Why should you start your recovery?
In therapy, I often ask my clients to reflect and ask themselves the following questions (replace addiction* with your specific issue).
Overall, am I satisfied with how my life with addiction* is going at the moment?
Specifically, how long can I keep my current addiction* going for – years, months or weeks?
If I keep my addiction* as it is, would my situation get worse and how?
If my addiction* wasn’t a problem, what would I be doing? (imagine it)
The only person that can decide the start of your recovery is you.
Some clients often get caught up in the inertia of their daily patterns. Unknowingly, many choices are made due to the sheer force of habit, fear of change or even as a reaction to a loved one’s criticism.
For most, repeating the same patterns and holding their current situation is not a real choice because their health, work, finance and personal relationships will continue to deteriorate.
Source: Kelly Sikkema, Unsplash
Ultimately you will be forced into making a choice i.e. moving towards the life where addiction is not a problem. Or not (that’s ok, it is your choice after all).
Recovery starts with your commitment to taking small steps towards your life without addiction. Some clients reported drawing inspiration from the following proverb:
“The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The next best time is now”