Change is Possible
Out of respect for yourself and others, you can change yourself. As life becomes unmanageable our thinking becomes distorted and behavior becomes irresponsible. Consequences pile up. When men and women enter treatment, they are often tired of the way life is and are desperate to think, feel, and act differently.
Reasons to Stay the Same
I have dedicated my life to helping people make meaningful changes. However, most people are not changers, they are justifiers. When trouble comes, it’s easy to rationalize poor choices, accelerating efforts to stay the same rather than think or act differently. Instead of admitting to a mistake, they excuse their poor decisions, argue with conventional wisdom, and blame others for their errors. Staying the same is the default setting. To correct your course, you must be intentional and willful. Although difficult, overriding the default setting is essential.
Choosing Change
Don’t change out of obligation to someone else or because you feel forced. Make the choice to change out of love for who you are today and who you can become tomorrow, not out of disgust for who you were yesterday. Many people, when they feel forced by others to change, become oppositional, resistant, and defiant. To combat this resistance, you must be a willing leader of the new behavior rather than a combative or reluctant follower of someone else’s directive. You can choose to change and decide to be different. Use your strengths to help yourself instead of using your energy to defy someone else. You can’t act the same, feel the same, and think the same, and simultaneously create a different life. Recovery is possible only to the degree you willingly make long-term changes in your thoughts and behaviors. The good news for you is this important process has already begun.
Recovery is a Journey. Enjoy the Ride!