Month: May 2020

May 31, 2020

Fully Immerse Yourself in Recovery

Posted by Pat S in Lifestyle, Recovery
Fully Immerse

Recovery and meaningful sobriety are not processes that happen in isolation. A facility like Jaywalker Lodge is likely the place where an alcoholic and/or addict is introduced to recovery, but the activities, tools, processes, and healing therapies they learn should not be left there. If the recovery process is begun but then left behind, it is highly likely that the one who sought sobriety will have to come seeking it again. It is important to understand that recovery is not a punishment for addiction or a treatment like antibiotics. Recovery is the gift of a chance to live life fully, happily, and freely – and it is most effective when the addict is fully immersed in all it has to offer. A Daily Choice We shouldn’t take a daily multivitamin just every so often, or when we aren’t feeling so great. If we do, those helpful vitamins – while still…

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May 27, 2020

How Can I Stay Connected in Times Like These?

Posted by Pat S in Alumni, Uncategorized
Staying Connected

There’s no doubting that times are strange, and even sometimes scary for everyone. Whether in or out of recovery, the world definitely feels upside down right now. People feel separated and apart from each other in ways they’ve never experienced before. It can be an especially trying time for those in recovery. We can’t get to meetings, our coffee shop fellowship, or even do step work face-to-face. If you are an addict with a tendency to relapse in the past despite an honest desire to recover – what we here at Jaywalker Lodge refer to as a Jaywalker (based on the “Jaywalker Parable” from Alcoholics Anonymous) – the isolation we are all facing today may feel even more challenging. Jaywalkers are addicts who, after a treatment experience, know all the right things to say but continue to make self-destructive decisions. They are the ones who had a taste of what…

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May 25, 2020

Surrender to Win

Posted by Pat S in Recovery
Surrender to win

“Surrender to win” is a phrase that doesn’t make much sense at first glance. If we do understand it, it’s usually received as a pretty unpalatable proposition. As recovery literature says, “Who cares to admit complete defeat? Practically none of us…” The literature also says that defiance is the chief characteristic of most alcoholics. So it makes perfect sense that we are resistant to this spiritual maxim at first – and for some of us, resistant for a very long time. It probably won’t take too long for us to examine our lives before recovery and realize there are few instances of our resistance benefitting anybody, if there are any such instances at all. With such a track record, why do so many of us balk at surrender? Why don’t we see it as the bridge to freedom that it truly is? Probably because we are intelligent people, who yearn…

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May 25, 2020

The Gift of Service

Posted by Pat S in Recovery
Service others

Service is not only one of the most important tenets of recovery, but it’s also one of the greatest gifts of sobriety. It’s not simply a gift we give to others – in many ways, it’s a gift that we receive as well. In our lives before recovery at Jaywalker Lodge, many of us were driven by selfishness. The literature even tells us the root of most of our troubles is self-centered fear. In our disease, we certainly suffered at the hands of many types of selfishness. Beyond that, many of us often refused the help of those who reached out to us. There wasn’t much service in our lives before recovery – it’s often something alcoholics and addicts resist as much as we can. Very gently, the 12-Steps guide us to consider service as not just an important part of our life, but a necessary and wonderful part of…

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May 23, 2020

Finding Brotherhood in Recovery

Posted by Pat S in Recovery
Finding Brotherhood

A life of alcoholism and drug addiction can distance people from their loved ones. Friends, family, and a sense of community are commonly pushed away by our shame, resentment, behavior, or a combination of things. We often attempt to adopt a “lone-wolf” mindset and try to convince ourselves that we like being on our own. But by the time we seek sobriety, the truth becomes clear – in order to have a successful and happy recovery, we simply can’t do it solo. Meetings require other people for there to be a meeting at all. Taking the 12-Steps requires a sponsor. Being of service usually means there must be someone to help. After a little time in the Jaywalker Lodge program, we see how much we can learn from other people, and how much the fellowship adds to our life – providing us with laughter, learning, sharing, guidance, and being of…

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May 19, 2020

Why Is a Home Group Important?

Posted by Pat S in Recovery
Home Group

After years of being immersed in our disease, we can become accustomed to drifting through life. We often shirk responsibility and commitment. At the very least, when we do things, we are likely to choose to do them alone. We get used to feeling unwelcome anywhere, or too ashamed to show up at the places where we are wanted. Once we are in recovery, it’s important that we break out of as many old patterns as possible. It’s likely that you have heard people tell you to find a home group. But why is it so important, and how you find the right one? Jaywalker Lodge – a Colorado-based treatment center and community of recovering people firmly rooted in the 12-Steps – can provide some guidance and answers. Finding a Home Group First, go to as many meetings as possible. Find one for every night of the week, or attend…

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May 17, 2020

Continuing to Walk the Steps

Posted by Pat S in Recovery
Walking the steps

So many of us who enter recovery at Jaywalker Lodge don’t know what to expect. We only know we want freedom from our disease. We can find that freedom in recovery, in addition to so much more than we could have ever imagined. Sometimes, however, we may see entering a sober facility as a break from our lives – and once we leave that place we intend to return back to them. It might be helpful to reframe this common viewpoint of entering recovery. Seeking proper help for our alcoholism and addiction isn’t a break from our lives – not at all. It is a chance to finally start our lives and leave behind the life our disease forced upon us. When we leave the safe place where we sought and received help, it is almost like a rebirth. It is a fresh start, and a continuance of the life…

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May 17, 2020

Seeking More Than Sobriety

Posted by Pat S in Recovery
Seeking Sobriety

When we seek out the rooms of recovery, we usually have no greater wish than to free ourselves from the miserable bonds of alcoholism and addiction. We just desperately want to stop losing ourselves to the disease and ruining our lives. We find Jaywalker Lodge and join a tight-knit recovering community that understands us. We begin our journey of self-discovery and healing. How grateful we are to discover that the 12-Steps can finally break those bonds and set us free. But after being sober for a short time, we see our initial desire was only the beginning. It can even be said that wishing only to get sober is selling ourselves short. Although at first it is everything – and it is indeed the most important step since. Without it, we cannot experience the true bounty of life in recovery. Sobriety must always be the first step into a new…

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May 15, 2020

Holistic Healing Takes Recovery a Step Further

Posted by Pat S in Recovery
Recovery a step forward

The disease of alcoholism and addiction changes every element of a human being. Nearly every component of the sufferer’s mind, body, and spirit are affected. Those who suffer from this disease must begin recovering by addressing their spiritual malady, physical allergy, and mental obsession. This three-fold approach to healing is uniquely addressed by the 12-Step recovery program. A successful effort placed in working all 12-Steps can restore and rejuvenate almost any alcoholic or addict who adheres to the program. Those who have successfully entered recovery and taken the 12-Steps will find they experience a better quality of life all around if they maintain constant contact with the 12-Steps. That is to say, most who experience what the 12-Steps can do in their lives will choose to continue taking them. Going Further Many who incorporate a program of recovery as a central part of their lives often become inspired to seek…

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May 11, 2020

What Can I Do When Things Get Tough?

Posted by Pat S in Alumni, Recovery
When things get tough

Everything in the world may seem pretty topsy-turvy these days. It’s understandable in times of chaos to lose our bearings. However, it isn’t just global scale events that can throw us off. Regular life can occasionally get hectic all on its own. The same keystones of recovery hold true, whether it’s a worldwide crisis or just a bummer week. Things ebb and flow, flourish and fade. The rhythm of life is order and chaos, yin and yang. This is a natural part of life. Recovery does not stop life from being life, but what it can do is provide direction in the storms of life. Recovery is the lighthouse, always showing us the way to safe harbor and keeping us from hitting the rocks. The reality is that sometimes things will get tough. The principles of recovery taught at Jaywalker Lodge give us helpful guides when life is less than…

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