Tag: alcohol
Journal Entry #9: Please Allow Me to Introduce Myself (Again)
by Trish Bell
So I’m kind of a “challenge-all-social-norms, alternative-lifestyle-embracing” sort of girl, and probably mostly not everyone’s cup of tea. And that’s okay. I actually think my unique blend of quirks and weirdnesses are the exact parts of my personality that drew me to this online recovery support group that I’m a part of now like a homing beacon. And when I first found this community … Read More Journal Entry #9: Please Allow Me to Introduce Myself (Again)
Journal Entry #8: You Are Here
by Trish Bell
So… I just last year came out of a painful divorce from a 13+ year live-in relationship, and was financially shell-shocked/traumatized enough from that to not EVER want to be dependent on another person like that again… a situation that ultimately spurred me to finally embrace a lifestyle that I’ve been secretly pining for for quite a while… and so I became a conscious … Read More Journal Entry #8: You Are Here
Journal Entry #7: Puppy Love and Swimsuit Anxiety
by Trish Bell
Hey there, y’all. I just wanted to check in. It’s been a while. I do miss talking to you all. I’ve been less active in writing than I’d like the past few weeks, since I recently adopted a new puppy who is basically eating up almost all my free time at the moment. She doesn’t have all her shots yet so she can’t even … Read More Journal Entry #7: Puppy Love and Swimsuit Anxiety
Journal Entry #6: Shame Triggers
by Trish Bell
Just a pre-warning that this post is going to be more raw than most I’ve made thus far. Because something weird that has struck me over the past week or two, that I haven’t yet posted about, for reasons that will become obvious as I continue with this, is the fact that… and I hope I’m not alone here, but… I tend not to … Read More Journal Entry #6: Shame Triggers
Journal Entry #5: A Shift in Thinking
by Trish Bell
I feel like I’ve had a radical shift in thinking and perspective over the past 24 hours, a shift that feels so “big” to me that I’ve actually been hesitant to write about it for fear of somehow jinxing myself. I think it’s like, everything about this journey has felt so hard and like such a struggle for so long that I’m afraid to … Read More Journal Entry #5: A Shift in Thinking
Journal Entry #4: Please Excuse Our Dust
by Trish Bell
I woke up at 4 am today. This was my first early morning sleepless episode in the past several weeks. (Which is kind of an amazing thing, when I think about it.) Normally these episodes start at about 3 am, and I am kept awake by racing thoughts for at least 2 hours. Today, as I rolled over at 4 am, I knew immediately … Read More Journal Entry #4: Please Excuse Our Dust
Journal Entry #3: Excuses and Decisions
by Trish Bell
We’ve spent a lot of time in my support group lately talking about how we should be kind to ourselves, in our words and our thoughts. How we should begin to practice soft and sweet and loving self-talk, rather than critical and self-censuring self-talk. To tell ourselves that it’s okay, that we’re okay, that no matter what, we’re doing alright, we’re worthy of love, … Read More Journal Entry #3: Excuses and Decisions
Journal Entry #2: Tears of Seeing
by Trish Bell
Today, a group of us at the community support group I’m a part of now listened as these words were read aloud from a John O’Donohue essay called “The Question Holds the Lantern” — “If you could imagine the most incredible story ever, it would be less incredible than the story of being here. And the ironic thing is, that story is not a … Read More Journal Entry #2: Tears of Seeing
Journal Entry #1: Introductory Lessons in Pain
by Trish Bell
I got drunk for the first time when I was 18. I did this in a very intentional and planned way. I’d never been a drinker or a partier and was actually very strait-laced in high school. I was just really curious what all the fuss was about. Well, my first time flirting with inebriation sparked a rocky love affair that has lasted a … Read More Journal Entry #1: Introductory Lessons in Pain
My Sobriety Journey, Journaled
by Trish Bell
So. Here we are. This is a post that has been a looooong time coming. To be honest, once, I never thought I’d get to the point that I’d have the courage to share any of these writings. These particular writings, the ones I’ll be gathering together and sharing with you on this page — let’s just call them “journal entries” to make things … Read More My Sobriety Journey, Journaled
