They call it emotional sobriety. One of the keys to recovering is to gain some self-control.  Obviously self-control is absolutely central to quitting a substance and to staying that way.  But as you start to live sober, you’ll gain control over yourself in a much larger sense.  You’ll control, not just the urge to drink, but many more emotional traits.  There are some cause and effect qualities to this—the gains in self-control come from sobriety, and increased control and a better … [Read more...]

Today’s topic will be resentment: harboring it and then proceeding to vanquish it. I want to start off with a story of my ex-girlfriend, whom we’ll call Debbie.  Debbie was a medium-height brunette with a great sense of humor and quite a lot of attitude.  I kind of liked the attitude, but only when I was in a good mood.  She was my girlfriend while I was drinking heavily, and my girlfriend when I hit rock bottom.  She was a girlfriend who left me a few times and we got back together, and … [Read more...]