Recovery Road

We're all facing some new and challenging interpersonal situations these days. In her book, Boundaries: Where You End and I Begin, Anne Katherine show us how each challenge is an opportunity to assert who we are, and what we truly need to live happy, healthy lives.

During the coronavirus outbreak, having to stay confined is not easy, especially if you've got a son or daughter who's working through a substance use disorder. In his book Recovering My Kid, Dr. Joseph Lee helps you create a safe home where you set the boundaries.

For those of us trying to maintain our recovery, this global health emergency is a stressful time. In Three Simple Rules: Uncomplicating Life in Recovery, author Michael Graubart gives advice on silencing the negativity flying around in our heads.

Today, those of us in creative areas of work may be struggling to answer whether our work is "essential," which can cause creative blocks reminiscent of those we experienced while active in our addictions. In her book The Recovering Body, Jennifer Matesa emphasizes the vital importance of creative work, and reassures us that our moments of blockage and self-doubt will pass.

Many of us are grieving right now: Losing jobs, old ways of life, the ability to see loved ones. Even losses due to coronavirus or relapse. In Without Shame, author Barbara Theodosiou describes losing her son to the disease of addiction in 2015, and how self-care, forgiveness, and service can be present, even in grief.

Many grandparents find themselves parenting their grandchildren, due to their own children struggling with substance use disorders, incarceration, or challenges, like COVID-19 or other illnesses. The Grandfamily Guidebook by Andrew Adesman, MD and Christine Ademec, is a helpful resource for grandparents during these times.

Realities like physical distancing can stir up feelings of isolation, and even darkness in our recovery. As Marya Hornbacher explains in Waiting: A Nonbeliever's Higher Power, we can return to Step One to find meaning and value in even our lowest moments.

Parenting a child with a substance use disorder is hard, but it's especially difficult due to the pandemic. Dr. Joseph Lee, in his book Recovering My Kid, coaches us through handling our feelings and taking out our emotional trash.

We all need some help. Every one of us is dealing with situations we didn't anticipate. Stress and uncertainty are real these days, in old and new forms. We need to remember all of the sources of help available to us, as well as the ways we can be of service to others. In this excerpt from Shock Waves: A Practical Guide to Living with a Loved One's PTSD, Cynthia Orange teaches us how to ask for help, how to best offer help, and how to make our crisis-filled days a little bit more predictable.

For those of us who balance both mental illness and substance use disorders, it's hard to find our footing during a global pandemic. Marya Hornbacher, in her book Sane: Mental Illness, Addiction, and the 12 Steps writes about the Sixth Step: the willingness to have God [or our Higher Power] remove our defects of character. This means being totally open to a new way of life and a new kind of self. In these unsettled times, her honesty about confronting and releasing fear and anger can help.