This website is dedicated to our journey of finding freedom from trauma, manipulation, addiction, and betrayal through forgiveness, spending time in the kitchen, traveling, and redemption.
Everybody needs some inspiration and motivation while working their recovery path over addictions. The path to recovery is often a long and painful journey. Recovery is different for everyone. What helps one addict certainly may not help the next person. Quotes have a tendency to strike a chord deeply with those looking for a change in their lifestyle. We hope you enjoy this beautiful and inspiring collection we have created on photographs we have taken over the years.
“You must do the thing which you think you cannot do.”
Eleanor Roosevelt U.S. FIRST LADY, DIPLOMAT, HUMAN RIGHTS ACTIVIST
“A river cuts through rock, not because of its power, but because of its persistence.”
James N. Watkins AUTHOR
“The opposite of addiction is not sobriety, but human connection.”
Johann Hari
“I don’t need alcohol to see the world in its depths, I carry the sun in me.”
Lamine Pearlheart
“There are far better things ahead than the ones we leave behind.”
C.S. Lewis
“Keep your eyes on the stars, and your feet on the ground.”
Theodore Roosevelt
“Catch on fire if you must, sometimes everything needs to burn to the ground so that we may grow”.
A.L. Lawless
“Every sunset brings the promise of a new dawn.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson
“The difficulty we have in accepting responsibility for our behavior lies in the desire to avoid the pain of the consequences of that behavior.”
M. Scott Peck
“It isn’t enough to talk about peace. One must believe in it. And it isn’t enough to believe in it. One must work at it.”
Eleanor Roosevelt
“When you make peace with yourself, you make peace with the world.”
Maha Ghosananda
“What we do for ourselves dies with us. What we do for others and the world remains and is immortal.”
Albert Pine
Not one child would ever say “When I grow up I can’t wait to be an addict!”. Yet, unfortunately so many in our society have found themselves in this destructive cycle. The good news is recovery is certainly attainable. Everyone’s path to recovery is different. Many struggle with relapse. Some don’t and are fortunate to get it right the first time out the gate. If you do relapse you can start again. One day at a time. You can succeed!!
We hope the above quotes have resonated with you like they have for us during our journey of Finding our Freedoms. Share them with any loved ones who are looking for a change. When you need some inspiration and peace we hope you can reflect back to these images.
I did a lot of googling and a lot of viewing on YouTube trying to absorb every bit of inspiration and knowledge I could about the disease of addiction. Below you’ll find a wide array of YouTube videos that I have watched and found helpful. I hope you also find some peace and encouragement in the power of knowledge.
Where do find encouragement and information in your daily life? Let us know. Please share any video suggestions that have helped you in your recovery.
Exercise; take up yoga, join a gym, go for a daily walk, ride a bike, start rock climbing, or any other way to be active.
Go camping. Get back with nature. Enjoy and respect the beauty that God created for us. Make sure to leave the campsite cleaner than you found it. Take a good back up battery/solar pack if you aren’t ready to disconnect completely. And trash bags!! Don’t forget the trash bags😉
Invest in positive friendships. You know those who love you that you have been avoiding. Pick up the phone. Call them. Schedule a lunch. Go get pedicures together. Go fishing. Take your kids to the park for a play date. Send them a card if they aren’t close by. I can’t think of anyone that wouldn’t love to find a card in their mailbox rather than a bill!
Learn a new hobby. Do you have an artistic side? You could sign up for a local art class. How about starting a journal and writing in it everyday. Want to learn how to play golf? What about surfing if you are fortunate enough to live near a beach? So many different healthy options. What is your interest?
Volunteer!!! Help those less fortunate than you. Help those in their own recovery. Go to the humane society to play with the lonely animals. Serve a meal at a Ronald McDonald House. Click here to find volunteer opportunities in your area.
Go to church. Get involved!! Start a group for overcoming the things you have struggled with.
Adopt a pet! Only do so if you are able to give it 100% and spoil them rotten. There is no better love than from a pet. Especially a happy and loved pet.
Find ways to connect with family and friends. Throw a BBQ, host a watch party, or have a game night with friends and family. Start a 1000pc. jigsaw puzzle for multiple days of bonding around the table.
Start or join a social media group to build more community. Do you have ways to inspire others to overcome adversities? What are you passionate about? Maybe you could build a Facebook Group covering that.
Start a budget. This will help hold you accountable. Don’t spend what you don’t have! Save every month.
Start reading. Wrap yourself in a soft blanket and find a comfy chair with good natural lighting. Find inspirational words to inspire you to stay clean. Try a daily devotional to kick start your day and start a conversation with your spouse.
Tell your story of recovery. Keep working your steps. Go to meetings and inspire the newcomers. But also, help break through the anonymity of recovery and the shame by telling your story outside of the anonymous rooms. We can do this together!!!
LOVE!!! Learn to love yourself again. Once you learn how to do that you can start loving everyone else in the same manner.
Tell us what has helped you or a loved one to find recovery? Comment or send us an email if you would like discretion. We can’t wait to hear from you. Community is everything.
After fighting this battle with Nick there are some things I now know for sure. Those of us without the addictive gene have a hard time seeing the big picture of addiction. We have such a hard time not being angry and bitter. The more I have researched and walked through this battle I now know otherwise. Our loved ones don’t choose to be addicted. It’s not the alcohol, the sex, the prescription pills, the gambling, the opioids, or the meth. It’s usually underlying trauma from childhood, mental issues, and overall lack of connection. Or in the case of the new drug pornography a lot of these kids are exposed at such a young age in this era of technology that they just think it is normal. Society has normalized this. A lot of times those struggling just don’t feel comfortable. Comfortable in their environment, comfortable in their own skin, or comfort in their own thoughts. Given this, more often than not it is more than just one drug of choice. Multiple addictions takeover their lives.
Addiction to me means an action or substance that negatively affects you or your loved ones. If you have to keep your actions a secret, making sure no one finds out, you probably shouldn’t be doing whatever it is. If you feel like you have to watch over your shoulder constantly something might be wrong. If you’re backing out of screens on your computer or phone, hiding in the bathroom “pooping” for hours, and lying to your loved ones about what you are doing— something is definitely wrong. If you can’t say it out loud you are probably living in the darkness with addiction. If you are feeling alone and isolated in a room full of loved ones you probably need help.
The good news is there are so many options out there to find recovery. Online communities, online and in person AA/NA/SA/Nar-anon/Al-Anon groups, individual and family therapy, getting involved in church, accountability partners, and of course in/out patient treatment facilities. There is hope for all of us. For our journey we have found comfort in many of the above items. Most important for us was rebuilding our relationship with God and rebuilding our loving connection.
Often when an addict releases the grip of their primary addiction another one is waiting to jump into the party. Quit drinking to then be obsessed with sex. Quit watching porn and then live at the casino. Addiction is really a disease, though us nonaddicts have such a hard time believing. They made the choice to take that first hit off the pipe or the first drink or to look up that inappropriate content online. They made the choice! But in all actuality those with an “addict brain” don’t make the choice. Once it gets what it needs it, the brain will do anything to feel that utopia again. This is due to the release of dopamine. It plays such a vital role in those with multiple addictions.
Impulsive behaviors such as sex, watching pornography, gambling, eating, playing video games, and developing online relationships all cause the brain to release dopamine. It produces a sense of euphoria and a lot of it doing nothing but reinforcing these behaviors. The newest impulsive behavior often becomes the new drug for individuals who develop cross addictions. These behaviors awaken the same brain paths creating such similar effects and causing a new downward spiral.
The brain is such a powerful tool. The good news is it can be rewired. The old computer saying of “garbage in, garbage out” rings true with addiction. Start replacing the garbage in your life with positive influences. Be honest! With yourself, with your family, and especially with your higher power. Start making amends. Start taking accountability. Remove people, places, and things that trigger you. Replace them with healthy lifestyle changes. Take a walk. Go to the gym. Or our go to: go camping! Be one with nature. Go to church. Learn a new hobby. Pick up some golf clubs. Volunteer, tell your story, and most of all help others through their recovery. We can all make a difference by breaking through the silence. Let’s not let recovery be anonymous any longer.
Please share in the comments how addiction has negatively affected your lives. Or, if you would like privacy please shoot us an email. We are here to help anyway we can.