Good afternoon!  My name is Lauren and I'm a grateful, recovering alcoholic/addict.  I forgot to post this yesterday. Yesterday, was the two year anniversay of the car accident that still wasn't a wake up call to my alcoholism.  I still didn't think I had a problem even after I flipped my car on it's side and ran into a house.  I remember waking up an thinking to myself, "Did I drink yet this morning or not?"  I knew I had just bought some and had drank all night but did I drink yet that morning?  Was I still drunk?  All I wanted to do was run.  But I still didin't think I had a problem. Well, I did, but I didn't really want help.  I still wanted to drink.  But about 2 weeks later was when I ended up going to treatment.  And that saved my life.  Sometimes I need to look at this picture and remember where I was and how far I have come.  And remember that God is always in control.  That's all for today.  Have a great day!

Good afternoon!  My name is Lauren, and I'm a grateful, recovering alcoholic/addict.  I used to wish I could change my past, or the way I used to be, but today I have learned to realize that that makes me who I am.  It is part of my story. And having regrets or thinking about it all the time or wishing it would go away  just makes it worse.  It doesn't do any good.  It isn't going to make it go away.  It isn't gonig to keep me sober forever.  It just is what it is and I have to learn to deal with it.  Acceptance is a hard thing to learn.  For me, it did't just happen overnight, and I'm not perfect at it either.  There are still alot of things I struggle with accepting on a daily basis.  But it IS something I am better at than when I was drinking and using.  Today I am happy with my life, where I am and where I have been. It may sound weird to say, but God has had me everywhere in my life for specific reasons.  If they aren't good reasons, I should have learned something from them.  That's all I have for today.  Have a great one!

Good afternoon!  My name is Lauren, and I'm a grateful, recovering alcoholic/addict.  Admitting I was different that my friends was hard.  I mean I knew I was, but saying it out loud was more difficult.  A lot of them could stop after one or two, but I couldn't.  It wasn't just that I didn't want to, it got to the point where I couldn't.  Now this is where some people don't understand.  But why would I, a mother of two beautiful children, choose alcohol over them.  (And I'm not making excuses here or shifting blame.) But it was the alcoholism.  I am an alcoholic/addict.  Once I went to treatment, and learned about it, and myself, and my triggers and how to deal with them I had to change my whole life.  I had to change people, places, and things.  Today, I don't want alcohol.  I know what it will do to me if I were to take one sip.  It took courage to say those words that first time, and I try to remember that every time I say them. That's all for today. Have a great one!

Good morning!  My name is Lauren, and I'm a grateful, recovering alcoholic/addict.  Yesterday, I had the honor of seeing my friend get his 19 year sobriety coin.  He didn't get it because he wished for it, he got it because he worked for it.  I'm sure it took a lot of hard work. I was only priviledged to be there for the last 2 years, but am glad I am part of his story and he is part of mine.  We are all in this together and working toward the same goal of staying sober for today.  I can't worry about tomorrow or next year.  I only have today, and I am going to work hard for today.  I am blessed for what I do have, and only by the grace of God did I wake up today with another chance at today.  So I am going to work with what I have, with the gifts God has given me and stay sober today, and help others today too, if I can.  I will reach out, but always remember MY sobriety comes first, because without that I am nothing, I will end up right back where I was before.  That's all I have for today!  Have a great one!

Good afternoon!  My name is Lauren, and I'm a grateful, recovering alcoholic/addict.  Today is my daughter's 8th birthday!  And today I get to celebrate it sober!  I am embarrassed to say, but, a few years ago I was sneaking shots the whole time at her birthday party.  Totally ridiculous!  Today, I don't have to.  I get to enjoy life!  Every part of it, the good, the bad, the fun, the not-so-fun, but it is all worth it!  And I thank God every step of the way.  Every thing I go through makes me stronger.  It has made me who I am today. That's all for today!  Have a great one!  Happy birthday Laney!  Love you!

Good morning!  My name is Lauren, and I'm a grateful, recovering alcoholic/addict.  Some people think they aren't worth it.  That they don't deserve God's love or forgiveness, but God's grace IS good enough for you, for me.  We just have to ask.  We are weak and only in Him, made strong.  We can't do it alone.  And only in my sobriety have I realized that.  Before I thought I could do this, deal with life, and make it through this alone, and I can't.  It just isn't going to happen. I have to rely on God, every day.  First, I had to give Him control of my whole life, and daily I have to give it back, because I keep trying to take the steering wheel back.  (I'm good at that.) So today, I give you me, God.  That's all I have for today!  Have a great one!

Good afternoon!  My name is Lauren, and I'm a grateful, recovering alcoholid/addict.  There have been so many times in my life when I have just wanted to give up.  It could be when I was learning how to do something like riding a bike, when I was in the middle of something like working out and was just tired, or when I was just over something and thought I knew it all and it just wanted to be done and over with.  But no matter what, I need to stick it out and finish it.  I have to do this, start and finish for myself.  But I also have little eyes watching me today, and need to be a good influence on them.  I don't want them to be quitters.  I want them to follow through on things they start.  Right now, I am on this journey of recovery and there may be days where I want to quit, but it is not worth it. So I will not quit til I'm done, and I won't ever be done.  So I will just just won't stop til I die!  That's all for today. Have a great one!

Good afternoon!  My name is Lauren, and I'm a grateful, recovering alcoholic/addict.  Wasting time whining and complaining about the past isn't going to do any good.  And it sure isn't going to make my future any better, it probably will just make it worse.  The only thing I can do is to actually DO something about it.  Talking about it negatively doesn't do a bit of good, all it does is mess with my head.  And there is enough going on up there as it is. So I just need to leave yesterday where it is, in the past.  Work on the present, today.  And not really worry about tomorrow.  I have enough on my plate for today.  If and when that seems a little overwhelming, I just look to God. That's all for today.  Have a great one! 

Good afternoon!  My name is Lauren, and I'm a grateful, recovering alcoholic/addict.  There have been some bad days that I think will never end.  Or the bad stuff just won't stop happening.  But when I really stop to think about it. It's really not that bad.  It could be SO much worse.  And when I REALLY stop and think about it  (And I know I have said this before.)  My worst day sober is still better than my best day drunk or using.  I just need to be patient, and that is a hard thing for an addict.  We want everything NOW!  (Yesterday is actually better, but today will do.)  Things will get better, and maybe not today, mayber not tomorrow, but they will get better.  Some people very close to me are going through the hardest thing they have ever had to go through, and it's been going on for weeks.  And right now all we can do is pray.  Stay positive, be there for them, love them, and pray.  It is all in God's hands, and was all in God's plan.  It is so hard for us to understand things sometimes, but just giving it back to Him is all we can do. That's all i ahve for today.  Have a great one!

Good afternoon!  My name is Lauren, and I'm a grateful, recovering alcoholic/addict.  It's interesting to think that when we are so full of ourselves, we think we can fit the Spirit in there too.  When in fact, there isn't enough room. We must be empty of self.  I was at a meeting the other day and heard something that totally blew me away, totally interrupted my thought process of how prayer was.  I mean I knew there were many types of prayer, prayers of praise, of thanksgiving, for forgiveness, for faith, etc.  But how we should be always be selfless and praying for God's will, no matter how hard that may be.  The woman at the meeting spoke of her daughter who was a heroin addict. She was in and out of rehab and in jail. But just couldn't get clean.  The woman kept praying to God for her daughter to get sober.  That's all she wanted, was for her daughter to get sober. This continued for some time.  Things continued to get worse.  She then realized maybe she was praying for the wrong thing.  She then started to pray for God to help her and give her strength and giver her peace through whatever she had to go through in this situation. Soon after this her daughter got out of jail for the last time on a Friday, they had a great weekend together clean and sober, and on that Monday, she got the phone call her daughter OD'ed and died.  Now that was a hard story to listen to, and I'm sure an even harder story to live.  But she said God DID give her the strength and peace she had prayed for.  I'm sure it wasn't easy, but she made it throught clean and sober as well.  It's a lot easeir said than done to have selfless prayers and mean them when we say them.  But in the end God's will be done anyway.  It just easier when we can accept it.  That's all for today.  Have a great one!