Thank God for Progress

One of the things that is talked about a lot in the rooms of recovery is that we need to strive for progress, not perfection. It's not about becoming the perfect ideal of ourselves that should be our goal, instead, it's just that we continue to get better over time. Whatever that "better" means to …

Some Basics For Building A Spiritual Practice To Support Your Recovery – Guest Post

I'm excited for you to read this guest post from a fellow recovery writer, Rose Lockinger. Every piece of her writing that I have read has been an inspiration to me; I think it will be for you, too.  Enjoy! ~Jami When I first got sober I was so confused about spirituality and religion. Having …

A Must Read for Survivors of Childhood Sexual Abuse

I read another great memoir, and I want to tell you about it. Hungry for Touch, A Journey from Fear to Desire, by Laureen Peltier, is a book that chronicles Laureen's treatment for PTSD. Let me start by saying that this is not an easy book to read. In fact, some parts are just downright …

Getting Through Brief Dips

A couple of weeks ago I had a week that really sucked. Ok, not the whole week, but at least a few days. I was grumpy with PMS, I screwed up some writing I did, my house was a mess, and I was having a lot of anxiety. I was exhausted and overwhelmed and my …

Recovering, or Recovered? Which am I?

It’s been nearly four years since I took my last drink of alcohol, and since that time I have been to literally hundreds of Alcoholics Anonymous meetings. It’s customary to introduce yourself before you speak at a meeting. I always say, “Hi, I’m Jami and I’m an alcoholic.” Some people introduce themselves differently, but it’s …

Every Moment of a Fall – A Review

I love reading memoirs. I would say that they make up about 90% of the books I read. I think I love them so much because, since being in recovery, I've learned the importance of sharing stories. Hearing the stories that others have to tell helps me heal, and I hope that others hearing mine …

A New Freedom

Happy 4th of July! It's a day that we celebrate freedom, and for me that means reflecting on the things that used to enslave me, from which I'm now free. The biggest of which is active alcoholism.  I wrote an article for Step 12 Magazine, which they were kind enough to make their cover story for …

Surrender to Win

There is a paradox in Alcoholics Anonymous that tells us that we must "surrender to win." When I first entered AA, I thought that it seemed kind of crazy that I would have to surrender, or give up, in order to get better. Wasn't that was I was already doing? I sure felt like I …

Sober, Not Perfect

Have you ever done something that you knew would have negative consequences and then instantly regretted it? Recently, I did that. I used to do that a lot - when I was drinking. Admittedly, the regret usually came later then, not right away. This time though, I wasn't drinking, I had my wits about me, …

Blessing or Curse? I Get to Decide

Today is my birthday, and birthdays always seem to invite a certain amount of looking back, reminiscing about the past, wondering how I got to where I am...if I'm even where I should be. I have been doing my fair share of thinking this week, leading up to today, about the things that have shaped …