MedWorm.com provides a medical RSS filtering service. Over 6000 RSS medical sources are combined and output via different filters. This feed contains the latest items from the 'What Winners Do' source. Thu, 08 Jan 2009 11:40:09 +0100 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/505404820/ I have been going on for a couple of posts about my inability to talk about some stuff that has really been bothering me. Well, it is with a huge sigh of relief that I tell you that I was finally able to open up about these issues (the details of which I won’t bore you with). I should have done it sooner. I still had to be dragged kicking and screaming into the conversation but once I was in it… I was so glad I was. Things are not magically fixed but I feel a hell of a lot better now that I’ve gotten a few things off my chest. Funny how that works huh? So then this leads me back to the same question I have been having… “why do I find it so hard to talk about my feelings?”. I just don’t get it. Am I afraid of the reaction I will get? I don’t k... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2087062 Wed, 07 Jan 2009 18:22:30 +0100 2087062 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/504786419/ It’s been just about two years clean for me and still I struggle with feelings and emotions. I often wonder what I’m doing wrong. Why do feelings still bother me so much? Why do I tend to keep things in even though I KNOW that it’s harmful to me? What the f. am I so afraid of? I think there was a time early on in my recovery when I just let everything fly. If I was feeling something I acknowledged it, found some way of getting it out… and I moved on. What happened? Something must have happened along the way to get me back into the mindset that I need to be keeping my feelings and emotions inside and not letting anyone know I’m bothered. I didn’t see this happening. A big party of my early recovery was this blog. Looking back at my older posts I can actu... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2084143 Wed, 07 Jan 2009 01:55:55 +0100 2084143 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/502547587/ I’m sitting here thinking: what happened to the girl that would sit in a room full of strangers and talk about her problems and inner thoughts? Even as uncomfortable as it would feel sometimes, I would be completely honest about what was going on inside of me with strangers. So why am I finding it harder and harder to talk to anyone these days? Hmmmmm. Secrets, secrets, secrets… they do a number on you. Not too long ago I wrote a post about how we are only as sick as our secrets. In that post I talked about how f.ed up my family was with all their secrets and how I wasn’t going along with that anymore. So what happened? For me it started with that familiar voice inside my head that says “you know, I’m just not going to deal with this right now”. Like an... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2078813 Sun, 04 Jan 2009 15:33:21 +0100 2078813 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/493143722/ Well it seems that I have been neglecting my blog. I guess it happens right. Can’t always be brimming with profound things to say I did want to take a moment and wish all my readers a safe and happy holiday. This can be an extremely difficult time for anyone but when you add in the stress of trying to stay sober during the holiday season it can become a little overwhelming. My advice? Keep talking, keep listening, keep reading, and most importantly… keep identifying with others. When you boil down every type of recovery program they all seem to be made up of these key elements. So don’t forget. Happy Holidays Related Posts No Related Post (Source: What Winners Do) What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2065430 Tue, 23 Dec 2008 14:39:14 +0100 2065430 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/467663320/ Just a quick note to wish everyone out there a happy Thanksgiving. Enjoy your family and friends. Related Posts No Related Post (Source: What Winners Do) What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1996532 Thu, 27 Nov 2008 21:34:10 +0100 1996532 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/459713155/ In addiction recovery it is very important to routinely take inventory of yourself. Kind of a checks and balances type thing for your thinking and behavior. Why is this so important? Well by now we have learned that no one is perfect. We don’t lead perfectly structured lives all the time. Sometimes we let things slip. Sometimes we make errors and sometimes we just flat out drop the ball. That’s why check and balances in addiction recovery are so important. The easiest way to keep yourself in check is to routinely take an honest look at yourself. An HONEST look at yourself. There is no point in trying to put a positive spin on negative behavior right? You are the only loser in that game. It can be as simple as answering a few questions as honestly as possible or just kind of rec... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1975388 Thu, 20 Nov 2008 17:22:22 +0100 1975388 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/444324924/ We’ve all heard this saying in addiction recovery that we’re only as sick as our secrets. This is something that I think holds 100% truth. I had explained a couple of weeks ago that my sibling that was in recovery was now in active addiction again. He has now once again broke the news to my parents that he is in fact back on drugs and that all of the money that they put up for him to get off drugs the last time has essentially been for nothing. What I’ve learned about my family during the last few days is that they try to keep so many secrets. It’s exhausting trying to keep up with who knows what and who should be kept in the dark. And then it hit me… we’re only as sick as our secrets. I pretty much put my foot down this time telling my family that we ar... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1939303 Thu, 06 Nov 2008 12:44:35 +0100 1939303 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/435850033/ I think it’s important to keep focus in addiction recovery. Focus on the big picture. I think that problem solving in addiction recovery is a huge part of keeping that focus. I find it very easy to lose myself in the details. I can tend to ignore some of the lessons that were so hard learned in my early recovery. There are a few key areas that I have lost focus on lately. With the help of my problem solving skills I am hoping to regain my focus. Allowing myself to be preoccupied with past thoughts is a big one. Policing my own thoughts is the first step in turning my thinking into positive thinking. Dwelling on past situations that went awry… that isn’t doing anyone any good. So why do I go there? Not real sure of the answer to that but I can tell you that I am regaining ... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1939304 Wed, 29 Oct 2008 13:57:26 +0100 1939304 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/420627413/ Like the title says, this topic only applies to ladies for obvious reasons. The reason that I’m talking about this subject is that I have never come across too many discussions about what a hurdle PMS can be in addiction recovery. If you are like me you suffer from PMS, pre menstrual syndrome, each and every month. There are the annoying things like cramps and fatigue but then there are also the emotional upheavals that can come out of left field. It’s these emotional side effects of PMS that I find so challenging to my recovery. I have these very low, lows that come on me and it takes a while for me to realize that it’s a symptom of PMS. Once that is realized I just ride it out. Before that realization, I find myself going through a list in my head of things that I coul... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1880023 Tue, 14 Oct 2008 15:28:53 +0100 1880023 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/407195935/ When we were in active addiction we couldn’t see ourselves for what we were until the very end when we finally surrendered and asked for help. No matter what others would tell us about how we looked or acted we somehow rationalized it as them having a problem… not us. Having an active addict in your family forces you to look close up at addiction but through an outside view. For this recovering addict, watching an active addict is torture. In the past I have talked about how my brother is an addict and how horrible it was to watch. Then I talked about my brother finally giving in and seeking help and how much of a relief that was. Now here I am unfortunately talking about how my brother has let himself slip back to his old addictive ways (although he won’t admit it to any... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1844922 Tue, 30 Sep 2008 11:59:54 +0100 1844922 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/395275054/ I have talked about addictive thinking in the past and surprise, surprise… here I go again. The reason for me bringing up addictive thinking so often? The reason is that I still see that old addictive thinking trying to creep it’s way back in from time to time. So if addictive thinking never goes away… what’s the point of all this? Well, even though it hasn’t entirely disappeared from my brain, I am getting pretty good at identifying addictive thinking. Over the years I have developed some pretty bad behaviors that went unchecked for a long time due to my constant drug use. There were things like never completing anything, missing school/work for no reason other than I didn’t want to go, and the biggest of them all… rationalizing all of my bad be... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1806393 Wed, 17 Sep 2008 15:25:55 +0100 1806393 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/386603764/ I don’t think I’m wrong in saying that a good number of addicts and alcoholics, whether active or not, have a teeny weeny problem with change. It could be we lack the skills necessary to just roll with things, it could be that the way that we have dealt with change, good or bad, in the past has involved drugs or alcohol or it could just be that anything outside of our normal routine scares the poo out of us. If there is one thing you need to accept in life, it’s change. No situation lasts forever in life and that is why there is such a huge importance to be open to change. Right now things are changing for me, as they are for you. I have a new career that I’m starting. I have a child that is entering school and taking the big boy bus. My husband has given his 2 week... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1779397 Mon, 08 Sep 2008 11:48:26 +0100 1779397 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/377237460/ Those of us in recovery have gotten used to the acronym H.A.L.T which translates to hungry, angry, lonely, tired. But have we gotten too used to it? By paying attention to these four areas of our being we are making sure that are very basic needs are being met. When we make sure that our basic needs are being met, we are less likely to turn to drugs or alcohol to solve any unmet basic needs. But, things happen. Sleepless nights, skipped meals, solitude, and even the occasional angry outburst. It is really important to make sure that you realize that any of these basic needs left unmet can leave you searching for ways to artificially change the way you are feeling. As time goes by it can be easy to forget the basics in recovery. Today I am having a particularly awful day. I had almost zero ... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1742851 Thu, 28 Aug 2008 16:07:16 +0100 1742851 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/363003034/ At first we struggle through each day with the sole goal of just not using. We sweat it out, take it minute by minute, and are relieved beyond words when the end of the day comes and we realize that we made it through another day without using. As time goes on we build up some coping skills that make the day to day not using less of a struggle. Before we know it we have lived one day at a time and those days have totaled up to create our first year in recovery. As our recovery progresses into our second year it seems to take on a whole new meaning. This, we realize, is when recovery becomes more than just not using. My personal recovery seems to be about much more than not using these days. It seems to be filled with life lessons, coping skills, and tools for success. My recovery has begu... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1700902 Tue, 12 Aug 2008 15:22:56 +0100 1700902 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/353610738/ Many, many times since entering into addiction recovery and starting this blog you have heard me say that my recovery ebbs and flows. I’m either on point, full steam ahead or I’m just barely hanging in there… trying to survive. Lately I felt that I have been neither of those two scenarios. I have actually been dead center or I guess you could say… centered. In my last post I talked about finding balance in addiction recovery. This has been an area that has caused me the most problems in life. I have a hard time finding the balance in life. I understand that everyone has ups and downs in life, it’s unavoidable. But I think that my inability to find any sort of balance was a huge part of those ups and downs. I am now committed to finding my center in addiction ... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1677277 Sat, 02 Aug 2008 15:04:49 +0100 1677277 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/339893454/ I have a hard time keeping myself balanced. What does that even mean right? Well to me it means not going off like gangbusters (I can’t believe I just used the term gangbusters… when did I start talking like my grandmother?) in one direction leaving other parts of myself to rust up and die. A little over-dramatic? Maybe. There was a time when my only goal in recovery was getting through the day without using. Happily, through time and a lot of work, I have built up skills that allow me to get through most days without ever thinking about my drug of choice. Great. But what about all the other things that I’ve tried working on throughout my recovery. Why do I go balls out, start seeing results, then get kind of bored and let it fall to the wayside? I feel like this is stil... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1639310 Sat, 19 Jul 2008 14:23:27 +0100 1639310 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/336124497/ Every so often I feel myself coming undone. Not in a severe way where I am contemplating using again, but in a more subtle way like my edges are just starting to unravel. I guess my fear of going back to my old ways keeps me on the look out for these littlest changes in myself. More times than not, when I notice this “undone” feeling I eventually come to the conclusion that my day to day routines have been disrupted in some way. I guess sometimes I just forget the importance of a routine. In a post that The Discovering Alcoholic wrote called An Anchor to Keep from Drifting, he talked about the different things that he does while on the road that anchor him and keep him from drifting away from his recovery. Boom! Just like that I realized that I had been letting some of the rout... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1625721 Tue, 15 Jul 2008 14:29:17 +0100 1625721 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/329851130/ I’ve talked before about my need for a routine. It seems that when I let my routine slide a little… I fall apart. This past week my husband was on vacation and we really had a great time going on day trips here and there. All of this fun had me away from my house and more importantly away from my routine. Excellent right? Then why is it that I feel like I’ve come undone? In the post I did about identifying the difference between backsliding and human imperfection I touched on the fact that I give my self a very hard time when I feel that I’m not doing the best that I could be doing. I guess I’m just a little unforgiving with myself. Yesterday I tried very hard to get back into the “normal” routine swing of things and it was difficult. Sure, I got s... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1596570 Tue, 08 Jul 2008 14:29:41 +0100 1596570 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/326675554/ Happy Fourth of July to everyone. I hope you have fun gathering with friends and family to celebrate our countries independence. Maybe catch a parade, have a cookout and wrap the day up with some fireworks. What could be better than that? Last year’s Fourth of July was a pretty difficult time for me. Being 6 months into my recovery, I was still filled with a lot of uncontrollable emotions that had been ignored for so long. I kind of had an emotionally draining day which left me looking for something… anything to make it stop. I guess that’s why I popped a pill. Last year on this day I was about 6 months into my recovery. On the morning of July fourth I had written a Happy Fourth of July post talking about what this holiday meant to me. All of the reminiscing had gotten me... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1577394 Fri, 04 Jul 2008 14:29:33 +0100 1577394 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/323305114/ Back in the old days I would take on a commitment of some sort whether it be with school, work or social and then I would no doubt fall short of what I commited to do because I would talk myself out of it. Maybe it was going to interfere with me being messed up. Maybe it  was because I got messed up the night before and couldn’t drag my lazy ass out of bed. There were many reasons that all had the same conclusion… I never finished anything I started. This is why still now, a year and a half into my recovery, I am pleasantly surprised when I actually finish something I started. Let me tell you about my latest start to finish. Around the time that I wrote the post on finding your life’s purpose I was presented with an opportunity to volunteer my time painting faces at a lo... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1556439 Mon, 30 Jun 2008 15:15:34 +0100 1556439 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/318142951/ I think that although I appear to be very easy going I am actually much harder on myself than what is needed. I feel that every so often I lose sight of the fact that to have imperfections is to be human. Sure, I can tell you that you should ease up on yourself because after all… you’re just a person and as we all know, no one is perfect. So why is it that when I see myself slip up here and there (not in my sobriety.. just everyday kind of things) that I right away jump to the fact that I must be backsliding into my old ways? Why am I not easier and more understanding with myself? I guess at this stage of my recovery I feel that being very rigid with myself about certain things is the only way that I will make it. I feel that I cannot trust myself to just get done what needs to... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1538223 Mon, 23 Jun 2008 14:44:28 +0100 1538223 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/309820302/ So I have accepted the fact that we will never truly understand what life is all about. But does that mean that I will never understand my own life’s purpose? I don’t believe that. I feel like all of your life is building up to something and when it all comes together… you find your life’s purpose. But what do you do until then? What do you do with the question: “what am I doing here?” Sometimes I take a look at the many, many roles I have played in my 30 years on earth. I try to connect the dots and find what all of these various situations would have to do with one another and what things from each experience could be meshed together to make something else. So far… nothing.  I can’t seem to figure it out yet. So I feel a little lost at th... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1508713 Wed, 11 Jun 2008 18:55:23 +0100 1508713 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/308070237/ So it has been 1 year, 5 months and some change since I entered into addiction recovery. I have overcome a lot of my bad behaviors and addictive thinking patterns but there is one huge behavior that I am having trouble shaking… isolating. We all know that active addiction and isolation are old chums and that they fit together so well. One directly feeds off of the other and eventually take over your whole being leaving you with… addiction and isolation. Well I guess I am living proof that just because you take away one, it doesn’t mean that the other will follow. It seems that isolation will hang out until you actively push it out of your life. So how do you go about avoiding isolation in addiction recovery? In the past I noticed that I do this horrible thing that involve... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1502694 Mon, 09 Jun 2008 14:56:33 +0100 1502694 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/300721664/ We’ve all seen the poster of the kitty hanging off the tree limb with the caption “Hang In There Baby”. But who would have thought that this little blurb could be the foundation of a healthy spiritual life? We all have both highs and lows as our life sort of ebbs and flows through time. I guess what I’m realizing is that I need to make the most  out of the highs in life so that when the lows come I am better prepared to hang in there. We’re not always going to be feeling like sunshine and roses. That is one thing in life we can pretty much be certain about. What we can’t be certain about is how long each of these periods will last. It’s not like there is an egg timer you can set that will let you know that you are almost done with a low period in ... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1478103 Thu, 29 May 2008 18:52:32 +0100 1478103 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/298403692/ I think that sometimes we lose sight of what this holiday is really about. I just wanted to take a moment to thank all those that have served in our military. Thank you Random PostsAugust 25, 2007 -- Cymbalta Withdrawal Only Exists On Message Boards (12)September 18, 2007 -- Addiction Recovery: Everything Is Copacetic (0)February 11, 2008 -- Amy Winehouse At The Grammys (4)July 30, 2007 -- That Old Addictive Thinking (3)April 27, 2007 -- Addiction Recovery: Using The Secret (0) (Source: What Winners Do) What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1467922 Mon, 26 May 2008 14:15:31 +0100 1467922 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/296715368/ Weird question I guess but in my opinion there is nothing more important to someone’s recovery than being self aware. Think of how it used to be. You went through life numbing out every inkling of self awareness so that you wouldn’t have to face your true thoughts and feelings. I think that overcoming that need to block out your true thoughts and feelings sums up what recovery is all about. So with that said… are you self aware? My answer is I’m working on it. I don’t think that self awareness is something that you can set and forget. It’s the type of thing that you constantly need to work on. I guess it follows along the same lines as spirituality in recovery. You don’t just become spiritual and there you stay. You pretty much search out your spir... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1466174 Fri, 23 May 2008 17:41:24 +0100 1466174 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/291689571/ This is going to sound bizarre but I realized that watching TV has taught me how to delay instant gratification. In a world where everything is available NOW, it’s no wonder that we grow to expect things right now. That includes our gratification. What I realized this morning while I was thinking about my absolute most favorite show of all time, Lost, is that even the way I watch TV has changed since entering addiction recovery. So let me tell you how TV has taught me to delay instant gratification. Like I said, Lost is my favorite show. There are a lot of shocks and surprised on the show and it always leaves you wanting more. That’s why when I was in active addiction and was in my full blown addictive thinking mode I wouldn’t watch Lost on TV because I couldn’t sta... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1446277 Fri, 16 May 2008 15:04:43 +0100 1446277 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/291638919/ I pride myself on being a morel and honest person who does not steal or cheat to get ahead in life. I live day to day thinking that my honest way of life will somehow be rewarded in time. Most days this is very easy to swallow but sometimes I am overwhelmed with frustration and can’t shake the feeling that nice girls really do finish last. We all probably know one or two people in life that always have a some kind of scam going that puts them ahead. Whether they stole a computer from work or they fudged some numbers and got paid a little more than they should… they always seem to be getting things without having to work for them. I know that karma isn’t as simple as doing something good and having something good happen to you (you know, like on My Name Is Earl) but somet... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1446278 Fri, 16 May 2008 13:39:52 +0100 1446278 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/286874828/ I truly can’t believe it but it’s already time for Mother’s Day again. The year has gone by so quickly but it has also brought so many changes. Last year my Happy Mother’s Day post was about my own mother and the importance of a mother’s support and understanding for her child in their recovery. This year I wanted to talk about how much my own role of a mother has improved now that I am further into my addiction recovery. No food, no clean clothes, no order and basically no rules. This would be a pretty good description of the way my home was when I was in active addiction. Sad but very true. Last Mother’s Day came when I was about three months into my recovery. I had realized that my family’s home life needed a lot of improvements and I vowed to ... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1432642 Fri, 09 May 2008 14:59:04 +0100 1432642 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/283856079/ I just registered for a membership on a site called The Second Road. I’ll give you the description of the site in The Second Road’s own words “We are a free non-profit online community BY and FOR people in recovery from addictions of all kinds. We welcome people of ALL stages of recovery using ANY method that works for them.” This site caught my attention at first because it looks cool but The Second Road is much more than a cool looking website. It is starting a true addiction recovery community feel amongst it’s members. All members create their own page and have the ability to write quick updates in a recovery journal which they can share with others or keep private. This feature is really great because it gives the feel of sharing at a meeting. You post a... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1420625 Mon, 05 May 2008 18:53:04 +0100 1420625 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/283301228/ So I’ve talked, almost a sickening amount, about how active addiction keeps us from developing life skills. But what I really haven’t discussed is how being in addiction recovery makes building up life skills possible. There I am driving down the road. I should be concentrating on, oh I don’t know… driving. But I’m not. I’m thinking about what it would take for my husband, my son and myself to be able to move out of where we live now. This train of thought somehow turned into setting goals for myself and then… Boom. It hit me, an epiphany. An epiphany you say. Wow. Did you figure out the cure for some horrible disease? Nope. I figured out how to properly set goals for myself. Goals you say. What are you like 16 years old? Nope. I’m 30. The r... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1419336 Sun, 04 May 2008 13:28:26 +0100 1419336 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/282819630/ I was inspired by Bottlecappie at Diary of a Quitter to participate in Mine Enemy Grows Older which is a collaborative poetry project run by Rick Mobbs. I have never in my life written poetry but I do love art. Since the whole concept of this project is to look at an image prompt, which is a work of art by Rick Mobbs, and see what it inspires out of you, I figured I would take a shot at it. So without further ado… Here is my first shot (I’m getting embarrassed already!) at poetry. No Containment There is a piece of me in all I see An infinite amount of connections that will always be I’m in the ground, in the sky, in the sun, in the moon I’m intertwined in the earth’s continuous tune The shadows from the moon and the brightness from the sun Keeps our natural ... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1418500 Sat, 03 May 2008 16:34:34 +0100 1418500 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/282730007/ In recovery there is a great saying “Easy Does It But Do It”. I always understood what this saying meant but I never really applied it to my life. I was living under the assumption that things always have a way of working themselves out. Which is true… if you do your part. Since we work on our ability to accept the things we cannot change we should surer than shit be working on the other part to that which is having the courage to change the things we can. A long time ago in my recovery I decided to live by a very simple plan: Do what I can, the best that I can each and every day. Simple right? It’s a simple idea but the act of performing it is tough at times. It involves facing problems head on as they arise, no matter how big or how small. Which, for some reason,... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1418501 Sat, 03 May 2008 13:06:04 +0100 1418501 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/277780090/ It’s never nice to think about but when you are an addict your top priority, and sometimes your only priority, is drugs. Finding them, affording them, doing them, feeling their effects, coming down off them…finding them again. Once you are no longer in active addiction you’re able to take a clear look at what the important things are in your life. A clear head and a better understanding of yourself will drastically change what you consider as your top priorities in life. My suggestion is to rebuild what your priorities are in your recovery and…keep it simple. There was a time when how my life appeared to others was something that I put a lot of stock in. Sure, I might have told you that I didn’t care but in reality it kept me from being real with a lot of peop... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1399234 Fri, 25 Apr 2008 18:37:19 +0100 1399234 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/274752594/ Anyone who has gone through very early recovery can tell you that at first everything seems like it will just fall into place. You have stopped your physical addiction and have been working on your mental addiction. You are walking around in your pink cloud and life is good. And then… Well, and then you realize that things aren’t just going to get better on their own. You have not miraculously become the person you’ve always wanted to be. Are you ready to do something about that? The reason I’m brining up this subject (once again) is because I have a sibling that in late December of 2007 entered into addiction recovery. I have had to sit back and watch my addict family member go through all of the difficulties that early recovery brings. I’ve seen the highs an... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1389145 Mon, 21 Apr 2008 15:05:23 +0100 1389145 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/272946479/ If you are familiar with addiction recovery, you know that living life one day at a time is a major part of a successful recovery. I’m here to say that in order to be happy, healthy, and have a little peace of mind in life you need to not only live one day at a time…you need to begin being present. Learn to stay in the moment. When was the last time that you sat down to eat a meal and actually concentrated on the act of eating? Usually we are doing other things besides just eating that take our minds miles away from what we are actually doing. We’re not staying in the moment…we’re somewhere else. How many times have you sat down to read something just to realize that you haven’t actually been absorbing the last few paragraphs that you just read because y... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1382465 Fri, 18 Apr 2008 15:17:49 +0100 1382465 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/271738392/ It’s so funny that when everything is going smoothly that I strain my brain for something to write about and usually come up short. It makes perfect sense, I write to express my feelings and problems. When my feelings are copacetic and there aren’t any major problems what am I supposed to say? I guess I could say that last year around this time I was still in very early recovery. I never dreamed that I could feel the peace of mind that I do at this very moment. Not without drugs anyway. But here I am. Happy, healthy, easy going, responsible, goofy and for the first time since I can remember…excited about life. That’s about it for today. Random PostsJune 29, 2007 -- Addiction Recovery: How Do You Relieve Stress? (1)April 4, 2007 -- Just Raise Your Hand (4)May 8, 2007... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1378029 Wed, 16 Apr 2008 22:31:59 +0100 1378029 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/267218113/ The post I recently did about learning to accept the things I cannot change got me thinking about a negative behavior that I was riddled with in active addiction…not facing problems head on. The behavior of avoiding problematic situations is something that is very common with addicts. See, the key to successfully living in denial about all of your problems is to numb yourself into oblivion until you don’t think about them anymore. Simple right? So what happens when you are no longer numbing away your problems with drugs or alcohol? Well, unless you want to continue living a miserable life that is completely based on denial and a disconnection from your soul you need to master the art of facing problems head on in recovery. (more…) Related Posts:February 19, 2008 -- Lifest... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1360806 Wed, 09 Apr 2008 19:49:37 +0100 1360806 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/265281230/ I had another one of those great Sundays. The kind of Sunday when it’s rainy out and you spend the day putting around the house doing this and that. You get to the little tasks that you’ve been too busy to get to. You know, the kind that really recharges your batteries and make you able to tackle Monday morning. See, it used to be that Sunday was my day for dying on the couch. I would have mixed alcohol with Oxy’s on Saturday night and my body would be recovering from being poisoned. It usually guaranteed a wasted Sunday. (more…) Random PostsJanuary 17, 2008 -- Tag Your It - Favorite Five Meme (12)February 22, 2008 -- How Is Addiction Recovery Like Baseball? (3)November 2, 2007 -- Addiction Recovery:A Bad Person Trying To Become Good Or A Sick Person Trying To Becom... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1354127 Sun, 06 Apr 2008 22:38:16 +0100 1354127 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/262815263/ I was thinking about the part of the serenity prayer that says “grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change”. Now, I’m not going to try and fool you into thinking that I go to NA/AA meetings all the time by talking the talk. But, I do want to point out that there are a lot of things that I took away from my time in NA/AA that I find useful in my everyday life. One of the things that I feel that I’ve struggled with has been the whole accepting the things I cannot change. Rationally I know the importance of this acceptance but I have struggled to take that rational thought and put it to use in my life. That was until I heard myself telling my son “you do what you can, the very best that you can, and that is all you can do”. Boom! How simple.... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1346213 Wed, 02 Apr 2008 18:14:03 +0100 1346213 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/262137944/ Just as our server problems had taken this site down for a few days, it took down The Suboxone Help Spot. I just wanted to write a quick little post and let anyone who is interested know that The Suboxone Help Spot is back up and running. I wanted to apologize to the current members of the site. I realize that a lot of you  use the Suboxone Help Spot as your main source of support and without warning it was not available to you. I am doing everything in my power to make sure that this same scenario never happens again. Thank you so much for your patience and understanding. Random PostsApril 17, 2007 -- In Recovery Act As If… (2)January 9, 2008 -- The Sun Is Rising Once Again On The Write Thought (0)August 9, 2007 -- Why Have An Addiction Recovery Blog? (7)May 18, 2007 -- Slowly Leav... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1344457 Tue, 01 Apr 2008 18:50:34 +0100 1344457 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/260244804/ After reading a post over at TDA about Lame PSA’s Blamed For Drug Use, I got to thinking about how we tell young people about the dangers of addiction. The answer…we don’t really do that at all. We tell them that if they use too many drugs they will lose their personality. We tell them not to drink and drive. We tell them that Oxycontin ruined our lives. We even go so far as to tell them that if they smoke pot while babysitting the child will drown in the pool (seriously, have you seen this one?). What we don’t do is explain the true reasons why for some people drinking and drugging becomes an addiction that can take over their entire life and sometimes lead them so far down that they never come back up. But how do you explain the dangers and warning signs of addict... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1335293 Sat, 29 Mar 2008 14:19:47 +0100 1335293 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/259990678/ You know what is weird? In a professional sense I welcome change. I’m open to procedure changes and I stay positive and try to keep others positive. Why then, in my personal life do I sometimes get so sad about change? This topic has come up in my head tonight because I was reading a post by The Junkie’s Wife called Zombie Love which was talking about her missing some of the way things used to be. Me, already being down tonight (as seen in this The Write Thought Post called Feelings Suck Sometimes) was brought to tears over this post. Sometimes I just get a little overwhelmed when I think about how much in my life has changed. I don’t give into thinking about this often because it usually ends up with me feeling sad but tonight…it has gotten the best of me. I figure... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1335294 Sat, 29 Mar 2008 00:33:39 +0100 1335294 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/259990679/ For anyone who has entered into addiction recovery, one thing becomes clear…support is needed in order for you to be successful in your addiction recovery. “You alone can do it, but you cannot do it alone” - O. Hobart Mowrer But what makes support such an important component to a successful recovery? And what is the meaning of support when it’s pertaining to addiction recovery? (more…) Related Posts:March 29, 2008 -- Just Don’t Do It Doesn’t Work…How Do We Tell Young People About The Dangers Of Addiction? (0)March 15, 2008 -- Fortune Teller or Fellow Recovering Addict? (2)March 11, 2008 -- One of THOSE Days…Getting Through Tough Days In Recovery (4)March 5, 2008 -- How Do You Make Yourself Feel Better (8)February 29, 2008 -- Addiction R... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1335295 Fri, 28 Mar 2008 17:57:36 +0100 1335295 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/259990682/ For anyone who keeps up with any of my sites you may have noticed lately…they were not there. What started out as our server being hacked, has ended up with us being down and out for DAYS. I have been without my sites and without email and it has really shown me that my blog and my online associations are really a huge part of my recovery. This whole thing came at a time when I was questioning what my blog meant to me. I felt that I had nothing worth reading spilling out of this brain of mine. My server has been down and I have been going absolutely crazy with ideas for posts. Funny how these things work out right? For now I will leave you with the news that I am slowly recovering from a server meltdown. I have been down but not out. Random PostsFebruary 2, 2008 -- Addiction Recovery... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1335296 Fri, 28 Mar 2008 14:02:18 +0100 1335296 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/256078428/ Religion is a topic that I absolutely do not discuss with strangers. I find that one side is always trying to convert the other side into thinking their way. It makes me feel uncomfortable. With that said…I wanted to wish a Happy Easter to any of you out there that celebrate the holiday. This goes to those that are into the whole religious aspect of Easter and also to those of you that only celebrate this holiday because you have a child and you want your child to be able to experience the joy of having the Easter Bunny visit and leave a basket full of candy. I fall into the latter category and I apologize to no one for it. My family and friends all know the deal with me, my husband and my child. We are what you would call spiritual…not religious. I know that in the Christian r... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1321174 Sat, 22 Mar 2008 15:04:07 +0100 1321174 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/255150953/ I got back from New York last night after a three day business/pleasure trip. I feel completely wiped out. Sure, it could be because I spent about 5 hours total on trains yesterday or it could be that I ate completely crappy the entire time I was there. Whatever the reason is…I’m taking today to get myself back in check. I’ll be back to writing something worth reading tomorrow. Random PostsNovember 11, 2007 -- Addiction Recovery: Get Back To Basics (1)September 26, 2007 -- Nikki Sixx - Heroin Diaries: A Year In The Life Of A Shattered Rockstar (1)April 4, 2007 -- I’m a Drug Addict Not a Journalist (4)April 5, 2007 -- Some Myths About the Dreaded Relapse (3)August 7, 2007 -- Putting It All Out There (1) (Source: What Winners Do) What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1317848 Thu, 20 Mar 2008 21:42:46 +0100 1317848 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/251963230/ You know how you file each blog post under a category? Well I was going to post something and thought that I would make a category named “personal”. Ooh, a personal category. That’s where I could put all the stories about my life. Wait a minute…isn’t this whole site about my life? It’s personal really. Wouldn’t I therefore have to put everything I wrote under personal? I guess I’ll skip that category. But this did bring up a nice reminder that I would like to share with you. Everything that I’m writing about on this site really is my life. I’m no fortune teller…we’re just all in the same boat. (more…) Related Posts:Addiction Recovery: Being Reminded of How Sick We Were (8)One of THOSE Days…Getting Through T... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1305383 Sat, 15 Mar 2008 13:33:46 +0100 1305383 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/249850544/ So, you know THOSE type of days. Everything that could go wrong does go wrong down to the tiny things like driving away from the drive through to realize that they gave you a flavored iced coffee instead of the coffee flavored iced coffee that you wanted and needed…desperately. So on a day when all those little things combined with a few big things start to pile up, how do you get through? That is, how do you get through with out the old standby solution of smoking or drinking or snorting your troubles away…for a little while. (more…) Related Posts:How Do You Make Yourself Feel Better (7)Addiction Recovery: Sickness or Backsliding? (4)How Is Addiction Recovery Like Baseball? (2)Lifestyle Changes In Addiction Recovery: How I Went From Queen of The Jams To Suzie Homemaker (... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1296150 Wed, 12 Mar 2008 01:44:02 +0100 1296150 http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WhatWinnersDo/~3/246382959/ Since we are trying to avoid the use of mood altering substances as our first defense against negative feelings, it leaves us with the question “How do you make yourself feel better?”. You know what I mean right? Those times in life when you feel lost, vulnerable, worthless, sad, hopeless…and all those other crappy feelings that I left out. How do you turn your feelings around and make yourself feel better without reaching for that instant fix? The truth is there are a lot of ways to make yourself feel better without resorting to using drugs but the thing that we need to accept is that when feelings are concerned…there is no such thing as instant gratification. (more…) Related Posts:Addiction Recovery: Sickness or Backsliding? (3)How Is Addiction Recovery Like... What Winners Do blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1282290 Wed, 05 Mar 2008 22:09:08 +0100 1282290