Making Decisions
When living in the chaos of addiction, I find that I have trouble making decisions from the simplest to the biggest issues that life throws at me; the issues that…
Awareness Brings Action
One day a devastating awareness changed my life. I was working and my children were in school when I became aware of the drug abuse within my family. Addiction crept…
Time For Me And My Recovery
As a teenager in my small hometown, I felt like a square peg trying to fit into a round hole. At summer camp and conferences, I felt more accepted. This…
Awareness
I heard the birds sing today! I cannot remember the last time I heard the birds sing. Oh, the birds sing every day in my yard, but when addiction entered…
Tradition Nine
I am familiar with the decision-making process of organizations such as government, corporations and schools. In those organizations, there are different levels of authority, a power structure. However, as a…
Courage
One night at a meeting, the topic of discussion was “courage.” The person who chaired the meeting said that they thought coming to the meetings over and over again represented…
Manipulation
To me, manipulation is an art – a learned skill. When manipulating, I used a wealth of negative and self-serving behaviors to influence others, trying to make them act, think,…
A Lifted Spirit
I am a fifteen-year-old member of Nar-Anon. When drugs and alcohol first reared their ugly heads, I was in denial. I ignored the bottles in the fridge, the hours my…
Boundaries
Boundaries are frequently discussed at meetings. I do not know if I have ever enforced my boundaries. I have tried by saying what I would not allow, but then, many…
Joy
When I discovered my loved ones were addicted to drugs, I felt great sadness. I felt as though I would never be happy again. The joy was gone from my…