Recovery is Not Only Possible, But Probable
The question was asked, “What do you wish youʼd known or realized that would have helped you get into recovery faster?”
Here are the answers that were given in response:
I wish Iʼd known recovery was possible.
That recovery is not only possible, but probable.
Recovery is a real thing and it is exciting
Hope is in the foundation I built at the start of my recovery journey. Without hope things were just too bad.
I wish Iʼd known how to start, that I could start on the road to recovery.
I didnʼt know my recovery was up to me. I thought other people, like my psychiatrist or my case manager would do it, or at least do more of it.
Those of us on our recovery journeys want you to know that, not only is getting into recovery possible, but it can be a recovery that is solid, durable and long-lasting. Expect for recovery to happen.
Recovery is a journey that is unique for each person. One person's recovery journey can be very different from the next person's journey. (Here is a video presentation called Being the Expert on Yourself. You can choose to download the presentation or you can view it online. There are buttons at the bottom of the screen.)
Even though each individual's recovery journey is unique to them, there are a number of things many of us (people in recovery) found that were common to not only our own journeys, but the journeys of many other people working on their recovery.
There are a number of things many of us needed to learn along the way. When we didnʼt know where to look or where to go to find an answer (or even that we needed to look), our recovery process was slowed, as we had to spend time and energy finding answers without knowing where to look.
Here is some of the information we found, thoughts we had, and some places to look that helped us:
- For many of us, finding hope that our lives could get better or that we had the opportunity to get a good life was crucial. Read more here.
- Recovery is holistic. Recovery is not just about mental health, itʼs about whole health, both the mental and the physical. When we feel pain, are queasy, clumsy, feel anger and stress or a ringing in our ears, a high body mass index, high blood pressure or something else, it all affects our mental health. Read more here.
- At first the thought that we could go to see a psychiatrist, and take a pill or a shot to get better sounded really good to some of us. We thought that little pill could fix everything; instead many of us found there was a trade-off. Read more here.
- In addition to our recovery being affected by the way we feel or the things that happen each day, if we donʼt have enough of what we need - things like a safe place to be, decent healthy foods to eat that are good for us, and a friend or two, then being in treatment and taking medications doesnʼt assist us in the process as much as we would like. Read more here.
- Support is really important. According to Maslowʼs Hierarchy of Needs, we all need and want to be accepted for who we are. Unpaid support can be just as important as paid support. Read more here.
- Many of us found that stress, stressful situations, and relationships can negatively affect our recovery. We have chosen to develop coping skills and mechanisms. Read more here.
- Once we received a diagnosis, it helped many of us to learn more about it. Read more here.
- Trauma is something that many people with a mental illness/psychiatric disorder have had to learn to deal with. This trauma may have happened before someone was diagnosed or received along with the diagnosis, we may have been told things like: You will never work again - you canʼt return to school - you will have to be on medications for the rest of your life. Read more here.
- Employment, volunteering or finding a way to earn money, either to supplement the Social Security you may be receiving, or to get back into life itself is important to many of us. Read more here.
- Having a plan for when things go wrong or for when we donʼt feel well isnʼt about planning to fail, but it is about mapping out a way for us to successfully choose options that will boost our recovery up time, thus helping our lives go more smoothly. Read more here.
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What do you wish youʼd known or realized that might have helped you get into a stronger recovery faster?
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