Exercise is a necessity

Walking dummy, photo by anonymous, Nea Smyrni, Greece, easy movementStudies have shown that people suffering from diabetes can lower their sugar count by exercise and weight loss. Most people who are overweight find it difficult to exercise. Nevertheless, exercise is a necessity to all people. Walking is a gentle effective form of exercise.

she complained to me about
being asked by her doctor to
exercise regularly, even just walking
and I explained that
exercise is a necessity to
physical and mental health
she promised to begin by
walking short distances
and then perhaps
increase that bit by bit
before she saw me next time
I think that is an excellent beginning

Addiction is lying

cat 1, photo by, João Estêvão A. de Freitas, Santa Cruz, Portugal,  look insideA main symptom of addiction is lying. Lying to yourself (denial) and lying to others. ‘The eyes are the windows to the soul’, that’s how the expression goes and it’s real. When addicts lie they believe that others can’t tell that they are not telling the truth. That is why it is important to communicate what we see to an addict instead of being too embarrassed to say that they look stoned, drunk or that they seem to be concealing something. The best way to do that is to say that their eyes are giving the game away and then let go of the outcome. In other words, don’t expect an addict to own up straight off. Instead say what you see and feel, and then be prepared to walk away rather than argue the point.

I was running a halfway house meeting
for men in recovery from drug addiction
one of the guys came late and made a feeble excuse
and his behaviour was suspicious
I felt uncomfortable and so I asked him
what he had used?
he denied it vehemently
addiction is lying
I then repeated my question, unemotionally
and he owned up that he had used codeine
saying that usually he got away with his lies
I then offered to take him to a detox unit
as the house rule stipulated so that
he would be given one more chance
to come back
I had trusted my gut feeling and
he gave up the lie
it’s as simple as that!

A white-knuckling recovery

White Knuckles, photo by Kristen Price, Muskogee, United States, addiction recovery It’s great to come into recovery from addiction. It means freedom from being compelled to do things we don’t want to do anymore. Such things which are harmful to us. Addiction recovery means serenity and peace of mind. However, there are some of us who experience a white-knuckling recovery – sometimes called a dry drunk. This means struggling with the demon of addiction. The only hope is to persist in the search for serenity and recovery will then be true freedom from compulsion.

they would ask me
why was it so hard to find
serenity in their recovery?
it felt like no matter what they did
it was a white-knuckling recovery!
I explained that for some
making the decision to be in recovery
is a smooth transition from insanity to sanity
and for others it is somewhat harder
but for all, the best outcome is to
persevere by sticking to the program
and eventually it works out – serenity
and that’s how it’s also sustained