by Fiona Stockard | May 19, 2014 | Addiction Articles, Body Image / Eating Disorders
Written By: Katie Schipper
Misconceptions About Eating Disorders
Like addiction and alcoholism, eating disorders are a vastly misunderstood disease. The mental, emotional, spiritual and physical anguish that accompany an active eating disorder is immense. Also like alcoholism, the obsessive thinking and pathological devotion to protecting the disease are such that outsiders often resort to blaming the individual – this makes it easier for loved ones to swallow. Over a series of articles, we’ll look at common misconceptions about eating disorders. Dismantling myths is a vital step towards the future of eating disorder treatment.
Misconception: Eating Disorders Are a Choice
Perhaps the most dangerous of myth about eating disorders is that the suffering individual choses their condition. While initially there may be behaviors that were chosen, there comes a point where the person’s power of choice vanishes. Dieting and exercise are no longer about losing weight. They’ve become a compulsion and addiction. They lead to still more dangerous habits, including: laxative abuse, purging, and abusing diet pills of all shapes and forms.
The same can be said for those who suffer from binge eating and compulsive over eating. What initially begins as comfort, soon takes on a dangerous life of its own. Consumption is no longer a choice.
The parallels to addiction are impossible to ignore. Like an alcoholic with a bottle of booze, or an addict with a pipe, all choice is lost. All control vanishes from the individual suffering from an eating disorder.
How can I recover from eating disorders?
Eating Disorders Can Be Deadly
If untreated, eating disorders are fatal. They carry a higher mortality rate than addiction and alcoholism. In fact, eating disorders are the deadliest mental illness.
Again, like addiction, the paths that lead to eating disorders are varied. They usually involve a combination of both genetics (nature) and the environment someone was raised in (nurture). There’s rarely a single cause.
For many young women, the first noticeable sign of an eating disorder is poor body image. The insistence that what they look like is the end all and be all feeds into the misconception that eating disorders are voluntary. Eating disorders are not about vanity. Sure, that can be the first step, the first warning sign and trigger. In the end, eating disorders have very little to do with how one looks.
How many people a year do eating disorders kill?
Eating Disorders Aren’t a Choice
While they aren’t a choice, and shouldn’t be viewed as such, recovery from eating disorders is a choice available to ALL suffering individuals. Eating disorder treatment, paired with aftercare and twelve-step involvement, is often successful.
However, long-term recovery isn’t possible by merely treating symptoms of the disease. Symptoms include those things that look like causes, i.e. the desire to be thin, or dissatisfaction with one’s body. For any hope of recovery, each case has to be faced honestly.
As with recovery from alcoholism and addiction, recovery must be an ongoing, lifelong process. It can’t be done alone. The first step in eating disorder recovery is becoming clear about the true nature of the disease – it isn’t a choice.
Where can I find eating disorder treatment?
by Sally Rosa | May 16, 2014 | Addiction Articles, Sobriety For Women
Safe Sex in Sobriety
Written By: Anjelica G
Hey, remember those safe sex presentations they gave in school and treatment centers? Yeah, of course you do, they were also known as nap time! Remember what was said in those presentations? Nope, me neither. They were boring as hell and pretty f**king unrealistic. Who stops in the heat of the moment and says, “Hey Bobby, I can see we’re about to start bumpin’ uglies but first I need you to answer a few questions. How many sexual partners have you had? Do you have any STD’s? Do you like STD’s? When was the last time you were tested? Ever use needles? Ever share needles? What about butt-sex? I just want to be safe!”
Are women in recovery practicing safe sex?
No One’s Using Condoms
Let’s be honest here, no ones asking those questions. No one cares. No one’s using condoms and certainly no one’s using dental-dams or whatever the hell they things are called. Asking a guy to put a condom on is enough of a boner-kill, imagine what would happen if you whipped a dental-dam out of your pocket. Yup, you’ll never see him again. You might as well just hop up and take a cold shower, honey.
Who the f**k has safe sex anymore? But more importantly, why don’t we? Listen, I’m a woman in recovery (with a past that makes Anna Nicole Smith look like a saint) and even I just sat here for a good twenty minutes trying to think of a reason why we don’t practice safe sex. There isn’t a reason.
Is it laziness? Do we truly believe that we’re forever exempt from STD’s? Hey, Magic Johnson is still alive and kicking. Maybe we just don’t care? I really have no idea!
I’m not going to write all the dangers of unprotected sex because everyone knows them and if you don’t you’re just dumb. So, if we all know it’s bad, why do we still do it so goddamn much?
IF ANYONE SHOULD BE HAVING SAFE SEX, IT’S DRUG ADDICTS!
I see a common pattern with women in recovery. Broken, insecure women go into treatment and fall in love with some day-one-dingbat who doesn’t understand how to put his life together. For some reason, these young women always say the same thing, “Bobby understands me.” No, he doesn’t! Bobby only understands that you have a zipper on your pants and it goes down!
Once Bobby and Whitney get out of treatment, they think their rehab romance is going to last forever. What do they do? They drive the good ol’ skin bus into tuna town. They don’t think of the huge risks associated with unsafe sex. They don’t think of the even bigger risk of having unprotected sex with an IV drug user, who’s just short of thirty days clean from his three year meth and heroin bender. Sounds like you’re keeping it real safe, Whitney.
You Can’t Fix It Later
See, as addicts, we’re stubborn. We don’t learn ‘till we crash. However, STDs aren’t, in most cases, things we can fix later.
You never know if the “man” you’ve been sleeping with has been sneaking out of his halfway house to meet up with those classy chicks from backpage.com. You never know if the “man” you showed your tata’s to, behind the dumpster of your local twelve-step clubhouse, has been sharing needles with BooBoo, the HEP-C infested homeless cowboy.
So, saddle up there sweetheart, you’re in for a ride – a ride to and from the hospital, several times a month, to treat your brand new STD.
There’s no women’s treatment center you can check into to get rid of HIV. There’s no twelve-steps that help you recover from Hepatitis. No, The Doctor’s Opinion isn’t about how to cure an STD. Being a woman in early sobriety, you’re already emotionally vulnerable – don’t make your bodies vulnerable, too.
by Sally Rosa | May 15, 2014 | Addiction Articles, Recovery
The Importance of a Home Group
Written By: Katie Schipper
What Is a Home Group?
Many in Florida Recovery Programs encourage individuals to seek a home group. A home group is the twelve-step meeting someone chooses to be a member of. Most groups have open membership and joining is usually as simple as telling another home group member. While addicts are welcome to attend all meetings, a home group serves as an important anchor for any woman’s addiction Florida recovery program.
Twelve-step meetings usually hold monthly business meetings. This is when members share their ideas for bettering the group. It’s also when meeting issues are discussed and solved, based on group conscience (the majority opinion of members).
Why Have a Home Group?
Home groups are often called the “heartbeat of AA.” It’s within a home group that newly sober women begin to learn how AA works and what it really means to be sober. Within the home group, newcomers are able to take service positions and meet those with long-term recovery. All the little things that make twelve-step programs so amazing are best observed within the home group setting. It’s there the wisdom and miracle of AA is shared freely among members. Service work starts by attending business meetings and taking an active role in AA life.
Choosing a home group is a foundation of long-recovery. Additionally, many individuals find it helpful to include self-help groups with professional therapy in their Florida Recovery Program. With a home group comes a sense of belonging and responsibility. These were pretty much absent from our life during active addiction! Choosing a home group is one of the first major steps we take towards breaking the deep sense of isolation which ruled our lives.
How Do You Choose a Home Group?
For women in early-recovery, the first step to finding a home group is to attend the same meetings regularly. Going to women’s meeting narrows the choice of potential home groups down. If all women’s meetings aren’t available, mixed meetings are definitely okay. Just remember, stay away from the boys! It’s okay to make any group a temporary home group, you don’t have to wait around for the “perfect” group
As time goes on, if the group you chose doesn’t work, find another one! Like most things in AA, finding a home group shouldn’t be an overly serious matter.
Having a home group isn’t a requirement of twelve-step recovery, it’s not even necessary to stay sober, but there’s nothing more powerful in early-recovery than finding a place among women – strong, sober women.
AA membership isn’t denied to anyone. It’s open to anyone who wants to stop drinking and start living a better life! Home group membership is just as relaxed and is a solid addiction to your addiction recovery program.
by Fiona Stockard | May 14, 2014 | Addiction Articles, Sobriety For Women
Tattoos: Sober Women Breaking Tradition
Written By:Anjelica G.
Body modification, meaning to deliberately alter your physical appearance, has become extremely popular over the last few years. I mean, it’s always been popular, but tattoos and piercings, as well as many other unique forms self-expression, have really blown up lately. I think body art is amazing and believe that pretty soon major community and world leaders will be tatted up. Hell, even our seventh president, Andrew Jackson, had a tattoo on his thigh. However, not everyone has the best ideas when it comes to ink.
Should We Be Broadcasting “Sober” on Our Hands?
Now don’t get me wrong, the fact that you’re sober is fantastic, but does everyone need to know? People get tattoos because they feel so strongly about something there’s no other way for them to show how goddamn awesome it is then to have it permanently etched into their skin! Still, I think there are ways to show gratitude for sobriety besides stamping it on one of the most visible area of your body! Don’t you dare put “sober” on your face. If you do, you’re never getting a job. “Oh Ms. Jones I see here on your face that you’re sober, good you should be, this is a job interview!”
Calling Attention to an Anonymous Program
Take a look at the images above. Not only do they broadcasting, “I’m a women in sobriety”, but they also call attention to an anonymous program and broadcast their sobriety date! Uh oh! I thought anonymity was our spiritual foundation? Looks like someone’s breaking a few traditions. I hope this person doesn’t ever have to change their sobriety date. This is basically a recipe for disaster. Weren’t you told not to get your significant other’s name tattooed on you? Well, sobriety tattoos should carry the same warning. I’d love to believe that your sobriety date isn’t going to change, but no matter how hard you try this sort of thing simply isn’t guaranteed. Now, you might be thinking I’m insensitive for writing this, or maybe I just “don’t understand,” but let me tell you, I get it.
This is Me
I had to go through addiction treatment as well. I’ve been a woman in recovery for over two years. I’m covered from head to toe in tattoos and piercings. I change my hair color more then some people change their underwear. All that being said, I’ve made some huge tattoo mistakes. I’m writing this article to save sober women from the horrible tattoo decisions I’ve made! I had tattoos before I got sober, but in early-sobriety I made the mistake of putting “Grant Me Serenity” and the Narcotics Anonymous symbol on my hand! It was embarrassing to know that regardless of where I was, people knew I was in a twelve-step program. Not everyone understands that being in recovery and being an active drug user are two different things. So, to many close minded people, I was seen as a criminal, a liar, an unemployable junkie, and a disappointment to the family. I was nineteen and had maybe a week sober. I relapsed not too long after I got that tattoo. Hell, I’ve had to go through getting it covered up, which wasn’t easy for the artist.
Change Your Insides Before You Start Changing Your Outsides
Take my advice and change your insides before you go changing your outsides! It’s more rewarding that way. Remember, and this is important, don’t try to match your insides with other peoples outsides. Listen up Ms. Sober Woman, I know what it’s like to constantly want to look aesthetically perfect and to try and keep up with the latest trends. What I didn’t understand, when I first began my sober journey, is that nothing looks better than a happy, healthy, sober woman. When you walk into a room, light it up with your heart, not your poorly done, tradition breaking tattoos!
by Sally Rosa | May 9, 2014 | Addiction Articles, Recovery
Written By: Anjelica Galante
Is Homelessness a Consequence of Our Actions?
We suffer many consequences during active addiction to drugs and alcohol. We lose lose our spirituality, our friends, our families, our material possessions, our minds, our morals, our homes, and so much more. After pushing everyone and everything away, we may find ourselves sleeping on the street, desperate for one more high. This vicious cycle can go on for days, months, even years. In the case of Eric, it was years and years.
A Nice and Respectable Homeless Man
Eric was called a “nice and respectable homeless man,” by the people in his Virginia neighborhood. Most of us addicts are nice a respectable! We just get dragged down to hell because of our so called “solution,” drugs and booze. Most people don’t understand that addicts are nice, smart, and determined people. If we’re able to break the cycle of active addiction, we can get back on our feet and live a life beyond anyone’s wildest dreams! Some people turn to addiction treatment to get well. Other people move or seek transitional housing. In this case, Eric got pranked into sobriety! How does that happen? Well, it only takes one good Samaritan to change someone’s life.
He Rigged the Lottery
A local man named Rahat knew Eric. Rahat would see Eric day after day and the two struck up an unlikely friendship. Rahat wanted to do something nice for Eric, so he hatched a plan. One day, he approached Eric on the street. “I don’t have any cash, but I do have this winning lottery ticket. I’m not sure how much I won, but you can cash it and keep whatever it is.”
Eric cashed the ticket, found out he won $1,000, and immediately burst into tears of gratitude. He insisted that Rahat share the money. Since that day, Rahat and Eric have been close friends. Rahat soon started a campaign to raise money for Eric. Once the video of Eric cashing in the lottery ticket hit the internet, it went viral. Rahat was able to raise over $40,000 in under twenty days! He bought Eric a beautiful home, new clothes, supplies, electronics, furniture, and more!
Rahat tricked Eric into thinking they were going out to dinner to celebrate Eric getting a job. Rahat took Eric to his house and, once they were inside, revealed to Eric that it was actually his house now! Eric, in disbelief, was speechless and grateful from the very bottom of his heart and soul.
Eric Isn’t Homeless Anymore
Today, Eric isn’t homeless any longer. He’s clean cut, hardworking, employed, sober, and living everyday to the fullest. He has a roof over his head and food in his stomach.
This inspirational story touched the hearts of thousands of people across the world, including mine. Now, I’m not saying that you should wait around to win the lottery while going through tough times in your life. I am trying to raise awareness about the homeless and addiction. Us addicts have heart, gratitude, perseverance, determination, and survival skills!
The Journey to Recovery
Everyone has their own journey, their own success story, their own unique tale of pulling themselves from hell, but we ALL need a little push to get there. Most of the time, it isn’t until another human being opens our eyes that we see what we’re really work. Once we realize the value of our life, a fire’s started that can’t be extinguished.
If you’re a woman struggling with addiction and don’t know how to end the cycle of pain, we’re here to help. We’re here to give you that push, to make you realize you’re self worth, to show you there’s a better way. We’re here to guide you through the trauma, to love you until you learn to love yourself.
For more information Call 844-SOBER-WOMEN.
