This is the question we most commonly hear just before people enter the drug detox phase. At the beginning of your recovery journey, it’s important to think of your addiction not just as a substance problem but also as a thinking disease. We can’t stop drinking or using yet because we still can’t handle the internal experience of being us. Our wounded lives have led to negative and distorted thinking that we’ve had to silence through alcohol and drugs.
Here’s another way of looking at it – we have heads that lie to us. Our brains make things up based on our past experiences that are usually far from the truth set in reality. Our thoughts and stories at this phase in our lives are almost always negative. They tell us the following:
-I suck.
-I’m not worthy.
-I don’t fit in.
-People are better off without me.
-I’m a loser.
-I’m a mistake.
-I’ve let everyone down.
-I’m a failure.
-I can never get better.
These are just a few of the endless thoughts that plague us when we’re trying to get sober. None of it is true. Any thoughts occurring that are critical, negative, or putting you or another human being down is downloaded programming that you most likely got from other people earlier in life. It is not you. It is not your voice. Your true voice is the second voice, the more gentle and kind voice, the one that says you can do this, the one that says you’re special.
If you’re in need of detox for alcohol and would rather avoid a lengthy stay at rehab centers in Nashville TN, please reach out to InHome Recovery as soon as possible so we can get you help.
By Clint Fletcher