I’ve spent a good deal of time talking to people who are recovering or have recovered from addiction, and I am always fascinated by what they say about the factors that have helped them, or that still help them, on their recovery journey. I’ve written about some of these factors in my article Factors That Facilitate Addiction Recovery. Here are Wendy’s reflections.
Things That Have Helped During My Recovery Journey [4’35”]
Wendy describes herself as having a general positive attitude to life and enjoying the natural world. Her relationships with people have helped her recovery journey. Thinking about how to help other people and contributing to knowledge about addiction and recovery through her training also play a significant role. Psychotherapy has helped her at different times in her life, by allowing her to delve deeper into her past trauma, and intergenerational trauma, which she believes underlie her past addictive behaviours.
Wendy says she is in a good place now, although she still has her fragilities with mental health that come and go. She is aware of these fragilities and reaches out for help when needed. She is ‘flourishing in many, many ways.’ She may not have all the things she wanted out of life… ‘but who does?’