September 23, 2021

The Person I Love Is in Recovery. How Should I Treat Them?

Posted by Jaywalker Lodge Staff in Recovery

If the person you love is in recovery, there are a few important things to keep in mind that will not only strengthen your connection with each other but also strengthen the relationship you have with yourself. While many of us have loved ones in recovery, some of us are the ones in recovery. We are all connected to someone who is experiencing or has experienced addiction at some point in their lives. Although we do not have to necessarily treat them or treat ourselves any differently than those who have not experienced addiction, we can always strive to be more intentional with our words and actions. When Your Loved One Was Recently Admitted to Treatment If your loved one is just beginning their recovery journey, congratulations to them! Many of us know how difficult that first step can be. Choosing to go to treatment is an outward sign that…

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September 20, 2021

Dealing With Adversity in Recovery

Posted by Jaywalker Lodge Staff in Recovery

Life is not all rainbows and butterflies, even when we are in the rooms of recovery. Adverse conditions arise in the lives of every human being on earth, no matter what. We all must occasionally leave the sunshine to deal with adversity. Tough times and struggles are not indictments on our strength, intelligence, or choices — they are just things that happen sometimes. Of course, if we are not careful or attentive, we can be the cause of our own adversity. Discovering the source of our struggles is part of coping with adversity in a healthy way. There are many things to consider and keep in mind when it comes to dealing with adversity in our recovery. Adversity Happens To Everyone The first thing we must keep in mind is that adversity happens to everyone. It’s not only us who suffer from tough times, hardships, and upsets. Everyone will go…

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September 18, 2021

I Have Trauma Issues. Can Recovery Help Me?

Posted by Jaywalker Lodge Staff in Recovery

Trauma and substance abuse have a surprisingly large amount of overlap, from experiencing distressing thoughts and feelings to similar treatment programs for healing. We all experience trauma and cope with it differently, yet many substance use issues develop as a response to trauma. Processing traumatic experiences can be very time-consuming as well as mentally draining. Substances like drugs and alcohol are often used as a temporary fix to reduce the physical and mental symptoms associated with trauma, such as anxiety, panic, and fear. It’s a simple, but unfortunate formula: trauma increases the risk of developing an addiction, while addiction increases the likelihood of experiencing trauma. Whether or not substance use plays a significant role in your story, recovery is aimed to help you process any deep-rooted trauma that enables or encourages you to cling to unhealthy coping mechanisms. It may help to reiterate that we ALL have trauma issues of…

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September 17, 2021

Suit Up and Show Up: Fighting Isolation in Recovery

Posted by Jaywalker Lodge Staff in Recovery

Addiction and social isolation are closely related, often becoming a vicious cycle. According to the Cigna U.S. Loneliness Index, younger generations in America are experiencing higher levels of loneliness, which leads to many mental health and behavioral problems, including addiction. In recovery, isolation can become a temptation. This is particularly true now during the pandemic, with social activities decreasing to curb the spread of COVID-19. But for people who are in recovery, the danger of isolation cannot be ignored. Self-isolation is where old habits flourish, but recovery is designed to help you build new ones. The Temptation of Social Isolation Because addictive behaviors often disrupt social relationships, especially with family members, a person in recovery may already be used to finding ways to disassociate from people. Sometimes depression can also hinder a person’s social integration. Isolation often becomes a default mode or comfort zone that recovering individuals use to avoid…

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September 15, 2021

Working the 12-Steps No Matter What

Posted by Jaywalker Lodge Staff in Recovery

The 12-Step program is a set of time-tested guidelines to help us overcome addiction. When you first start the program, many concepts of it can be quite inspiring. But as time goes by, you may find that the appeal of the 12-Step approach is waning. Sometimes you feel like you are just going through the motions during group meetings. But even when that early motivational phase has come and gone, it’s still necessary to continue working the Twelve Steps with your whole heart. Waning Motivation Is Normal Let’s recall what initially motivated you to begin the Steps. Many young people enter a 12-Step program because their parents or loved ones urged them to. Some decide to give it a try after failing to make progress on their own. The community rapport that drives the 12-Step program addresses both the physical and mental aspects of addiction, greatly boosting progress for many….

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September 13, 2021

Dealing With Men’s Issues in Recovery

Posted by Jaywalker Lodge Staff in Recovery

Men are more likely than women to develop alcoholism and addiction. Men also tend to have different reasons for using substances than women do, so addiction develops differently in comparison. These factors, as well as the tendency for women to seek help more quickly, affect the kind of treatment men will need for lasting recovery.  Jaywalker Lodge works exclusively with men for all these reasons and more. We believe that the largest benefit of male-only recovery treatment is that treatment is directed towards resolving issues that only affect men. Female-only treatment centers experience the same advantage, as these facilities focus on issues that only affect women.  Many men cannot relate to many problems that women tend to face, and vice versa. A treatment environment where one is surrounded by the same gender-specific identity helps individuals connect more strongly with their peers, relate to common experiences, and face less judgment than…

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September 8, 2021

What Is a Sponsor and Why Do I Need One?

Posted by Jaywalker Lodge Staff in Recovery

Participating in a 12-Step recovery program for addiction involves more than just attending meetings. A successful program recommends that every person has a sponsor who will serve as an essential part of their recovery journey. It may be difficult to share experiences or tell your story in a group setting. You may feel more comfortable sharing these things with a mentor who you trust. This is the role of a sponsor. What Is a Sponsor? A sponsor is an individual who has already been in recovery, typically for at least a year. This person serves as a reliable mentor to you during your recovery. A sponsor has personal experience with the 12-Step approach and can offer advice and guidance to those who are new to recovery or looking for extra support. Your sponsor will help you navigate the Twelve steps, answer your questions, motivate your progress, and offer accountability when…

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September 3, 2021

Building a Strong Foundation to Avoid Relapse

Posted by Jaywalker Lodge Staff in Recovery

You’ve committed to a life of sobriety. Perhaps you experienced a challenging beginning to your recovery journey, but you acknowledge how far you’ve already come. Jaywalker Lodge is encouraged and motivated by strong men like yourself. The hardest part in your journey may have already happened, or perhaps it is yet to come. Either way, we want to help you succeed in lasting recovery. One of the ways we can help is by encouraging you to build a strong foundation for yourself and your recovery in order to avoid relapse in the future. We understand that recovery is a journey filled with spontaneous cravings and temptations from time to time, but having a reliable foundation can ultimately lead you to lifelong success.  The ways to build a strong foundation are endless, although there are core principles that can help you create a useful framework for building your own foundation. A…

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September 2, 2021

Adventure as a Form of Therapy

Posted by Jaywalker Lodge Staff in Recovery

Therapy is traditionally associated with sitting across from a therapist and talking through your thoughts and emotions. Although this form of therapy is awesome and works for many, there are numerous therapy options available to help with your mental health and/or substance use issues. One of these options is called adventure therapy. Adventure is not just meant for movie superheroes. Adventure allows us non-superhero types to feel the thrill of life through daring exercises and experiences. At Jaywalker Lodge, we place a high priority on adventure therapy as an effective method to stimulate clients and teach them healing tools and personal skills.  Jaywalker Lodge focuses exclusively on men who are experiencing the disease of alcoholism and addiction. Substance abuse issues often occur simultaneously with other mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual health issues, primarily because substance use is commonly used to self-medicate underlying trauma or mental health problems. At Jaywalker Lodge,…

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August 27, 2021

Getting Back Into the Swing of Things

Posted by Jaywalker Lodge Staff in Recovery

Whether or not we are suffering from alcoholism or addiction, we all lose our rhythm from time to time. It happens to everybody. Things are going smoothly, and then we hit a bump in the road. Sometimes it’s nothing, just a hiccup, but sometimes the bump is big enough to knock us off the proverbial horse and disrupt our whole deal. It’s a normal part of life that happens every once in a while. In recovery, we have much at our disposal that can not only help us learn from these disruptions but can help us get right back on course, as well. Let’s look at how to get back into the swing of things when we’ve lost our rhythm. A Hiccup or a Serious Problem? First things first, here: we need to be able to differentiate between a bump in the road and a serious issue. Hitting a pothole…

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