Long-Term Recovery: The 5 Pillars of Recovery

What are the 5 Pillars of Recovery? They are 5 things you must have to insure successful long-term recovery. As a counselor specializing in co-occurring disorders, I use the 5 Pillars with all of my clients: eating disorders, chemical dependency, codependency, depression, grief and loss or stagnantion. They are beneficial for everyone.

In the field of recovery, I have found that they are vital. When I have had a client relapse, it was usually because they had not made all 5 of them part of their lives. When I have had a friend who slipped, it was because they stopped doing one or more of them. There is more to recovery than just these 5 things, but I have never seen someone who was actively applying them on a consistent basis relapse. That is how important they are!

Get Addicted to Long-Term Recovery

There is a purpose to this blog. It is to tell you what drives me, and for anyone who has struggled with an addiction to understand a little more about themselves.

I am an addict. We will get that out of the way now. When I say I am an addict you probably know at least one thing about me; I have impulse control problems. I get an urge to act on whatever my addiction might be to and I do it. I live my life by the Nike slogan, "Just Do It!" I am not saying it is right, it is simply what I do.

Once I act upon it, I go places people should not go. In fact, I go places most people would never go. I do not act like most people. I push the envelope with all that I do: drinking, drugging, eating, etc. I go all out. I have trouble stopping once I begin.

Sadly, I am seldom that way with positive things. I once heard a guy at a meeting say the only thing he ever did in moderation was work the steps. I found that funny but true.