“The goal here is to create a situation you no longer have to escape, or a life you don’t have to numb. The achievement of sobriety is not the point, it’s a by-product of the work. The work is the point. Addiction is the hook that gets you in the door, and quitting is the catalyst to heal deeper wounds.” Holly Whitaker writes in her powerful non-fiction book, Quit Like a Woman: The Radical…
I first became strongly attracted to practicing Self-Care and exploring the concept with clients when working with survivors of Domestic Violence (DV) during my internship. I define Self-Care as a form of putting oneself first. I don’t believe this is a bad thing. Selfishness, when tempered with a self-awareness of keeping it in balance with one’s other responsibilities, is not a bad thing. The (mostly female) survivors of DV I met had been through such…
I have bipolar one disorder. This is a fact that informs much of my day-to-day living. I need to take my medication, stay on top of my therapy appointments, go for bloodwork, strive for a balanced lifestyle and, above all else, maintain a solid, restful, regular sleep routine. When I don’t sleep, whether due to anxious thoughts, or having had too much alcohol earlier in the evening, or from just being keyed up due to…
