5 Benefits of Recovery (#3)

Two recovery benefits down, three to go! How are you feeling? I trust hopeful and confident. So, let's keep moving forward.

The 3rd benefit of recovery that I am going to address in this post is one of my favorites. Why? Because it reminds me that recovery isn't just about me. Recovery is about getting well so that life can be fully experienced and enjoyed with others.

Recovery Benefit #3: 
Recovery leads to healthy relationships.

Every addict has poor relationship skills. There can be many reasons for this, but as it pertains to addiction this is mainly due to selfishness, imbalance of brain chemistry, anger problems and a general lack of care about anything or anyone (addicts often describe themselves as "numb"). 

Addiction draws the individual more and more into themselves until all that is left (at least in their mind) is them; a sort of "god" unto themselves. This is why it is so frustrating to be in relationship with an addict; they are good liars who worship themselves. This doesn't make for strong relationships.

Recovery, however, is good because it helps expose the addict's selfishness and learn how to connect with others in healthy, caring ways. The addict discovers they are not the center of the universe and that being connected to others is not a distraction from their lives, but rather an enhancement. They come to embrace that relationships are necessary for health and growth.

But not all relationships are healed in recovery. Sometimes the damage is so deep and so overwhelming that family and friends might walk away. The addict can't do anything about this; there are often painful consequences to addiction. This doesn't mean, however, that the skills for healthy relationships in the future cannot be acquired. Recovery is a pathway to these skills.