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Self-Sabotage in Recovery

Brothers and Sisters in Recovery 🙏 One of the biggest dangers in both active addiction and recovery is self-sabotage. A lot of us think relapse happens only when life gets bad. But the truth is, for many addicts, relapse can also happen when life starts getting good. Why? Because our brains became conditioned to chaos, pain, destruction, and survival mode. In active addiction, we trained ourselves—over and over again—to live in dysfunction. We got used to crisis. We got used to shame. We got used to tearing things down before life could tear them down for us. That is why self-sabotage is so common in recovery. When things finally begin to improve—when relationships heal, when peace shows up, when hope returns, when bills are getting paid, when we begin feeling proud of ourselves—that unfamiliar peace can actually feel threatening. To a brain that spent years wired for destruction, stability can feel uncomfortable. Safety can feel suspicious. Joy can feel foreign. That old addict...
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The Crucial a.k.a. Rock Bottom

 Brothers and Sisters in Recovery 🙏


When you finally hit rock bottom, you have to start new — and there is real beauty in that.


The truth is, sometimes it’s not just one rock bottom. Sometimes we hit bottom several times, one right after another. Life can knock us down hard, and addiction can take us places we never thought we’d go. But the greatest thing about hitting rock bottom is this: you get to start over. And there is something powerful, humbling, and even beautiful about that.


It all comes down to perspective.


Usually when we hit rock bottom, we feel like we’ve lost everything. Pride. Peace. Trust. Relationships. Maybe even ourselves for a while. But in those moments — those raw, broken, desperate moments — we often find the very thing that sets us free: the desperation to change. That desperation can become the foundation of recovery.


Sometimes the breaking is what finally opens the door to healing.


It reminds me of a crucible, or even Marine Corps training. They strip everything away. They push you to your limit. They test every weak point. And at the end of it, you either sink or swim.


But if you’re here… if you’re reading this… if you’re fighting for your recovery today…


You didn’t sink.


You swam.


You survived what was meant to destroy you. You walked through fire and came out stronger, wiser, and more honest than before. That is something to be proud of. Never forget that. Recovery is not weakness — it is one of the greatest acts of courage a person can make.


So if you’re in a hard place right now, don’t curse the bottom too quickly. Sometimes the place that broke you is the same place God uses to rebuild you.


Keep coming back. Keep doing the work. Keep reaching out. Keep believing.


One day at a time. Easy does it. Progress, not perfection. Keep it simple. This too shall pass. Let go and let God. Stay in the fight. We do recover.


With love and gratitude,

Gary G

Comments

  1. HoneyBrown61March 31, 2026 at 5:18 AM

    🙏🏽Thank you, your words are such a wonderful gift to my soul this morning❤️

    ReplyDelete

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