I broke my one year of sobriety, now what? [Natural Medicine Goals for 2020]

in Natural Medicine5 years ago

I am a survivor who has spent over half of my 31 years of life living as an addict.


seedling-through-cracks.jpg
Source


My mind was broken at a very young age by the people I cared about and trusted. Nobody then knew what would become of me through my experiences, and it wasn't until just a few years ago that I even began to understand this. Living each day can be difficult. The monsters come out at night in my dreams because I've spent so many years hiding from them during the day. Alcohol and drugs were my go to ninja vanishing smoke. These tools possess great potential for healing when used in moderation; however, abuse was the name of my game.

I found the whirlpools of escapisms to be chaotically delightful in comparison to the agony which raked my soul and mind. I didn't really understand it as a teenager as I had repressed the memories, hidden in cellars accessed only through secret passageways. Misguided emotions drive the self when the unconscious mind has obfuscated an idea from the conscious mind. Unable to place the origin of experience, the mind grapples with madness as it tries to hide from itself.


Anger.

Anger.jpeg

Source


I was anger in its most raw form. A pyre which engulfed anything precious in its path, leaving only charred remains of even itself in the end. Far from understanding what true love or happiness was, a hatred for life swelled like seas into oceans.

Although this demon was my own creation (experiences not withstanding), of it I was not amused. I quelled it as best I could through the mountains of drugs I could hurdle in one night. This would ultimately lead me to joining the military though, as I eventually realized that cocaine every day is unsustainable (can't afford rehab? Risk your life for a tyrannical regime! You might even get an education out of it).

The original pain still existed after having separated from the military and reentering the civilian life. Thus, I once again found myself in the self-destructive cycle of alcohol and drug abuse. I experienced off and on homelessness for around 5 years after my time in the service before I found a housing program which put me into my own housing and set me up with a social worker to help me address all of my needs.

I was able to find a mental health practitioner (I went through the circus of them all before finding one to genuinely help) who helped me understand my past and how its brought me to be who I am. This, coupled with my studies and practices in the occult, helped me to shed my past and to extinguish the flames of destruction in order to honor the fires of resilience.


The beginning of last year marked a major change in my life as I continued my path of healing.

golden-spiral-woman.jpg
Source


On the 6th of January, 2019, I took on the objective to stop drinking alcohol. Not only was alcohol destroying my mind and body, but it was devastating my romantic relationship with a woman I love all my everything.

Very quickly I began to see how much damage this drug had done in my life. Although I would desire the bitterness of the oak aged whiskey, I continued to move through the pain unattenuated. I began going to the gym every day and eating as healthily as I possibly could. I did fabulous for about 6 months, at which point I had a severe fibromyalgia flare-up and fell out of my routine as I nursed myself over the course of a month long flare-up.

I had a hard time finding motivation to commit to my health routines after I was feeling a bit better and more manageable again. I stopped eating as healthy and go to the gym only a handful of times each month, but I maintained by sobriety from alcohol.


I was hanging out, celebrating the new year with my partner, Willow, when the feeling of having missed out on something began to settle in.


I hadn't had any strong urges to drink alcohol in months, yet everything felt like it was making me want to drink that day. So I decided I would have a few drinks because I had proven to myself that I could control my use of alcohol.

By golly was I wrong.

All in all, the night went well and was enjoyable as we played card games and video games through the night. I told myself I would drink one drink an hour and drink water in between each alcoholic drink. And here's where I realized I still do not have control. I drank way too much alcohol and not nearly enough water which left me feeling like a moldy, wrung out dish rag the next morning when I awoke. It was at this point that I truly decided that I do not want to drink alcohol to get drunk, IF I ever drink again.


So what now?

what_now.jpg
Source


Now that the new solar year is fully upon us, with the lunar new year fast approaching, I plan to fully engage myself back in my health regiment. I successfully earned a 4.0 GPA in my first semester in premed as I study to become a licensed naturopathic doctor, and I am starting my second term in less than a week. This term is the medicinal preparations course and I plan to take as much from it as I possibly can in order to boost my abilities in this area of my expertise.

I plan on getting back into the gym multiple times a week, a minimum of three times a week is my goal. My physical health is always teetering, but I want to tip the scale to be more stable on the feeling well end. I have been seeing a naturopath in regards to fibromyalgia and they've suggested several things to do. I will be starting hydrotherapy this month, along with taking oral magnesium chelates, vitamin C, 5-htp, and coq-10.

I plan to do my best to perfect indoor growing of cannabis so that I have a continuous source of this medicine for my personal use and for making extracts.

I am continuing to unravel my mind and release the anger I have stored for so long.

But, one of the most important goals I have set is to continue to foster and grow my relationship with my partner, Willow, so that we may have a long lasting, wholesome relationship together. She is the woman I would like to have children with in the next few years, and so I need to be as mentally and physically healthy as I possibly can in order to be the best person I can be for her, and our future children.


I am a survivor who has come to realize that pain is a point of contingency which generates growth.


I have needlessly abused alcohol and drugs in the past, but have used those experiences now to catalyze a new experience which fosters health. I know what I need to do in order to be happy and content, but I struggle with physical and mental ailments which often limit me from obtaining these ideas easily. I will do my best to accept what I cannot change, and to put 100% effort into changing that which I can.


Better-Way-Sign.jpg
Source


Thank you for joining me today. May you have a blessed new year.


Sort:  

You have been 🙏 curated by @njord

Beautifull and nice

The fact that you are writing this, ,sharing your experience and learnt from it is all progress in my eyes. You know now what you need to do, you don't want to drink again, that is progress, you have been doing really well and this year you will have such a wonderful year full of abundant health and happiness xxxx

I know this story mostly already but it still makes my heart burst to fullness for love of YOU and all the amazingness you are. It did make me giggle that you THOUGHT you could moderate yourself on NYE... lol. At least you are smart enough to realise it's not the best idea. Your 2020 is going to be the BEST year yet.. I know it. Xxxx

Good for you for putting this out into the universe. I am the same way. I can not control myself. I think I can, but when it comes down to actually doing it, oh hell no! I have been telling myself the past year that I can control my opiate use. Just a little here and there, and I will be fine. Well that is not how it went down. But it is important to recognize that fact, and learn from it. I have put everything down, and now only use cannabis. I am also starting to go to meetings. It feels great when you take control. Your a smart dude and I know you got this, but if you ever need someone to talk to, you know where to find me. One day at a time brother.

Thanks so much for sharing. Loved the sentiments, much respect. Blessings
4.0 gpa .. Thinking of how you might have helped my grandaughter who I believe was damaged by vaccines

Thank you so much for sharing.
My boyfriend and I have 72 days clean.
It is a much better way!

Congratulations @alchemage! You have completed the following achievement on the Steem blockchain and have been rewarded with new badge(s) :

You distributed more than 61000 upvotes. Your next target is to reach 62000 upvotes.

You can view your badges on your Steem Board and compare to others on the Steem Ranking
If you no longer want to receive notifications, reply to this comment with the word STOP

Vote for @Steemitboard as a witness to get one more award and increased upvotes!

Thank you for sharing brother.

My story is not disimilar. My drugs of choice are mostly bad food / overeating and tobacco, now having mostly let the others go. This too shall also pass, as i continue on my journey integrating unintegrated emotions.

You mind just find The Presence Process helpful btw. It is a self-facilitated emotional integration procedure, contained in a book. The Presence Process by Michael Brown. It is a phenomenal peice of work. I highly recommend it.

Namaste
Atma

Oh dear friend...

I learned at an early age too...

...there are no answers at the bottom of a bottle.

Growing up with a Mom that had Multiple Sclerosis, no Dad, grandparents that were not in good health. No "normal" childhood some would say. When most kids 'my age' were playing with Hot Wheels I was learning what a stroke was, and how to fix food that wouldn't interact with medications. But it made me who I am... I played the Army role... I was contaminated with Trichloroethylene, and now... I too, have Multiple Sclerosis.

But you know what? I wake up... every day. I can prove to others... there's hope...

Day by day my friend. Love and light...

@alliedforces curate

You got some love from a member of @thealliance family!
Keep up the great work and join us in The Castle sometime!
The #spreadlovenotwar curation campaign is under the guidance of witnesses @enginewitty and @untersatz.
Current VP: 79.32%