Al Anon Courage to Change: “We all have dark times in our lives, but the journey to better times is often what makes us happier, stronger people. When we stop expecting instant relief, we may come to believe that where we are today is exactly where our higher power would  have us be.” Lea's world fell apart one day, when her husband was diagnosed, in the Emergency Department, of liver failure from his drinking. She didn't even know that he was drinking that heavily, and had thought he might be having a stroke. She writes: I knew then that I had to intervene to get him into treatment because it was life or death. I started therapy and Al-Anon and read numerous books and realized that I had to focus on my own recovery and let him walk his path. I realized that I needed to change the way I lived my life too as this is a lifelong disease. If my husband had diabetes or any other lifelong disease I would support him. I gave away my wine fridge, threw away all of our wine glasses, and chose sobriety. But I had to work on my co-dependency issues and also recognized that I had to learn healthy coping mechanisms and start living my life for me. She wrote a book about her experience, and about the path to recovery in her marriage. I always enjoyed writing and that helped me “sit with my feelings” when I would write about them. The book came about because I felt so hurt and alone and there wasn’t a book that spoke to me. Writing helped me to heal and I thought maybe someone else would want to hear my story to not feel so alone.  Readings and Links Lea's book, Fireflies: Finding Light on a Journey Through Addiction, is available from Amazon through this sponsored link. We have added a page with “neutral responses” at https://therecovery.show/responses Upcoming topics Lea suggested a topic of humor in recovery. How has recovery made it easier to laugh about the events and missteps along the way? Please call us at 734-707-8795 or email [email protected] with your questions or experience, strength and hope. Or just leave a comment right here. Music from the Show Bon Iver – Bruised Orange (John Prine cover) Cage The Elephant – Trouble Cage The Elephant – Love's The Only Way