Good afternoon!  My name is Lauren and I'm a grateful, recovering alcoholic/addict.  Recovery is a process and there are a lot of thing I had to do in the process of healing, mentally and physically, as well as spiritually.  When I got home, playing with my children helped a lot with my mental side.  I was beating myself up for the time I had missed out on my family.  The isolation, and walls I had built around myself from everyone.  Coming home and being around them again, and playing, going to the park, doing whatever, helped with my healing.  Laughing and playing and just getting involved.  Kids playing with other kids in general is good for each other. Mr Rogers said, "Play is often talked about as if it were a relief from serious learning. But for children, play is serious learning."  So we know it is good in general as a natural healer, as well as laughter.  Today is a beautiful day out!  So I'm  going togo enjoy it.  Have a great one!

Good morning!  My name is Lauren and I'm a grateful, recovering alcoholic/addict.  I needed a little humor today, and it's true.  And you can't really go out and buy someone deodorant, well I guess you can, but you can't make them use it.  Same with common sense.  You can't make someone use it.  You can't make someone do anything.  You can't make someone get sober.  They have to want to do it.  It has to be their idea.  And once it becomes their idea, it becomes a good idea, and it works, and they can do it.  It's hard to watch someone knowing they need help, knowing they have a problem, but can't do anything about it.  I have been on the other side of it.  I was that person, my husband was watching me die and begging me to go to treatment.  I was in denial.  Now, I see people the same way, and it hurts. I watch them slowly killing themselves, the same way I was, denying the reaity of inevitible death. But again, you can't make anyone do anything, they are the ultimate decision maker of themselves.  It just hurts to watch someone hurt themselves. That's all I got for today.  Have a great one!  And wear deododrant!

Good morning!  My name is Lauren and I'm a grateful, recovering alcoholic/addict.  When I was drinking, my life was a mess, my mind was such a cluster, I didn't know which way was up.  I threw bills away, because if it was out of sight, it was out of mind.  I put things off, I didn't want to deal with life.  When I went to the treatment center, they retaught me how to think, they taught me to make my bed every morning, they taught me organization.  NO, they didn't brainwash me.  They taught me how live.  They taught me how reorganize my priorities.  They corrected my thinking.  Once that happened, the rest fell into place.  Now I am not saying life is perfect, but it is a lot better that it was.  I am paying off bills. I got a better job, I am not calling in sick all the time, I have a better relationship with my husband, and kids, and parents.  My life is better in general.  It doesn't mean material things, my head is just in a better place. The ball of yarn up there is not unravelled, it is at least some what rolled up.  Before, my thoughts were all over the place, and I didn't care about anything.  It is carzy looking back now, to see how messed up I really thought.  How I thougth bills were going to just disappear.  Well, nope, now I am paying them, months, and years later, sober, and hating it.  But I gotta do what I gotta do.  Consequenses.  But that is all is part of my recovery.  That's all I got for today!  Have a great one!

Good morning!  My name is Lauren and I'm a grateful, recovering alcoholic/addict.  No matter what I do in life, someone will have something bad to say about it.  I will never make everyone happy.  I will never be able to please everyone in whatever I do.  If I am planning a party, there will always be one person that doesn't think what I am doing is just right, or good enough, or whatever.  But as long as what I think I am doing is right and I am doing it for the right reason, I am ok with that.  When I was getting sober, not everyone thought I was doing it the perfect way, not going to enough meetings, or going to too many meetings, or not doing the steps right, or who knows what.  I don't need to be so worried about what other people think.  I will never ever be able to please everyone in anything that I do. But as long as I do me, and take care of me. And do what I need to do to keep me sober, and healthy, and happy, and my family the same way, that is all that matters.  It's sad that it has to be that way, that people can't just be happy with the way other people do things too. Just be happy for people. Let people do things, their way, but that is the way it is.  And I have to deal with it.  So today, I deal with it, and can have a better attitude about it, and understand it and more or less get over it, and just do what I have to do.  That's all I got for today.  Have a great one!

Good morning!  My name is Lauren and I'm a grateful, recovering alcoholic/addict.  When I was drinking, and using, my life was never going to get better.  With my mindset, and negativity, nothing was ever going to get beter.  Nothing good comes from overuse of drinking or using drugs.  Nothing.  Along with that comes a negative attitude, and with a negative attitude comes negative everything else.  And that speads to everyone around you.  It made my husband more depressed and in a bad mood, my children weren't as happy.  It's the truth.  If momma ain't happy, ain't nobody happy.  So once I started thinking positive, and realizing how great things really were, life got better.  Nothing else really changed.  I didn't win the lottery, I didn't get a brand new house or new car, but I got a new attitude, a new outlook on life.  I started looking at things in a new light, seeing things the way they really are, not through the bottom of a bottle, a vodka bottle, with bloodshot eyes. But through clear eyes, sober eyes, blessed eyes.  God has given be one more day alive and sober and I and grateful for that.  Think positive and positive thinks will happen. Ain't that the truth.  It's all about your attitude.  So today I choose to be positive. That's all I got for today!  Have a great one!

Good afternoon!  My name is Lauren and I'm a grateful, recovering alcoholic/addict.  I know every day I have to give it to God, but I have to do my best in everything I do, and still give it to Him.  I can always depend on Him.  I can only do what I can do, but I need to do my best at it.  I need to put all my energy into, knowing God will take care of all my needs, I shouldn't sluff off and think I don't need to try at anything and everything will just fall into place.  So everyday, I get up, pray, give the day to God, and work hard.  Do my job well, take care of my family, take care of myself to the best of my ability.  Do the best I can at everything I do.  God has given me talents to use, so I need to use them.  And my best and your best may be two different things, and that is ok.  We don't need to compare who is better.  We all have different talents, and were created with different talents.  As long as we do the best at what we do, that's all that matters.  So do your best, and God will do the rest.  That's  all I got for today!  Have a great one!

Good afternoon! My name is Lauren and I'm a grateful, recovering alcoholic/addict.  I like this quote a lot, because a lot can happen in a day, for the good and for the bad.  I have made bad decisions in a day that have had life long repercussions, as well as good decisions having rewards.  It is all about living one day at a time, one foot in front of the other.   A friend of mine just got 2 months sober, and said, "Eh, it's only 2 months."  "Only 2 months!" I said, "That's Awesome!!! Everyone starts at day one.  Each day adds up, and we only have today.  No one is promised tomorrow."  I am so excited about the weather getting nice.  The kids and I went to the park yesterday, and I love it. A few years ago I wouldn't be doing that, I would be hiding in my room, drinking, wasting my life away.  So one day my family decided it was time I needed help, and that day I agreed. and that ONE day changed my life. That ONE day saved my life, and I am here to share that with you today. That's all I got.  Have a great day!

Good morning!  My name is Lauren and I am a grateful, recovering alcohol/addict.  I really like the above quote, because it is not that I couldn't have been happy with what I had before, it is that with what I was doing in my life I chose not to be happy.  So by quitting drinking, I chose to be haopy.  So now, it is not that I don't have problems, it is just now I know how to deal with them better.  I am more mature, and more knowledgeable about myself and my decision making skills to deal with life.  I do this by dealing with life on life's terms.  Happiness is appreciating what you have, not getting what you want.  Happiness is a choice.  So today I choose to be happy.  I am so blessed, I am so appreciative for everything I have. That's all I got today!  Be happy!  :)

Good afternoon!  My name is Lauren and I'm a grateful, recovering alcoholic/addict.  When I got sober, I wanted it now.  I wanted to be sober. I wanted to be haopy.  I wanted everyone's trust back. I wanted everything to be back the way it was when I was sober and normal right away.  Well, it wasn't going to happen like that.  It didn't happen overnight for me to become a raging, reclusive, alcocholic, and is sure wasn't going to happen overnight for people to trust me again or things be the way they were before.  It was going to take time.  I was going to have to be patient. That was one of the major things I learned in treatment I needed to work on.  I am a very impatient person. Sometimes I just need to take a deep breath and relax for a second.  It will happen when it happens. Another quote I like is.  "You cannot heal a lifetime of pain overnight-be patient with yourself. It takes as long as it takes to rebuild yourself."  Habits are hard to break, but it is possible, but it does take time.  And if you are breaking a bad habit, it is so worth it.  That's all I got for today.  Have a great one! 

Good morning!  Sorry I have been away for a few days.  I was attending an alumni reunion at the treatment center I was at for alcoholism.  I went to share the story of my life, my struggles through drugs and alcohol, and how much my life has turned around and how much sobriety can be a good thing.  And it is not boring.  I had quite a few good talks with a few women and some men too and the rehab center that saved me life.  It was interesteing seeing the place I took my last drink, at the airport.  Being there, where I was in detox for 10 days, almost going to the hospital a few times.  Where I spent 45 days. I met a lot of amazing women that were about the change there lives like they couldn't imagine.  They knew they had to put the work into it, and it wasn't going to be easy.  We are going to keep in contact, and I hope they do get ahold of me when they get out.  I really do.  It is easy to talk the talk when you are int he walls of the treatment center, but when you get out, the rubber hits the road, and that is when you are really tested.  So I wish them the best, and pray for them.  By going there, took me right back to where I was when I got there, broken.  But it also reminded of where it took me, to the strong woman I am today.  By heliong others it does help me.  That's all for today!  Have a great one!