Welcome to the Central Coast Area of Narcotics Anonymous
Serving: Paso Robles, Cambria, Atascadero, San Luis Obispo, Arroyo Grande, Santa Maria, Lompoc
Just for today daily meditation
Fear and denial are the opposites of acceptance. None of us are perfect, even in our own eyes; all of us have certain traits that, given the chance, we would like to change. We sometimes become overwhelmed when contemplating how far short we fall of our ideals, so overwhelmed that we fear there's no chance of becoming the people we'd like to be. That's when our defense mechanism of denial kicks in, taking us to the opposite extreme: nothing about ourselves needs changing, we tell ourselves, so why worry? Neither extreme gives us the freedom to change.
Whether we are longtime NA members or new to recovery, the freedom to change is acquired by working the Twelve Steps. When we admit our powerlessness and the unmanageability of our lives, we counteract the lie that says we don't have to change. In coming to believe that a Power greater than we are can help us, we lose our fear that we are damaged beyond repair; we come to believe we can change. We turn ourselves over to the care of the God of our understanding and tap the strength we need to make a thorough, honest examination of ourselves. We admit to God, to ourselves, and to another human being what we've found. We accept the good and the bad in ourselves; with this acceptance, we become free to change.
A Spiritual principle a day
Many of us related very well the first time we heard the line, "We could not live and enjoy life as other people do." Enjoyment and joy become rare when we're caught up in the disease. "Addiction was like putting tons of salt on all my food," an addict shared. "Quitting salt makes the food seem bland for a while . . . but then I can start to taste the actual flavors. Early on in recovery, I thought everything was boring and dull--but it turns out, it was just me!"
Being in recovery and working a program allows us to rediscover or redefine joy for ourselves. "My home-group members go bowling together nearly every week," a member shared. "I think bowling is just about the lamest possible activity . . . and yet I won't miss it for the world. We bowl badly, make a big ruckus, and laugh nonstop." We experience life in a new way, and different life experiences shape our perspectives on joy.
Developing a taste for the more subtle flavors life has to offer takes time. We learn a lot by listening to other members. Joy is contagious. A member shared, "A home-group member who is a parent always shares so seriously about silly things like potty training, then laughs about it. I don't even like kids, but those stories make me laugh, too. It's helping me not take myself too seriously."
The Steps offer a path out of self-centeredness toward contentment. It Works: How and Why describes it this way: "We've begun to see that God's will for us is the ability to live with dignity, to love ourselves and others, to laugh, and to find great joy and beauty in our surroundings." Getting to this place--living and enjoying life "as other people do"--takes a little bit of patience and the willingness not to take ourselves seriously all the time.
WHAT IS THE NARCOTICS ANONYMOUS PROGRAM?
NA is a nonprofit fellowship or society of men and women for whom drugs had become a major problem. We are recovering addicts who meet regularly to help each other stay clean. This is a program of complete abstinence from all drugs. There is only one requirement for membership, the desire to stop using. We suggest that you keep an open mind and give yourself a break. Our program is a set of principles written so simply that we can follow them in our daily lives. The most important thing about them is that they work.
For more information on Narcotics Anonymous,
please go to the:
Narcotics Anonymous World Services Website,
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