The Recovery Guy Podcast

Episode #28 – Thursday The Checkup: Stagnation

Aug 22, 2019

How to avoid STAGNATION in your recovery. 
Stagnation is defined as the state of being still, or not moving, like a sitting puddle of water where stagnation attracts mosquitoes. 
The root of stagnation is the Latin word for “standing water,” stagnatum.
Stagnation refers to the failure to find a way to contribute. These individuals may feel disconnected or uninvolved with their community and society. 
A rut is often a result of stagnation and is a habit or pattern of behavior that has become dull and unproductive and it is often hard to change.
In recovery over addiction and other behavioral challenges, stagnation can be very precarious. 
Most all of us, at one time or another, hit a snag or get slowed down. This is often a temporary event and we get moving again rather quickly. 
Stagnation in personal recovery can get dangerous because it can cause emotional pain and mental frustration. When we experience this type of pain/frustration it can lead to a spiral and a subsequent relapse. 
How do we get out of the Rut or reverse the stagnation?
1. Decide we don’t want to be there anymore
2. We need to take our own inventory in the 4 dimensions consisting physical, emotional, mental and spiritual. If you find it is more than one dimension focus on the one that will likely influence the other.
3. It is often very helpful to bring in a trusted person who can help you stay objective
4. Put together a course of action
5. Follow said course
6. Monitor progress while adjusting as you move forward
 
When we implement these notions and activate the steps we will have the results we work for.

read more

Episode #27 – The Monday Fix: Recovery Paradigm

Aug 22, 2019

 
Today’s podcast is on paradigms. I was first introduced to this term back in 1993. I was seven years into my personal recovery and was looking for a way to grow beyond the material I was currently involved with. That material was working; it was just I wanted more. I knew there was more out there for me to go get it, I just didn’t know what it looked like or how to find it. A friend of mine had introduced me to Stephen Covey. Stephen had just produced “principle centered leader ship”. It was the first time I had heard about a paradigm. Interestingly enough it was exactly where I wanted to be and what I wanted to understand. I was looking for a new way of thinking. This is what this podcast is all about. In this podcast, I laid the groundwork for next week’s podcast. I asked some questions, I introduce the listeners to terminology and I challenge us to come back with our own answers. Quite simply a paradigm is a standard or a set of ideas a paradigm is simply a way of looking at something the word as I am reading the definition from vocabulary.com it’s that it comes up a lot in academic scientific and business world we’re going to look at it from a psychological, behavior and internal position. I like what Mr. Covey says in that a paradigm is a “mental map”. Like any directions they are best accompanied by a map. The more defined and accurate the map the more likely I am to get from point A to point B. In this podcast, I asked the questions, what is a paradigm, list some practical examples of paradigms, how they affect us negatively and positively, identifying erroneous paradigms, removing/display paradigms that aren’t consistent with our direction, commitment or environment and finally how to adopt new positive paradigms that are in alignment with our direction/commitment/environment. Once we address these we will then have a fuller understanding of Why we are at where we are at with our present thinking, if it’s not where we want to be, then what paradigm change do I need to make to get there. I hope you enjoy the podcast. I hope you have a wonderful day.

read more