by Erin W | Jul 15, 2019 | Authors, Erin W, Recovering Out Loud, Women 50+
Part of remembering yourself is recognizing what is yours to deal with and what is not. It is looking at the totality of our experiences and teasing out behaviors from causes. Yes, we need to own our own shit. But not all of this shit is ours to own.
by Erin W | May 31, 2019 | Addiction & Substance Use, Codependency & Relationships, Erin W, Recovering Out Loud
The anthropologist Margaret Meade famously said everyone has three marriages, even if it’s to the same person. Whether we desire it or not, marriages evolve.
by Erin W | Nov 10, 2018 | Addiction & Substance Use, Alcohol, Authors, Co-Addiction, Codependency & Relationships, Drugs, Erin W, Intentions & Guiding Principles, Recovering Out Loud, Spirituality & Mindfulness
Just as there are many paths to recovery, there are many paths to loving someone who is in active addiction. I am aware of the tactics often used in this situation: codependence, enabling, tough love, rock bottom. I am not offering an opinion on which path to take. Instead I am just sharing the story of my own family.
by Erin W | Oct 28, 2018 | Authors, Erin W, Radical Self Love, Recovering Out Loud, Work
These are my three favorite words of encouragement. These words have seen me out of dark places and moments of uncertainty. These words bring me back to my center.
by Erin W | Sep 22, 2018 | Authors, Erin W, Events & Gatherings, Intentions & Guiding Principles, Radical Self Love, Recovering Out Loud
The speakers and panelists of the She Recovers LA event were amazing. But it was the attendees – the women who had come to do what Tara Mohr described as “the ‘women’s work’ of our particular moment in history” – that kept the woo woo buzzing around me and through me and left me a little strung out in the best way possible.
by Erin W | Aug 25, 2018 | Codependency & Relationships, Mothers of High Needs Children, Radical Self Love, Work
Single mothers make magic happen every day while the world remains unimpressed and forever worshipping at the altar of “rugged individualism,” an altar that inherently excludes mothers who are always a plus-one package.
by Erin W | Jul 8, 2018 | Alcohol, Codependency & Relationships, Radical Self Love, Women 50+
Botox was like a shot of tequila for my face – it artificially and temporarily smoothed out my external edges. But now my outsides most definitely do not match my insides. My face displays a false calm while my mind continues to buzz. Serenity eludes me.
by Erin W | May 26, 2018 | Authors, Codependency & Relationships, Erin W, Mothers of High Needs Children, Radical Self Love
Asking for help is the hardest rule to break. What I know now is that asking for help is not an act of weakness and selfishness; instead it is the ultimate act of selflessness and self-care. It is only by recognizing our own needs that we can truly see the needs of others.
by Erin W | May 1, 2018 | Authors, Codependency & Relationships, Erin W, Mothers of High Needs Children
For years I saw parenting as a care taking business – a transaction. I was supposed to keep the children safe. They were supposed to provide me with my life’s purpose. And this was all part of a rinse and repeat cycle, going back generations.
by Erin W | Apr 3, 2018 | Authors, Codependency & Relationships, Erin W, Grief & Loss, Radical Self Love
Show me a woman in her late 30s/40s, whose life partnership is at least a decade old and whose kid(s) is out of diapers, and I’ll show you a woman who is about to say, “Wait. What?” to her life.
by Erin W | Mar 20, 2018 | Codependency & Relationships, Radical Self Love
All things being equal, I would choose weapons of war over tools of recovery. Every time. But my weapons of war (my will, my way, my vision) created unintended carnage. Eventually, after years of lobbing bombs to make things “right,” I could no longer ignore the barren landscape I was living in.
by Erin W | Mar 7, 2018 | Authors, Erin W, Radical Self Love, Recovery Pathways & Resources, Spirituality & Mindfulness
Sarah Blondin’s meditations and “Live Awake” project are helping women find new insights and peace from within themselves.
by Erin W | Feb 16, 2018 | Addiction & Substance Use, Alcohol, Authors, Co-Addiction, Drugs, Erin W, Radical Self Love, Recovering Out Loud
When we over identify with certain aspects of shared stories, we miss out on the connections we need.
by Erin W | Jan 29, 2018 | Addiction & Substance Use, Alcohol, Authors, Codependency & Relationships, Erin W, Radical Self Love, Recovery Pathways & Resources
We need understanding. We need grace. These things are harder to find than they should be in our culture that insists on easy answers to black and white questions. Meanwhile, we are all living – and dying – in complex shades of gray.
by Erin W | Jan 13, 2018 | Authors, Erin W, Recovering Out Loud
When we decide to make hard changes in our lives, we find ourselves facing down our own personal demons. These demons – or Big Bads – come in all different shapes and sizes. My demon was alcohol. (Or at least that is how it first presented itself.) Your demon may be... by Erin W | Jan 5, 2018 | Addiction & Substance Use, Alcohol, Authors, Co-Addiction, Drugs, Erin W, Recovery Pathways & Resources, Sex & Love, Work
Change really is hard at first. That is why we resist it. This is the first in a three-part series that looks at what we need once we decide to do the work change requires.
by Erin W | Dec 23, 2017 | Authors, Erin W, Radical Self Love
This busy pace of life we keep is not sustainable. It can feel as though we all have our collective breath held, waiting for the other shoe to drop. And for many of us, the holidays can feel like that long-awaited shoe.
by Erin W | Dec 10, 2017 | Authors, Erin W, Recovering Out Loud, Spirituality & Mindfulness
What happens when the company you’ve kept for years begins to feel uncomfortable? Brené Brown’s new book looks at the consequences that come when we are true to ourselves – and why those consequences are worth the effort.
by Erin W | Dec 3, 2017 | Abuse, Addiction & Substance Use, Alcohol, Authors, Codependency & Relationships, Erin W, Trauma
The truth pattern of recovery goes like this: First we have a Moment of Clarity. Then we have our Rock Bottom Years. Then we enter the Acceptance Phase. And finally Gratitude finds us.
by Erin W | Nov 26, 2017 | Addiction & Substance Use, Alcohol, Authors, Codependency & Relationships, Erin W, Radical Self Love
Last time I hid my sobriety like I had hidden my drinking. Sobriety made me feel different and changed. And I did not want to be changed. I wanted everything to stay the same – especially my relationships.
by Erin W | Nov 18, 2017 | Addiction & Substance Use, Alcohol, Authors, Drugs, Erin W, Radical Self Love, Spirituality & Mindfulness
Weed felt like an integral part of Rebecca’s identity. She swore she never wanted to quit – but underneath she was scared that she couldn’t.
by Erin W | Nov 11, 2017 | Authors, Codependency & Relationships, Erin W, Radical Self Love
You do not have to spend too much time in recovery before the Good Things come. But sometimes it is hard to accept Good Things. Fear can keep us in old habits.
by Erin W | Nov 4, 2017 | Addiction & Substance Use, Alcohol, Authors, Drugs, Erin W
Please help us welcome Erin W. who will be writing for and managing our She Recovers blog. She is amazing. Read on and see for yourself. ~Dawn~ The Reasons It started with Baby #1. I like a routine; a schedule. And I read that babies do, too. So every night at... 
