Steps on the Road to Recovery

Steps On the Road to Recovery for 21 to 27 Sep 98.

Published Last Week. A daily hint published each day since June 1996. This is past my second year anniversary since starting this site. Page Down for the next days that are added a day at a time. I have moved to http://www.recoverybydiscovery.com and this daily page is now here at https://www.recoverybydiscovery.com/daily.htm . I would appreciate any feedback, questions and suggestions that you have.

What I am going through now is the DSM-III-R Desk Reference a "disorder" at a time and commenting on the spiritual and recovery aspects. The DSM is what the American Psychiatric Association uses to label symptoms to facilitate communication in their community. Unfortunately, the labeling from the DSM can shut down communication with those seeking temporary assistance and spread the stigmas of mental illness. The DSM can also bring some comfort by telling some that others have had the same experience. I am adding additional comfort by pointing to some ways to start getting out of the "disorders". I am not writing about cures. I am writing about how the cure process works over time. Instantaneous cures can be as traumatic as the original event that generated the disorder or illness. Instantaneous cures do not do us any good when we get the same disorder back since we have not changed the thought system that caused the disorder in the first place.

21 September 1998

Last week I was writing about obsessions. This week I am starting with

compulsions. Our compulsions are just repetitive habits that get in the way of

our successful living. Our compulsions are just repetitive habits that are based

on repetitive thought habits, obsessions. So one remedy is to do the same

things with compulsions as with obsessions.

So, how to face the challenges of compulsions, repetitive habits based on

our repetitive thoughts. One way is to neutralize one negative thought loop with

an opposite positive thought loop. That is not to say that once balance is achieved

that there will not be some clean up work to do, it is just that the clean up will be

easier from a position of balance. Another way to transform a thought habit is

look at what the thought is and find more and more important ways to carry out

that thought. For example: Let us say that the thought is "I need to wash my

hands." A more important way to wash my hands would be to wash my guilts

away by giving them to my lord most high within. So I could transform this thought

of "I need to wash my hands" to "I am giving any of my excess baggage to my lord

most high within to transform that baggage into a better life." by saying this thought

until the need to wash my hands too much goes away and the responsibility and

authority for transforming my baggage is totally in the hands of my lord most high

within.

The opposite of the thought that "I need to wash my hands." could be "I am at

clean as I am at all times." There is nothing to prevent us from using both techniques

at the same time except ourselves.

22 September 1998

Now I am going back to the descriptions of obsessions and compulsions in

the DSM-III Desk Reference to see what additional light can be shed on how

our symptoms are trying to help us heal. The first one is "recurrent and persistent

ideas, thoughts, impulses, or images that are experienced ... as intrusive and

senseless". In this case we do not have persistent audio, since the label

schizophrenic gets that honor. Considering these thoughts as intrusive and

senseless is a good clue, since it would tend to be judgmental. This leads to

the first thing to begin recovery. Find out what the judgment is behind the

ideas, thoughts, impulses or images and begin to forgive yourself for the name

involved in that judgment. Begin to assert the opposite of the judgment. Begin

to take actions towards the opposite of the judgments. Next we will consider

the examples in the DSM. The first example is impulses by a parent to kill their

child. The judgment is killer. The ritual words are "I lovingly forgive myself

for judging myself as a killer." I would add "I lovingly forgive myself for judging

my child as a killer." The assertion could be "I am a loving savior of all including

myself." The actions could be anything to keep yourself and the child safe from

any harm and work with a group to help keep anyone from harm. The symptom

tells us that a part of this person wants to kill something in themselves. The first

steps to recovery are all about beginning the healing process for that part. There is

more, but the other symptoms will get at that more.

23 September 1998

The relevant symptoms I was refering to was "the person attempts to ignore

or suppress such thoughts or impulses or to neutralize them with some other

thoughts or action". To ignore or suppress only give strength to what is being

ignored or suppressed. That which we suppress is still expressed. Neutralizing

with other thoughts an actions is definitely not ignoring or suppressing, it can be

transforming. This is an important distinction.

So, to not ignore or suppress would also be to give times to totally let the

symptoms be symptoms. Just some time alone with your lord most high within

to let the symptoms be taken over by your lord most high. How long this takes

is how long this takes.

24 September 1998

The next description is that the person does not blame others for their thoughts.

Of course, they probably blame themselves. So a beginning remedy is to start forgiving

themselves for the names that they are calling themselves. Again schizophrenia gets to

label this, if they blame others for inserting their thoughts.

One DSM example of a obsessive thought was to kill their child. It helps to start with

the understanding that thoughts are never is about the other person at the spiritual level.

The child they want to kill is in them. This is not about rational thinking. This is about

metaphorical thinking. This is the level where there is no death, only death and resurrection.

Why kill an inner child? One reason could be that the inner child is stuck and needs to start

over.

The other DSM example is the blasphemous thoughts of a religious person. Here we

may have a judgmental person getting their judgments brought to their attention. One generic

spiritual thing to do is to clear out each judgment by forgiveness.

25 September 1998

Another generic spiritual thing to do is just observe them with a gentle humor until they

continue to reduce in intensity. Another generic spiritual thing to do is begin a loving

relationship with this sub personality to discover what the good intention of this sub

personality is. Then it is a cooperative adventure to fine a better way to get that good

intention or to substitute a wiser intention. Then it is on to insuring that there is no

other sub personality that still has a problem... The process continues until all sub

personalities are happy. This is essentially the process in a great book in my on line

library. The book is Core Transformation by Connirae Andreas with Tamara Andreas.

You can order the book by just clicking on the title above and the title in my on line library.

26 September 1998

Now back to compulsions. The first description is "repetitive, purposeful, and intentional

behaviors that are performed in response to an obsession, or according to certain rules or in

a stereotyped fashion." This description acknowledges that the obsessive thoughts are behind

the behavior. Also "certain rules" and a "stereotyped fashion" are based on obsessive thoughts.

The compulsion is a ritual. The ritual keeps the obsessive thoughts going. Perhaps another

ritual will break the compulsion. The second characteristic is that the ritual is designed to prevent

something. The therapist may not think that there is any realistic connection when the therapist

has not helped the client to explore what is in their "unconscious" baggage. The third characteristic

is that the client recognizes that others and even themselves may consider this behavior excessive.

This does not take into account what is in the unconscious baggage to be cleared.

September 27 1998

Let's end this week with a look at responsibility. I am totally responsible for all

that has happened to me ,just as others are totally responsible for what has happened

to them. I was not conscious of a lot of things that came upon me any more than

others are conscious of what comes on them. I am now recovering from Bell's

Palsy, a virus in the nerves in the face that makes it hard to move muscles in the

face. But, I am responsible for cooperating with my healing processes. Here is

a good 's http://www.neuro.nwu.edu/neuro/meded/CRANIAL/bells.html

description of the illness. Some people have more than one occurrence of this

illness. I intend to fully experience my recovery so that I can move on to what

else is next. One has to do something different if one is experiencing the same

thing time after time.

I Foster Discovery and Recovery,

Michael Foster, M. A.

Recovery Skills Coach

"Learn HOW to recovery by discovering the blocks you need to remove and the actions you need to take and what you need to let go of as your blocks to your blessings."

From my book in process, The Spiritual Cookbook (Generic Recipes for a Better Life)

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I started my daily page, because it is useful for me to look for some recovery tip or secret each day for my spiritual growth. we and I only need one secret to work on and let it work on me each day. They are secrets because they are usually the opposite of what the majority of society teaches. They must be secret because they are not commonly used. A friend of mine once said "Common Sense is not much in Common.". Now that I have grandchildren I am also writing for them. I would have really liked for my grandparents to have passed on what they learned.

I am including Sunday as it is my formal day of learning the lord most high's secrets. If you would like ask questions, or contribute some of your wisdom, or want to make some comments or want to vote for which day to put on my tip of the month page or tell your success stories, click Michael Foster, M. A.

14 August 98