Now that i'm not getting high. WTF is there to do?

So let me tuck this little nugget to bed right here and now. Just because you or someone in your life has decided to jump on the sober train, that does not mean its time to curl up and binge watch ourselves into oblivion. With summer coming up and restrictions going down here's a top 5 of things we can do to keep that motivation up and boredom away, because if there's one thing that is terrible for anyone in recovery its boredom. I have personally relapsed in my past over pure fucking boredom. Its like your sitting there watching TV for the ten millionth hour. Time starts going backwards. The Mickey on your watch looks like he's smoking a pipe, its only 2 o clock. Your mind starts wandering, thoughts start swirling. Bad thoughts, trouble filled thoughts. Nothing good can come from these thoughts. but then the voice starts. its just a whisper at first. Lets get high. it says. I actually laugh out loud. That's a joke i think to myself. "Why not"? whispers the voice. "It'll be fun". Seriously I think. "Sure. It's been awhile" whispers the faint faint voice. It has been awhile I think almost in unison. And then...fast forward five years. WTF I cant not live like this one more fucking minute.

Here are 5 things that have been getting me thru this time of transition.

5. Going Up. A Lot of people have to hit the proverbial ROCK BOTTOM before they decide to get clean. In my case I hit the bottom and then i fell another 6 feet just to make sure I was there. The good thing about this painful yet very, very eye opening time in my life. I finally saw clearly. A haze was lifted from my view and for the first time in my life things were clear. I knew what I had to do. Not only for myself but for everyone in my life that has been affected by me and my addictions. I owed the people in my life that. I owed myself the life I knew I could live. It was Marlon Brandos iconic role as Don Vito Corleone in which he said "Great men are not born great, they are made.." I am coming from the bottom to greatness. I know this to be true. I feel it in every bone in my body. Join me. Once the chains of pain, the chains of addiction whatever chains or mental blocks are holding you down are broken. The only way to go is up.

4. Exercise. This one should be a no-brainer. When I was getting high the dope fucked up the whole chemical make up of my brain. But our bodies, being the tough old, bounce back from 20 years of shit kicking type of machine that it is. Is doing just that, bouncing back, out with the old and in with the new. Minute by minute at a molecular level. It's fucking beautiful. That is why exercise is so very important. It makes the body stronger, the muscles stronger even your lungs and heart get stronger. All the way to your brain. The harder your breathing is pumping new oxygen into the body filling your lungs and re juvinating the blood. The machine works harder to expel any poisons still in the body. Also remember to hydrate. Your body is 70% water. Each individual cell in your body is 70 % water just hydrating properly daily will benefit your body more then you know.

3. Hang out with like minded people. Now first off please obey all social distancing, mask wearing, full face covering rules, laws and acts of your community. That being said there is nothing wrong with getting together with some other on the wagon types or even some sober folks who are just that way. (They do exist, shhh.) One thing that has been a life saver for me is that where I live we have an old xbox one. like the first xbox ones that came out, it has multiplayer and now me and thousands of my closest friends came game out and talk shit to each other to boot. Thank you Xbox live. Whether im scoring runs, touchdowns baskets or goals EA access is an amazing low stress affordable way to keep the boredom boogeyman at bay. Not to mention bragging rights among your friends is alright as well.

2. Travel. Nothing says new you like a change of scenery. whether it's a weekend road trip, or something a bit more permanent. Travelling is always great for you. As humans we want to move, to explore, see new things and experience all that life has to offer. Numerous entries on my own personal bucket list involve travelling all over the world.

1. Meditation. I can not stress the benefits of this amazing practice enough. I will meditate until the day that I die and I look forward to learning more about this ancient wonderful practise. It takes a while before you feel the benefits from meditating but once you do notice the floodgates to pure bliss are open and at your command. I remember the first time i was filled with light and felt more alive, more clear then i have ever been. and when it was done. it still lasted hours for me i felt electric. It was truly, truly an amazing thing to experience. I wish I could sit down with everyone and show them how to do this and replicate the way i am feeling. Anytime I find myself stating to drift. I stop what I am doing and I go and meditate. Extra time on my hands, go and meditate. The way I look at things now is if I got an extra five minutes to kill, I'll do a five minute meditation and feel that much better afterwards. Making my day that much better.