The Journey of Recovery
Life is full of ups and downs and no one is more aware of this than a person in recovery from addiction. There will be periods where things are going well and sobriety remains a priority. Then there will be harder times. Times when life is throwing some punches and peace and placidity are disrupted. This is where serenity in recovery comes in to play.
Serenity, by definition
is the state of being calm or tranquil, serene. When a person experiences serenity they are unbothered by daily annoyances and unruffled by seemingly larger life concerns. Reaching this state of equanimity is a highly sought-after goal for those in recovery from addiction. Life before recovery proved to be chaotic, constantly working out where, how and when the next opportunity to grasp that drug of choice. The life of an addict is laden with the internal struggle of knowing what is wrong in an ethical sense and the desire and need to use. Serenity is what the recovering person is seeking and may have been the state they were chasing when first turning to substance use.
“Here we learned that trouble was really a fact of life for everybody–a fact that had to be understood and dealt with
-As Bill Sees It
Sobriety & Serenity
If you’ve begun your journey of recovery from addiction you’ve also begun the first step toward serenity. It may be easier to think of sobriety as the road and serenity the destination. Yet, there is more to this state of mind than just being sober. In recovery a person practices doing all the right things to achieve and maintain sobriety. This takes plenty of time, energy and focus. It may take years of sobriety before achieving the state of calm serenity provides, but there will glimpses along the way. Achieving serenity is not possible without sobriety. For this reason, it is important to stay the course.
In the Book, As Bill Sees It (pg 110), commonly used for daily recovery readings in AA the writer states, “Here we learned that trouble was really a fact of life for everybody–a fact that had to be understood and dealt with.” Realizing there will be obstacles and disturbances in life opens the door to acceptance of the world ‘as is’. Acceptance to the degree of troubles, “…be converted into un-imagined blessings.” Serenity can help bring that level of calmness and equanimity needed to truly live life on life’s terms. As I mentioned before, my dad had 17 years sobriety that he worked at every day. It wasn’t until those last several years, he entered the phase of serenity, but I know it as a revered part of his recovery.
