It was Christmas Day. I was in my pretty little Connecticut condo, a gelatinous, grey fog enveloping, but not quite paralyzing me. No, I wouldn’t celebrate with friends. Or drive to be with family. The thought of merrymaking left me cold. Though swaddled in depression, I had planned ahead. I had checked out all three| The Phoenix Spirit
At times, I have come to see recovery – both discovering and maintaining – as a kind of a 3-legged table. If we lose one of the legs, the table topples. In this article, I want to reflect on the 3 legs that I see as important elements of recovery. I am not saying that| The Phoenix Spirit
As I prepared for my first Spring get-away since becoming a recovering alcoholic, I accepted that I can’t do the things I did before or stay in the type of places that appealed to me when I was drinking. Regardless of where I was going I had to build my sobriety into my travel plans;| The Phoenix Spirit
One of my favorite analogies that I have heard while in recovery is that working through a recovery program is like playing a game of whack-a-mole – the minute one addictive behavior is pushed down (or quelled for the time being), another one pops up to be dealt with. I heard this analogy while sitting| The Phoenix Spirit
When Jason Schneidman meets disheveled-looking people begging on street corners, he doesn’t hand them a couple bucks. He gives them haircuts. And then some. As a hairstylist for Hollywood celebrities, Schneidman is in the lookin’-good business big time. He’s well aware that a nice haircut can lead to feeling better about yourself and of course| The Phoenix Spirit
Opera singer Bryan Garcia and tattoo artist SaraEmma Regalado have something rare in common. Both use their creative skills to foster self-healing in the recovery community. Coming from harsh beginnings and troubled histories of substance abuse, they are each bursting with enthusiasm as they ramp up their efforts to share the healing power and joy| The Phoenix Spirit
We feature an expert in the mental health and substance use disorder field to answer questions. This issue we talk to Robyn Alliah of River Valley Behavioral Health and Wellness Center about using art therapy in recovery and mental health. What is art therapy? Art therapy uses art media, the creative process, and the resulting| The Phoenix Spirit
"Let us be grateful to people who make us happy, they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom." Marcel Proust She looked interesting. Unconventional in dress, not afraid of dirty garden hands as she worked the soil of her urban terrain. She propped plants on imaginative metal sculptures. Her pure white hair was| The Phoenix Spirit