey that often raises questions about its duration. Many individuals overcoming addiction ponder how long they must continue attending meetings, therapy sessions, and coaching appointments. This blog post delves into this common concern, providing insights into the reality of the recovery process and offering a perspective that can help individuals embrace self-growth.

Seeking a Fresh Start:
"How long should I keep attending recovery meetings, therapy sessions, and coaching appointments? Do I ever get to just put this behind me?"*

These questions reflect the internal struggle that countless people facing addiction recovery grapple with. Constantly contemplating past mistakes and wanting to move forward can sometimes become overwhelming. If you've ever experienced such thoughts, know you're not alone. The desire for closure and a fresh start is common among those undergoing recovery.

The Reality of...

Mastering Sobriety: The 3 Pillars to Sustain Your Recovery Journey
We're diving deep into something that many of us encounter on this journey – the moments when staying sober feels like an uphill battle. I'm here to shed light on three crucial factors that can make all the difference, inspiring you to stay strong in your commitment to recovery.

1. Cultivating the Right Mindset:
"Your thoughts have the power to shape your reality, even the ones you keep to yourself."

Let's start with mindset – an element that holds immense sway over our emotions and actions. It's crucial to remember that the stories we tell ourselves matter profoundly. Negative self-talk can unknowingly drag us down, keeping us trapped in the cycle of addiction. What's the antidote? It's all about challenging those automatic negative thought processes. When you catch yourself focusing solely on the struggles, try to see the full picture. Yes, there are challenges, but there's also progress –...

Addiction cunningly entices even the best individuals, leading them astray with false promises, trickery, and delusion. However, addiction will lose control over you once you comprehend these deceitful tactics and see through the smoke and mirrors. You will regain the driver's seat in your own life.

For those new to this channel, I'm Amber Hollingsworth, and I'm dedicated to helping you understand the science and psychology of addiction so that you can stay ahead of it. Today, we will uncover some sneaky and tricky thoughts you must know.

Addiction will deceive you into believing that engaging in addictive behaviors will improve your life. For instance, if it's alcohol, you might convince yourself that it makes you more relaxed, friendly, and pleasant. If it's marijuana, you might believe it enhances your creativity and intrigues you. Or if it's gambling, you may think it will help you provide more for your family by winning a significant sum. Can you see how deceptive this is?

It...

Navigating Relationships with Loved Ones Struggling with Addiction: Expert Advice

Question 1: How do I kindly tell my 31-year-old son in Tennessee that he is not welcome to visit until he can demonstrate that he's not just looking for a new place to live?

Answer: When faced with a situation like this, it's essential to approach the conversation with kindness and understanding. Consider the reasons behind your hesitation to have your son visit – whether it's concerned about him moving back in, causing conflicts, or substance abuse issues. If he asks to visit, you can suggest meeting somewhere neutral, like dinner, to avoid potential complications. If he directly asks to come and stay with you, express your love and support but kindly explain that living together might not be the best option for your relationship. Encourage him to come up with an alternative plan.

Question 2: Recently, my son said adamantly that he would rather commit suicide than go through detox; he uses...

Now, when you saw the title, you were probably thinking about all the medical or physical aspects of alcoholism, like cirrhosis of the liver. But, still, there are many ways that alcoholism destroys our bodies. Yes, it attacks our liver, but it also attacks our heart, mind, pancreas, immune system, and brain, dramatically increasing your chances of having numerous types of cancer.

Now, I often hear people say things like yeah, this partying and this drinking and all this stuff; it will probably make my life shorter, but I will have a lot of fun in the meantime. And if that were true, I'd be OK with it. But in reality, nothing could be further from the truth.

When people say that, it's almost like you're imagining one big giant party and significant time and excitement, and then one day, you drop dead of alcoholism. But, unfortunately, it just doesn't work that way most of the time. It's a much more drawn-out, slow, and painful death than you imagine.

And while all those physical...

The problem with 12 steps is that, even though they do teach a lot of things well, they do it in a real indirect way, and they're hoping you pick up on the vibe and you learn the lesson, but sometimes if you're like me, you can be a little dense, and miss it. So they're having you practice the 12 steps and call your sponsor, but they could better connect the dots.

If you follow the plan, you will likely figure out most of the steps. Still, I want to make sure and call your attention to these five skills because not only are they not talked about directly, they're just not talked about, and you need them if you want to stay sober and get past the first month or so of recovery.

The rest is mostly about sanity management. How do you stay sober? You keep your sanity intact. So, many recovery skills have nothing to do with the substances. How do I keep myself in a place to not need those? You have to keep yourself in a healthy place, which means you need to keep your life somewhat...