Got A Pain In Your Feelings – Grapevine Article March 1950 By J.F.

Am I my own worst enemy? I’VE been in AA, and sober, for five years. But I still bruise easily–at times. Just when I think God is in heaven and the goose hangs high, something is said or done and–ouch!–I’ve got a pain in my feelings again! Ever have that happen to you, a painContinue reading “Got A Pain In Your Feelings – Grapevine Article March 1950 By J.F.”

Keeping Sobriety First – Grapevine Article January 2015 By Anonymous

In a rehab one night, a desperate young man almost gives up—until he hears a knock on the door. I remember sitting in a rehab in Austin, Texas. I had come in there broken and beaten; the bottle had done a good number on me this time. I had lost my job, my family, myContinue reading “Keeping Sobriety First – Grapevine Article January 2015 By Anonymous”

Searching In The Shadows – Richard Rohr’s Daily Meditation May 28th

This meditation can be helpful in our ongoing Step 10 and Step 4 work of critical self examination and radical acceptance. It suggest a perspective change and supports the 10th step spiritual axiom that when I am disturbed there is something wrong (or off) within me. Jungian therapists Connie Zweig and Steve Wolf describe shadowContinue reading “Searching In The Shadows – Richard Rohr’s Daily Meditation May 28th”

Humility – The Spirituality Of Imperfection (Extract From Chapter 14) By Ernest Kurtz

Humility as earthiness may be less a distortion than humility as groveling or timidity, but each of these modern interpretations misses the essence of this ancient, classic virtue. For humility signifies, simply, the acceptance of being human, the acceptance of one’s human being. It is the embrace of the both-and-ness, both saint and sinner, bothContinue reading “Humility – The Spirituality Of Imperfection (Extract From Chapter 14) By Ernest Kurtz”

Forgiveness – Spirituality Of Imperfection (Extract From Chapter 15) By Ernest Kurtz

To forgive, truly to forgive, involves letting go of the feeling of resentment and of the vision that underlies that feeling—the vision in which we see ourselves as being offended against, the vision of self-as-victim. As in all matters relating to the spiritual, focusing on feeling distracts from the more profound and truly important issue—theContinue reading “Forgiveness – Spirituality Of Imperfection (Extract From Chapter 15) By Ernest Kurtz”

What We Resist Persists; Acceptance And Willingness – Get Out Of Your Mind & Into Your Life (Chapter4) By Stephen Hayes

This article focuses us on the pragmatic idea that we must be willing to accept our pain to begin to heal as we move from a life of being a pain killer to become a pain healer. Experience avoidance and denial do not work. What we resist persists. The truth can set us free butContinue reading “What We Resist Persists; Acceptance And Willingness – Get Out Of Your Mind & Into Your Life (Chapter4) By Stephen Hayes”

Emotional Sobriety, Humility, and Radical Response Ability – Video By Dr. Allen Berger

As many of you know, Dr. Berger is a leader in Emotional Sobriety. His book 12 Essential Insights For Emotional Sobriety is featured prominently in the Emotional Sobriety section of the gugogs.org website. He is a Gestalt therapist with over 50 years of sobriety. I found this video very helpful in setting a firm foundationContinue reading “Emotional Sobriety, Humility, and Radical Response Ability – Video By Dr. Allen Berger”

The Power Of Pause … Finding An Unsuspected Inner Resource ….Your Second Voice – Mashup Big Book, Twelve & Twelve, Dr. Allen Berger, & IFS

One of the most powerful tools AA suggests for emotional sobriety is the power of pause or restraint when we find ourselves disturbed. This pause or restraint can give us an opportunity to find a conscious contact with a Power greater than ourselves. This article attempts to share some common ways to deepen the freedomContinue reading “The Power Of Pause … Finding An Unsuspected Inner Resource ….Your Second Voice – Mashup Big Book, Twelve & Twelve, Dr. Allen Berger, & IFS”

Self Honesty – Daily Reflection April 18th

The deception of others is nearly always rooted in the deception of ourselves. . . . When we are honest with another person, it confirms that we have been honest with ourselves and with God. AS BILL SEES IT, p. 17 When I was drinking, I deceived myself about reality, rewriting it to what IContinue reading “Self Honesty – Daily Reflection April 18th”

Self Acceptance And The Twelve Steps

THE PROBLEM The lack of self-acceptance is a problem for many in recovery . This subtle defect is difficult to identify and often goes unrecognized. Many of us believed that our using was our only problem, denying the fact that our lives had become unmanageable. Even after we stop using, this denial can continue toContinue reading “Self Acceptance And The Twelve Steps”