The Ripple Effect of Making Choices

The journey of recovery is about smashing the illusion of separation and returning to the greater whole.  In some ways, we never stopped being part of the whole and once in recovery, this becomes evident. We awaken to all the ways that our addicted lifestyle impacted our loved ones with whom we share our life.  

Through this process of awakening to the ripple effect of our daily choices, we are returned to understanding how much power we have to influence the world around us by making our healing our greatest priority.  It is a choice about what kind of impact you want to generate with your one finite life.  

The power of focused choices and their influence on the greater ecological systems is demonstrated in the popular video, How Wolves Change Rivers.  In this video, there is  focused effort to increase the population of the wolves.  Increasing the wolf population also restored many species in the region and  transformed of the geography itself. Every facet of the ecosystem is renewed simply by focusing on healing one element of the ecosystem.  

Our recovery journey is the same. A person in their addiction will look at the goal of healing from the bottom of Mount Everest. Gazing at the peak, they imagine the weight 30,000 feet of elevation bearing down on every step.  They do not yet know the momentum that each step brings.  Or that the joy for progress accelerates this momentum.  They do not know that there is a point of being closer to the top than you are to the base of the mountain and that this changes the perspective of the peak.

When in our addiction, we are trapped in the physical and psychological cycle of self-destruction.  When in this experience, all of our important life experiences are out of control such as our most valued family and love relationships, our employment and the experience of development within it and financial planning for our future. As we look up at this mountain peak of healing, longing to deeply and truly return to vitality, it seems out of reach.  We must remember that there is also a systemic energy that is longing to return us to vitality.  It will magically propel us forward much more quickly than may be apparent from the base of the mountain.  

Enlightened Recovery Solutions offers a harmonious approach to holistic treatment, bringing together the best of evidence-based, alternative, and 12-step therapies. Call us today for information on our transformation programs of treatment for addiction and alcoholism:

844-234-LIVE.

10 Foods that Feed Mind, Body, Spirit

Food can tend to multiple needs simultaneously - emotional, physical and mental. Learn to consider what is healthful from a perspective of adaptability - every food choice may nourish us in different ways!   Some things to consider about food is that our bodies’ needs may change over time based on where we are in our recovery journey or where we are in our life journey.   With this groundwork of the context of our life considered, we can then look at some specific healthy foods choices:

1. Water: this a key first priority, especially when detoxifying. It is our natural state and can bring forward fluidness in our spirit.  

2. Avocado: This green beauty is a powerhouse of a nutritional meal! Avocado’s are full of good fat which improves the health of your heart and the sustenance will last a long time.  

3. Dates: sugary and comfort foods can be a way to sooth the emotional healing process in recovery and dates are a great plant-based source of sweet.  Combine with nut butters to slow down the metabolization for a snack that sustains longer.

4. Raw Nuts: a great snack to have on the go! When you find yourself in a state of hungry-angry-lonely-tired (HALT), you have a healthy snack on hand to bring your physical body back into center.

5. Goji Berries: these are a powerful food that satisfy the desire for sweet and offer detoxification support to the liver.  Play with eating one berry at a time and fully experiencing it with all of the sensation of your mouth!

6. Passion fruit: remember, it isn’t ready to eat until the outer shell is wrinkled.  Once it arrives at this place, you can open it and empty the fruit into your belly.  Mix with almond milk and freeze for a fun spin on ice cream.  

7. Millet: this powerful grain cooks much quicker than other whole grains and has a bread-like texture that can satisfy the desire for comfort foods.  

8. Greens: this means a lot of different foods: lettuces, spinach, kale, chard and more! These foods are fabulous for their mineral content and positive impact on your digestive system.  

9. Beets: these lovely Fall root veggies are sweet and easy to prepare! You can wrap them in tin foil, whole, and pop them in the oven at 350 for 45 minutes. Allow them to support you in becoming rooted in your purpose.  

10. Chia pudding: this delicious food can be dessert while also working as a fiber to carry toxins out of the digestive system.  

Enlightened Recovery Solutions offers a harmonious approach to holistic treatment, bringing together the best of evidence-based, alternative, and 12-step therapies. Call us today for information on our transformation programs of treatment for addiction and alcoholism:

844-234-LIVE.

Bringing Meditation to Every Area of Life

Meditation is a powerful and accessible tool for someone in recovery. It transforms their state of presence and creates space to make an intentional choice in every moment.  With choice, recovery begins.

Meditation is many things. To beginners, it is commonly thought to be a period of time sitting on a meditation pillow.  Meditation is much more and can express in many other ways.  It can be explored in the following the realms: physical body, mental body and emotional body.

Physical body: the body as a moving meditation, for example, when walking down the street. You can engage the following focal points:

• Notice when your heel is in contact with the ground and when the ball of your foot is in contact with the ground.

• Play with making big movements with your body - exaggerate your steps or swinging of your arms, or exploring the full core length as you move.

Mental body: engage the mind to cultivate ‘the witness’ which is to create space between you and your mind.  You are not your thoughts. This awareness is the bridge to resisting cravings which can save lives.

• Throughout the day,  write down your thoughts as you notice them.

• In a seated-meditation, notice your thoughts, explore the space between ‘you’ and your thoughts, allowing your thoughts to be  clouds drifting by without attaching to them.

Emotional body: one challenge is the habituated avoidance of emotions. The emotions are a great playground for taking contrary actions to our habits:

• When you notice an impulse to avoid, pause, and simply do the thing that you desire to avoid, even in the smallest measure.  For example, if you typically avoid eye contact, make eye contact intentionally, even if only for a few seconds.  Small changes lead to bigger changes, so celebrate the smallest contrary actions!

• Remember emotions are simply energy that needs to move in order to be released.  As you feel an emotion, allow yourself to connect to the image of a wave, washing in and out.  As with waves, emotions will always change.  

With these simple focuses, you can bring more attention to many areas of your life.  You can begin to live with more intention by taking these small, tangible ways of being more fully with yourself in every moment of your precious life.  

Enlightened Recovery Solutions offers a harmonious approach to holistic treatment, bringing together the best of evidence-based, alternative, and 12-step therapies. Call us today for information on our transformation programs of treatment for addiction and alcoholism:

844-234-LIVE.

Why You Should Consider Eating Organic if You're in Recovery

Recovery is a challenging yet beautiful quest to returning to one’s wholeness.  It is a journey of physical, emotional and spiritual healing.  All of these layers of healing are critical to arrive to a state of true recovery.  Yet, in early recovery, it is valuable to bring some extra attention to physical healing as it is the foundation necessary to have the resources for the intense process that is engaged in emotional healing and spiritual discovery.

The recovery process can be intense for many people on the physical plane.  In many cases, the body has been subjected to long-term and often daily ingestion of toxins through the addict’s drug and alcohol use.  When this ingestion stops, the body will undergo a multi-phased process of healing itself.  It has an extraordinary capacity to heal itself, given time and adequate resources, to complete the healing process.  It is critical to understand that the body has a finite amount of resources to both, continue sustaining itself and to heal itself.  It can be helpful to think of this as an energy currency.  

When we make the decision to heal, we can empower the body with more resources for the healing process by choosing what we ingest for our food resources.  Our bodies require a certain amount of currency to run the daily systems to sustain life from one day to the next.  The food choices we make more resources available for the actual healing process.  This is especially true with organic foods.  Organics do not have pesticides and other toxins that non-organics contain.  The absence of chemicals in the food means that there is less work for your liver, kidneys and digestive system to do in making nutrients available for the rest of your bodies functions.  It creates more resources for your body to heal itself.   

Organics are sometimes more expensive than non-organic foods due to the absence of toxicity and what this means to the cost to farmers in the agriculture process.  If cost prohibits one in purchasing organics, consider purchasing organics on foods that do not have a thick outer peel or shell.  For example, lettuce, berries, etc are more exposed to toxins than an avocado or banana.  Organics will support someone in early recovery in feeling better sooner and lay a solid foundation for the life-changing emotional work that lies ahead.  

Enlightened Recovery Solutions offers a harmonious approach to holistic treatment, bringing together the best of evidence-based, alternative, and 12-step therapies. Call us today for information on our transformation programs of treatment for addiction and alcoholism:

844-234-LIVE.
 

Magnesium For Depression

A graduate student put holistic health to the test in her clinical study on the effectiveness in using magnesium for treating depression. Published in PLoS One, the six week study observed how over 100 adults with mild to moderate depression reacted to 248 milligrams of magnesium taken daily. Vitamins, minerals, and other nutrient based health supplements are often suggested as a way to support other treatments for depression. Most commonly, depression is treated with pharmaceutical medications and therapy. In addition, lifestyle changes like incorporating more exercise, which has been scientifically proven to reduce the symptoms of depression, are encouraged.

There is an ongoing argument about the validity of “holistic” or “natural” treatments to clinical programs. Many believe that food is medicine and that food is indeed better than modern medicine. Natural supplements like magnesium could replace pharmaceutical medications. You should not stop taking medications like mood stabilizers or antidepressants without consulting your doctor and creating a plan for tapering off the medications. In the meantime, natural supplements can help reduce the symptoms of depression and enhance the life of someone living in recovery from it.

The study found that participants who took the magnesium supplement had improvements in their symptoms of depression in as little as two weeks. Unlike pharmaceutical medications which come with a rambling list of risks and side effects, the magnesium, being a natural supplement, was well-tolerated by the participants without any driving circumstance, including the use of other medications.

Magnesium is used as a calming agent for mental and physical ailments. Magnesium oil spray, for example, can help ease the tension of sore and achy muscles. Taking magnesium supplements can help ease the tension of all muscles, including the brain which is a muscle itself.

Supporting Depression Recovery

Using natural supplements to support recovery from depression is important for creating a holistic approach. Holistic treatment includes the mind, the body, and the spirit. Too often, one or more of these areas are neglected. For example, a heavy reliance on pharmaceutical medications to support the mind might turn against supporting the body and the spirit. Exercise, mindfulness, and meditation are all recommended. Depression is often a side effect of recovering from drug and alcohol addiction as well as a commonly co-occurring disorder.

If you or a loved one are suffering from depression and addiction that has taken control of your life, there is healing available. Call Enlightened Solutions today for information on our compassionate care programs for addiction and co-occurring depression. Be enlightened. Find recovery.

It starts with you. Start with us. 844-234-LIVE

3 Proven Methods To Reduce Anxiety When You’re In a Clutch

Anxiety can feel unmanageable when it is at its worst. For many, alcohol is a trigger for using drugs and alcohol to cope. Before turning to self destructive behaviors, try one of these three methods.

Stop What You’re Doing And Focus On Your Breath

Anxiety builds when the brain and the body lose connection to one another. As the brain continues to put forth signals of anxiety through hormone production of cortisol and adrenaline, the body reacts. Increased heart rate, dizziness, hyperventilation, and other physical symptoms can worsen the experience of anxiety until they are resolved. One of the quickest ways to resolve the physical symptoms of anxiety is to start focusing on your breath. If your anxiety is climaxing no matter what you do, stop doing anything. Focus purely on breathing. Place a hand on your abdomen and a hand on your chest to feel the rise and fall of your diaphragm as you continue to breathe. Breathing will slow down your heart, which will help your brain relax as you pump more controlled oxygen to it. You don’t have to breathe “mindfully”, though you will be inherently by focusing on your breath, and you don’t have to meditate, though it will already be a form of meditating. All you have to do is breathe until you feel your muscles start to relax.

Don’t Interact With Technology For 10 Minutes

Technology is causing more anxiety that society is truly prepared for. The blue lights behind the screens of digital devices stimulates the brain to be more awake. There are many apps for smartphones and other digital devices which are effective in anxiety management. Apps for anxiety, mood, mindfulness, and meditation can all help with anxiety. Sometimes, interacting with the app instead of the natural environment can be too much. Instead of trying to find relief through the phone, find relief through your natural environment. As you focus on your breathing, look at the sky, look at your feet on the ground, or look at a fixed object you feel safe looking at. Giving your eyes and your brain a break will help with the anxiety.

Move Your Body, Preferably Outdoors

Adrenaline and cortisol give the body all the anxious energy it needs to fight or run. Part of the fight-or-flight response, these stress hormones give the body the edge it needs to act quickly and efficiently in order to survive. During anxiety, however, they can feel paralyzing, preventing the body from doing anything. To get rid of the stagnant energy, it's important to move the body as much as possible, preferably outdoors. The combination of physical exercise and outdoors will clear your mind and release anxious energy. Being in the outdoors while you move- even just walking around, or pacing back and forth, has been proven to have a tremendous effect and makes the exercise more impactful.

You can learn to manage your anxiety. Enlightened Recovery Solutions warmly welcomes men and women with dual diagnosis anxiety and substance use disorders to our partial care programs. Our compassionate environment supports our integrative approach of holistic treatment, approaching spirit healing therapies for the whole person. For information, call us today at 844-234-LIVE.

Probiotics Might Provide Relief For Depression, Encourages Gut-Mind Connection

Having an upset stomach usually doesn’t come with a good mood. When we don’t feel good in our gut, we tend not to feel good at all. Discomfort in our gut can feel like discomfort in our entire being. Researchers are increasingly paying attention to the connection between the gut, specifically meaning the bacteria in your stomach, called gut bacteria, and the mind.

A new study published in Gastroenterology used a placebo-controlled trial to show a connection between the use of probiotics and mood in people with IBS, irritable bowel syndrome, which has high rates of depression as well as anxiety. According to TIME, 44 adults were followed for 10 weeks to watch the effect of probiotics on their “mild to moderate anxiety or depression.” Half of the group took Bifidobacterium longum each day while the other took a placebo. Bifidobacterium longum is a probiotic which helps the gut produce healthy bacteria. The results were considerable.

For clinical trials observing depression, depression is evaluated on a scale which calculates a score. Called a clinical scale, these scores help doctors diagnose depression and the severity of depression. After six weeks of the trial, the article reports, “twice as many people who took the probiotic had decreased depression scores compared to those who took the placebo.” The numbers were 64% compared to 32%. After the full ten weeks of the trial, the results were similar. Another component was used to evaluate the effect of the probiotics on depression. Researchers used functional MRI scans and “found that improved depression scores were associated with changes in activity of several brain areas involved in mood regulation.” Mood lives in the brain. Changes in mood mean changes in brain chemistry. The trial proves that the relationship between the gut and the mind is significant. A healthy gut could mean a happier mind.

Probiotics are part of a healthy living lifestyle which can contribute to recovery. Recovery should be taken with a whole-person approach, taking the mind, the body, and the spirit into consideration. Enlightened Recovery Solutions creates a compassionate environment of healing by fusing integrative approaches to treatment. Our programs include nutrition, food education, and holistic health in order to empower clients toward fulfillment. For information on our dual diagnosis partial care programs, call us today at 844-234-LIVE.

The Three Essential Oils You Need To Be a Rockstar in Addiction Recovery

Recovery isn’t always an uphill battle. Sometimes you are going to cruise through the challenges recovery has to offer you. You are a rockstar for being here, being clean and sober, and being up for the challenge. Essential oils are a holistic

Rosemary

For: healing the body, empowering difficult conversations, relieving tension or anxious energy

You are capable of achieving anything you put your mind to. Every day- every minute- you stay clean and sober from drugs and alcohol, you are achieving something miraculous. Throughout recovery you will be presented opportunities to continue growing into greatness. You will have to face your fears, overcome your anxieties, and find the empowerment you need to move forward. From difficult conversations to difficult decisions, your strength and confidence in who you are will continue to build. For those moments when you’re looking upon another opportunity to grow, evolve, and be empowered, Rosemary oil can be helpful. Smelling good always makes you feel good, so try rubbing some on your most active pressure points like the underside of your wrists or your temples on your head next to your eyes. If you’re giving yourself a pep talk, put Rosemary in your aromatherapy diffuser to breathe in the empowerment you need. Using Rosemary in a diffuser during meditation can help clear the mind of anxiety to find strength in tranquility.

Bergamot

For: inner strength to get through tough times

You are forever on the hero’s journey in recovery. As you continue on your lifelong quest, you will come across victory and defeat, challenge and accomplishment. You will face times of fear, times of introspection, and challenges to your spirit. At the forefront of each of these challenges you will need to take a deep breath, collect your strength, and rely on the faith you need to get through. Bergamot is a great essential oil to have in these moments to help you overcome insecurity and doubt, uplifting your spirit instead. Revitalizing and energizing, the fresh scent of Bergamot is perfect for daily use so you can live every day like a superhero.

Lavender

For: stress relief and relaxation

Nothing brings a day together like the relaxing smell of lavender. Lavender is one of nature’s wonder flowers. In addition to be relaxing and soothing, contributing to the deep sleep you need to be a rockstar in recovery every day, Lavender is healing. Put it on wounds, cuts, bruises, or any physical issue for relaxation and healing. Every superstar has to partake in self-care now and then. Using lavender essential oil is like a quick trip to a luxurious space every time you use it. Deep relaxation, stress relief, and calm can go a long way in recovery.

Enlightened Recovery Solutions offers an integrative approach to treatment focusing on total transformative healing. Bringing together the best of clinical therapy, alternative healing, and holistic treatment, we strive to help clients live a fulfilling lifetime of recovery. For information on our partial care programs, call us today at 844-234-LIVE.

Best Essential Oils For Overcoming Challenges In Recovery

Essential oils are an ancient practice using the most healing properties of herbs, flowers, and plants. Either rubbed onto the skin or through aromatherapy, essential oils can be supportive to therapeutic efforts in recovery, mind, body, and spirit.

Organge

For: Getting out of a funk and shaking off the blues

Orange is an invigorating smell. As an essential oil, orange is good to shake off going through a funk or feeling a case of the blues. Recovery, especially early recovery, is full of ups and downs. As the brain and the body regulate, it isn’t uncommon to go through periods of depression. Life can be that way outside of recovery as well. All kinds of circumstances can bring us into a funk or a down time in our energy, mood, and emotional state. It is important in recovery to learn to let things pass, feel feelings, and learn from everything. However, a funk and the blues can become too overwhelming. When they do, there is a risk of returning to old feel-good behaviors which can be harmful and a threat to sobriety.

Eucalyptus

For: fighting off chronic early recovery colds, detox, PAWS, general relaxation

Eucalyptus is an ingredient used in many trusted cold remedies. Brand name products like Vick’s Vapo Rub use the natural menthol of eucalyptus for clearing up the nose and throat for relief during congestion. Eucalyptus is good for purifying and cleansing, which makes it a very essential oil. Early recovery can come with regular rounds of colds and flus. Everybody has a compromised immune system as their bodies are fighting hard to restore health after years of substance abuse. In addition to helping out during a cold or the flu, eucalyptus oil can help with detox and withdrawal symptoms which are ongoing. Symptoms of post acute withdrawal syndrome can last up to 24 months.

Sandalwood

For: working on your fourth step, clearing negative energy, trauma work

Sandalwood is an essential oil used in different religions and spiritual practices. It’s used to clear negative energy and sanctify an object or a process. Using sandalwood during a fourth step of the twelve step process is helpful in clearing away the surging negative emotions which can come from writing about resentments and harms done. Trauma work with a therapist and in group setting can also bring up old negative emotions which are difficult to process. Sandalwood will create a sense of grounding while healing the energy.

Enlightened Recovery Solutions strives to bring clients transformative healing of mind, body, and spirit. Our integrative treatment programs fuse the best of holistic and alternative healing with clinical therapy and twelve step philosophy. Providing partial care programs, we welcome clients seeking to recover from addiction, alcoholism, and mental health issues. For information, call us today at 844-234-LIVE.

How an Overactive Chakra Can Negatively Interfere With Your Recovery: Part One

The chakras are a series of energetic hubs which align the body from the top of the head, through the spine, to the base of the tailbone. Each chakra has energetic meaning which can interact with how we live our recovery. Here we discuss the first three chakras and how, when they are overactive, they can negatively interfere with recovery.

Overactive Root Chakra

The root chakra is located by at the bottom of the tailbone at the very core of your being. Represented as red in color, the root chakra is associated with your sense of foundation. “Grounding” exercises commonly refer to activating and healing the root chakra to feel more connected to the chakra system, the earth beneath your feet, and the world around you. When the root chakra is overactive, it can interfere with your recovery by causing you to resist change and act with more greed. The world is constantly changing. There are changes happening every single second which are essential to our survival and would be catastrophic if they stopped changing; for example, the earth is constantly rotating on it’s axis. If the earth stopped rotating, we would lose our sense of gravity and everything would start floating around, colliding, and causing a disaster. When we become resistant to change in recovery, we become resistant to growth. Continual growth is essential for long term recovery. It is natural and acceptable to want to keep things as they are, especially when they feel so good. Holding onto to pleasure is a characteristic of addiction. The spiritual approach, however, is recognizing that this too shall pass and there is always more to come.

Overactive Sacral Chakra

The sacral chakra is located within the abdomen, by the sacrum of the spine. Represented as orange in color, the sacral chakra is associated with acceptance. Acceptance is a widely discussed theme in all of recovery, especially twelve step philosophies. The popular “serenity prayer” asks a higher power of your understanding to grant you the serenity to accept the things you cannot change. Losing your ability to be in acceptance quickly leads to resentments toward people, places, and things which you want to control, feel you need to control, but ultimately cannot. You have to accept. Feeling out of control and detached from one area of life can lead to compensating by attaching to another area of life. Too often, that can result in reattaching to drugs and alcohol.

Overactive Solar Plexus Chakra

The solar plexus chakra is located in the upper abdomen, near the stomach. Represented as yellow in color, the solar plexus chakra supports your confidence and the second part of the “serenity prayer”. After asking for the serenity to accept what you cannot change, you ask for the courage to change the things you can. Primarily, you can change yourself and take control of yourself in your own life. An overactive solar plexus chakra can result in becoming aggressive, taking too much control, and trying to change everything. As a result, you lose sight of what you truly can change. Being overactive in the solar plexus means acting out of insecurity and fear through pride instead of confidence and humility.

Integrative healing is the primary principle of treatment at Enlightened Recovery Solutions. Our mind, body, spirit approach brings together the best of clinical therapy, holistic healing, and twelve step philosophy. For information on our partial care programs for addiction, alcoholism, and dual diagnosis issues, call us today at 844-234-LIVE.

Why Yoga Teachers Use Reiki During Practice

At the beginning of a practice, or a yoga class, a teacher might let everyone know that they will be coming around to make adjustments. Helping students get into the right position, or asana, during yoga is essential to maximizing the benefit of that position. Yoga positions are specific, activating muscles to be stretched, strengthened, and to release the energy they hold within them. The healing, energetic touch of a yoga teacher can be relaxing to a struggling student and help them settle more comfortably into a position.

Touch during yoga practice can also be a practice for reiki. Reiki is another eastern alternative practice, with roots in Japanese culture. By interacting with the seven chakras and the body’s energy systems, reiki, through light touch or hovering above the body, helps move energy. Clearing unwanted blockages, reiki can help release the flow of energy. Releasing the flow of energy results in better health, reduced stress, deep relaxation, and more emotional regulation.

Combining reiki and yoga can create a powerful, healing experience, especially for those experiencing yoga as well as reiki for the first time in treatment. Addiction, alcoholism, and dual diagnosis mental health issues live within the mind as well as the body and have an impact on the spirit. Drugs and alcohol are often a way to cope with difficult emotions and emotional experience. By drowning the emotions with mind altering substances, one is led to believe that the feelings simply go away. Although emotions cannot be seen or felt to the physical touch, they are energetic experiences which just don’t disappear when they are taken away from the forefront of the mind. All emotion is energy. Using drugs, alcohol, or any other harmful behavior to stuff or hide emotions only compresses them, creating stuck, stagnant energy which blocks the natural flow. Treatment is focused on identifying this energy and the specific emotional experiences which created it.

The only way for this emotional energy to be released is for it to actually be released. However, after years of avoiding feeling, acknowledging feelings, and coming to terms with feelings, it can be difficult to release that energy. A combination of reiki and yoga can not only aid in releasing plugged up emotional energy but create deep relaxation and calm for the process. Healing touch helps those in treatment feel safe within their own emotional experience, an essential tool for lifelong recovery.

Our integrative approach to treatment brings together the best in alternative holistic healing, proven clinical therapy, and the spiritual foundation of twelve step philosophy. We want to see you thrive in recovery with ease. For information on our partial care programs for alcoholism, addiction, and dual diagnosis issues, call Enlightened Recovery Solutions today at 844-234-LIVE.

3 Qualities You Should Look For In A Healthy Sponsor

Finding a sponsor quickly in early recovery can help you get started on the twelve steps as soon as possible. Choosing the right sponsor is easy by looking for these three qualities about the way they sponsor people. In addition, they should be someone you feel you relate to, whose life in recovery is something you admire, and who you feel you can trust.

1. They Are Generous With Time And Knowledge: Once upon a time your sponsor was in the same position as you. New to recovery, uncomfortable with feelings and cravings, not sure how to make it through another day sober. A sponsor reached out to them offer generous amounts of time and knowledge about recovery, the Big Book, the twelve steps, and more. Sponsors in a relationship with a sponsee are supposed to give their time and knowledge generously as it was given to them. If a sponsor is holding back or creating requirements to “earn” what they know, they are not the right person.

2. They Do Not Sugar Coat Things For You: A sponsor does not have to be rigid, rude, and confrontational on the borderline of emotionally abusive. Likewise, a sponsor does not have to be gentle, soft, cooing, and affectionate. Ideally, a sponsor should have a healthy balance of realism and optimism, compassion and empathy, with some healthy boundary settings. Your sponsor is not your therapist or your parent. Your sponsor is someone who dedicates their time to showing you how to live a clean and sober lifestyle of recovery. As a result, they should be realistic and assertive with you when necessary. Addiction is a sneaky disease which can quickly turn the brain. Sponsors are there to help you realize when your thinking has gone astray and put it back on track.

3. They Are Loyal And Maintain Confidence: Going through the twelve steps with a sponsor means that individual will b getting to know you on a deep and intimate level. Sharing your fourth step, your moral inventory, with your sponsor means going through some of your darkest moments together. A sponsor should be committed to your relationship with them, not anything else. Too often, sponsors have a tendency to talk about their sponsees and what their sponsees are going through to other people. Understand, your sponsor is not a perfect person. At times, they will need to seek outside advice so they can best guide you in their recovery. This is an important quality which teaches you that it is always okay to ask for help.

Enlightened Solutions believes in the spiritual principles and lifestyle of the twelve steps. Our partial care programs for addiction and dual diagnosis issues bring together the twelve step philosophy with proven clinical treatments and holistic healing modalities. For more information, call us today at 844-234-LIVE.

The 5 Best Holistic And Natural Therapies For The Recovering Body And Mind

Healing mind, body, and spirit requires a mind, body, and spirit approach. Holistic and natural therapies help heal all three areas at once.

1. Acupressure Massage: The body is full of pressure points which are connected to the natural flow of energy in the body. When activated through pressure, each point releases energetic blockages and releases tension in the muscles. Acupressure massage can be extreme and sometimes extremely painful. However, the benefits are tremendous for mind, body, and spirit. Releasing toxins and blocked energy helps clear the mind and detoxifies the body. Emotional processing is common with acupressure, helping to heal the spirit.

2. Acupuncture: Acupuncture is a proven treatment for recovery. Similar to acupressure, acupuncture works with specific channels, meridians, and points of energy throughout the body. Each acupuncture point, activated by the insertion of a small needle, connects to the function of a major organ, which has importance in emotional and energetic regulation. Acupuncture can release muscles and energy, helpful for relieving aches and pains. In addition, acupuncture can help with sleeplessness and stress in addition to detoxifying the body and creating deep relaxation.

3. Aromatherapy: Essential oils can be used for healing in many different ways, all of which are considered to be part of aromatherapy. Just putting a dab of essential oils on specific pressure points like the wrists or the temples can be therapeutic. Inhaling the scent of essential oils has numerous properties for the mind, body, and spirit. Lavender can be calming in times of stress, while citrus sells can be uplifting. Eucalyptus is helpful in clearing the nose, the chest, and detoxifying the body from illness.

4. Hydrotherapy: Whether in a hydromassage chamber or standing in a hot shower, spending time being touch by water is healing for the body and the mind. Our natural pH levels align with water. Water helps relax our bodies, our minds, our muscles, and our joints simultaneously. Soaking in a jacuzzi or a tub, washing the face, or taking a plunge in a pool are all healing forms of hydrotherapy.

5. Massage: Massage has become a common healing modality offered in treatment centers for addicts and alcoholics in recovery. Healing touch is soothing and therapeutic for those who have experienced abuse and trauma. By releasing tension in the muscles, it becomes easier to focus on the mental work of therapy and release the pain of detox.

Holistic healing and natural alternative healing remedies are essential for fully recovering the mind, body, and spirit. At Enlightened Solutions we conjoin the best of holistic care with clinically proven therapy and spiritual healing. Call us today for information on our partial care programs and recovery services. 844-234-LIVE.

Summer Is Here! 10 Ways To Bring Your Recovery Into Summer

June 21st marks the summer solstice when the days officially get longer, the sun shines brighter, and all that glorious summer energy is alive. Summertime is a great time to be sober, just like every other time of year. Outdoor activities, recovery bonding, special meetings- it’s time to celebrate being alive and being sober for another summer season.

1. Make The Most Of Being Outside: Open the windows, draw back the blinds, and get outside. The extended daylight hours of summertime can combat those long winter blues and replenish the body. All the extra Vitamin D and Vitamin C will do wonders for your mental health by boosting positive moods and hormones. Don’t forget your sunscreen.

2. Attend Summer-Specific Meetings: Summer time means the weather is warmer for longer. In many areas, the summertime means unique meetings which only happen during the summertime. Bonfires on the beach at sunset, hilltop hike meetings, and more only come one season a year.

3. Attend Summer Recovery Parties: Everyone is enjoying the sunshine and the gift of being alive another summer. However, summertime can be triggering. Many spent summers getting loaded on the beach or staying trapped in doors, imprisoned by an addiction. Many AA groups host summer barbecues, beach days, and events. Spending time with peers cooking food, playing games, and enjoying the day is good for the soul.

4. Start A New Hobby: Starting a new hobby can be a boost for self-esteem. Summer is the perfect time to pick up outdoor hobbies like swimming, surfing, hiking, running, or gardening. Whatever new activity sounds interesting, give it a shot. You’ll be spontaneous, increase your confidence in yourself, and build neuroplasticity while learning something new.

5. Cook For The Season: Recovery is mind, body, and spirit. Part of attending to the needs of the holistic self is feeding it healthy food. Experiencing cooking is enhanced by cooking for the season. Walk through a local farmer’s market or grocer to find out what’s in season near you. Look up summer recipes for that crop and create something delicious.

Life has seasons of change. Recovery is constant among them. At Enlightened Solutions, we’re showing clients how to develop a spiritual lifestyle of recovery for a lifetime. For information on our partial care programs, call us today at 844-234-LIVE.

Navigating Difficult People, Not Difficult Situations, In Recovery

In recovery, we are taught to live life on life’s terms. Yet, we are rarely taught to live life on people’s terms. People are difficult. Life presents us difficult people. A good situation can turn into a difficult situation when we are dealing with difficult people. Recovery in our lives puts us at both an advantage and a disadvantage for dealing with difficult people.

The Recovery Advantage

Compassion and empathy have been shown to us since the beginning of our recovery. We have been shown the way for understanding that difficult people go through or have gone through difficult things. After all, not too long ago, and probably sometime soon, we have been difficult ourselves. Love and tolerance is our code, we are taught through the rooms of Alcoholics Anonymous and other programs. Tolerating others while continuing to love them regardless of who they are is something we learn in recovery. However, it is often easier said than done.

The Recovery Disadvantage

Learning to love and tolerate others has been the result of learning to love and tolerate ourselves. We have a common saying in recovery, if you spot it, you’ve got it. Developing an attitude of gratitude, being kind toward others, and maintaining peace in our lives has taken great work. Our lives were in the worst place they had ever been. Through hard work we pulled ourselves out and made the changes. We can’t know what anyone else is going through. As a result we tend to make judgments. It couldn’t be worse than living with a life-threatening addiction or a mental health disorder! How worse or not worse the cause behind someone’s tendency toward being difficult is doesn’t matter. Cultivating empathy and practicing compassion continues to be key

Here are three suggestions for navigating a difficult person in another wise not difficult situation.

1. Be Kind: Sometimes all a difficult person needs is the loving-kindness of an understanding stranger. Rather than be averse, show them the same kindness and patience which has been shown to you so many times.

2. Bring Peace: We cannot resolve every situation by being a peacemaker. What we can be is peaceful, which tends to have a peaceful effect. Bring the peace by not creating conflict out of difficulty.

3. Surrender Control: being right, proving a point, showing someone how difficult they are- these are all wasted efforts for the sake of trying to be in control. We cannot control every difficult person we encounter. We can’t control any of them. Radical acceptance is the practice of embracing the totality of what is, as it is.

Learning to live is the reason we get sober. At Enlightened Solutions, we are showing clients how to live a peaceful, holistic lifestyle. Our programs seek to heal mind, body, and spirit by bringing together the best of alternative healing, holistic therapy, and clinical treatment. For more information, call 844-234-LIVE.

Need Something New For Self-Care? Take An Adult Bath

Bath time is dreaded by many children- until they get in. Submerged in the warm water, surrounded by beloved bathtime toys, and receiving the loving touch of a doting parent helps children relax before bedtime. Science has proven that being submerged in water changes body chemistry and balances pH levels, causing relaxation. As adults, bathtime becomes a luxury for which there is rarely time, unless at a spa. Reader’s Digest suggests that taking an adult bath is exactly what is needed for total restoration.

Stress is a chronic problem, particularly when you’re living with an addiction or mental health disorder. Managing stress is essential for emotional regulation, keeping the body healthy, and maintaining focus on recovery. During a bath, focusing on relaxation is all that can happen. Otherwise, you’re just simmering in stress- literally. Instead, bath time can be a private time for self-care.

Self-care is a critical concept in recovery from addiction and co-occurring disorders. Taking time for self-care is the way you show yourself the same tender, loving care a parent shows a toddler in the bath. Instead of rubber duckies and Johnson’s baby shampoo, though there may be a time, there are other ways to enhance a bath time to rejuvenate mind, body, and spirit. Incorporating an adult bath into a self-care regime is healing for mind, body, and spirit.

How to bring together recovery and bath time? Here are some suggestions:

• Practicing alone time and practicing self-care aren’t always synonymous. Make bath time one of the ways you practice being alone with yourself. Turn off your phone, shut the door, and mark your calendar as busy.

• Since you aren’t bringing a glass of wine or champagne into a bath, bring another delicious beverage. Try making a tea which blends together relaxing herbs like chamomile and lavender with vanilla. Add a squeeze of lemon to help the body detoxify as it sweats in the warm water and a drizzle of honey for luxurious sweetness.

• Use aromatherapy to enhance the senses and promote relaxation. Put a few drops of essential oils into the bath. Light scented candles or an incense. Turn on an aromatherapy diffuser in the room so you can breathe it in with every inhale.

• If you feel like meditating, practice a mindfulness body scanning technique in which you become aware of the way the water is surrounding your body and offering you relaxation.

• If you don't’ feel like meditating, bring an inspiring book with you. Doing recovery “homework” in the bath might not be relaxing. Reading inspirational books about spirituality, personal stories of recovery, and healing from mental health disorders will energize you as your bath relaxes you.

Enlightened Solutions brings together the best of holistic healing, alternative therapy, 12 step philosophy, and clinical treatment. Our partial care programs for dual diagnosis addiction and mental health disorders help clients grow along spiritual lines. Start your recovery with us by calling 844-234-LIVE.

Treatment For Addiction And Mental Health Should Be A Blend Of Eastern And Western Medicine

People are turning toward naturopathic, alternative, homeopathic medicines and treatments for a reason: Western medicine isn’t working. Finding a balance between eastern practices and western practices is bringing people to a holistic state of healing in which they find they are healing mind, body, and spirit. Western medicine largely focuses on the symptoms, rather than the core of the problem. Eastern medicine is more preventative, focusing on the core of the issue. Much of eastern medicine is spiritually connected, working under the philosophy that emotions are energy and emotional energy has the capacity to make us sick. Living a healthy and balanced lifestyle has to include balance for emotions and the spirit. Medications, tests, and examinations in western medicine tend to lead to an answer of “stress” and needing to get rid of whatever is causing stress. Eastern practices have the ability to pinpoint the cause of stress.

Acupuncture, for example, can identify emotional energy blockages by working with the body’s acupressure points. Massage can find tension in the muscles and release them, often releasing emotional energy. Essential oils can be calming, invigorating, grounding, and releasing. Crystals tend to only have effect when their specific energy and attributes are necessary, highlighting what the problem might be. Not reacting to rose quartz? Your heart is probably doing fine. Feeling a tingle or some kind of draw to obsidian? You might have some issues from the past to work out.

A blend of both kinds of medicine is necessary because Eastern medicine can sometimes fall short in the western body. Treatment for addiction and alcoholism as well as other mental health issues has to be taken seriously in its holistic approach. How many oils would it take to balance depression and anxiety which are becoming a clinical issue? Should cravings be considered an emotional issue or warrant a prescription for drugs like Naltrexone? The goal in treatment is to make clients comfortable, help them relax, heal them, and show them how to live a fully sober life in recovery. Balancing east and west is a primary example of doing so.

At Enlightened Recovery Solutions, we’re bringing together the best of clinical therapy, holistic healing, and 12 step philosophy. Recovery starts with you. Start your recovery with us. For information on our integrative programs for partial care, call us today at 844-234-LIVE.

Does Mindfulness Work For Reducing Anxiety?

Anxiety has little to do with being in the present moment other than spending that present moment worrying about the future. Getting caught up in anxious thoughts feels like getting lost in an uncontrollable stream of worry, concern, and fear over things which might not even be real. Millions of people live with anxiety and co-occurring disorders like addiction or alcoholism but do not receive treatment. Each day, they live under the rule of their anxiety, which takes a toll physically, mentally, and spiritually.

Recently, Brigham Young University conducted a study on anxiety and the effect of mindfulness in reducing anxiety. Mindfulness helps those with anxiety accomplish three important states. First, it helps them focus on the present moment. Second, it returns them to their breath. Third, it helps them get in touch with their true emotions. “People who are not aware of ‘moment-to-moment experience’ many times void difficult emotions,” the article explains, “This behavior leads to negative thoughts.” It can also lead to a heightened heart rate, rapid thinking mind, and muscle tension.

20 minutes of mindfulness a day can effectively reduce the symptoms of anxiety before, during, and after an anxiety attack or an episode of anxious thinking. Mindfulness practices tend to include focus on the breath. Practicing breathing exercises for anxiety helps increase mindfulness and reduce activity in the brain. Deep and controlled breaths are like a reset button for the brain, especially during anxiety. When we think of being anxious, worried, or afraid, we might notice our heart rate increasing. Anxiety typically does not come with long, deep breaths, but short rapid ones. The cross-signals of the rapid heart rate and short breathing actually trigger the brain’s anxiety further and vice versa.

Breathing For Anxiety

Start by identifying five things in each of your senses while trying to slow down your breath. After you have slowed your mind down with focus, turn your focus to your breath. Try breathing in through your nose for five full seconds, holding it for five full seconds, then letting it out for five full seconds. Repeat this breathing process. You will find that your body is systematically relaxing and your brain is starting to slow down. Soon, your anxious moment will be over and you will be in a clam state of mind.

Anxiety can be a trigger for relapse on drugs and alcohol. Recovery starts with holistic treatment of dual diagnosis issues, targeting mind, body, and spirit for transformative change. Our integrative programs at Enlightened Solutions bring together the best of both worlds, helping our clients find freedom in recovery. For more information, call us today at 844-234-LIVE.

The H.O.W. Of Recovery: Honest, Open Chakras, Willingness

We are repeatedly told that recovery from drug and alcohol addiction, as well as most co-occurring mental health disorders has to be holistic. Holistic healing, holistic wellness, and a holistic approach all mean the same thing. The word holistic means comprehending that everything is made of many parts and all of those parts are intimately interconnected. Addiction and alcoholism are not isolated to the mind or the body or even the spirit. When someone is overcome by addiction and alcoholism they have to recover in mind, body, and spirit. Trying to define mental illness by just one part of the equation does an injustice to the complexity of mental health disorders and often does an injustice to someone getting the treatment they need. A key to understanding the holistic approach is understanding that the only way to explain mental illness is by referring to the whole person- mind, body, and spirit.

Spiritual wellness, spirituality, and spiritual healing are an important part of the recovery process. Most treatment centers take the holistic approach and include some therapeutic components in their programs which reflect spiritual wellness. Massage, acupuncture, yoga, meditation, reiki, are common examples. One area many treatment centers don’t focus on is healing the chakras and opening them up. Opening the chakras allows the energy in the body to effortlessly flow from head to toe. Chakras which are closed and have been closed for many years stop the flow of energy which can cause emotional as well as physical health problems.

Chakras are seven energy centers in the body starting from our sacral region in our low back and center all the way to the top of our head. We work with our chakras through yoga, meditation, and reiki to release the energy. Breathing exercises focused on opening the chakras can help release the blockages there. Most often, our difficulties in treatment are reflected in which chakras are closed. There are correlations between what each chakra represents and regulates to what we go through on a daily basis. Keeping the chakras open helps us to be more open to live, recovery, and the freedom recovery promises.

At Enlightened Solutions we provide an integrative program of holistic healing, clinical therapy, and 12 step philosophy for total transformation. Our partial care programs are designed for dual diagnosis patients needing healing for substance use and mental health disorders. Recovery starts with you. Start your recovery with us. Call us today for more information at 844-234-LIVE.

Which Essential Oils Can Aid In The Therapeutic Process?

Holistic science and psychological science are increasingly going hand in hand. Therapy is done in treatment for drug and alcohol addiction through traditional methods and new innovative methods. One of the most important parts of therapy during treatment is the special work a client does one on one with their individual therapist. Among the many group therapies, educational groups, and holistic healing activities, an individual therapist helps guid treatment. Through their work, a client can begin to see the path they are following and process specific issues which come up in other areas of treatment.

However, not everyone is open to traditional talk therapy. Sitting in a room in front of someone who is a relative stranger with a pen and paper can be intimidating. Therapists learn many different tools for helping clients open up and discover more about themselves. The best treatment programs use integrative methods for aiding in the therapeutic process. Essential oils can be used to promote relaxation, enhance energy, open chakras and encourage emotional release. Essential oils used through a diffuser or on the skin can help bring a client fully into the treatment process and help them through therapy.

Orange Oil

Orange zest always brings about feelings of being refreshed and rejuvenated. As an essential oil, orange is helpful in creating an energized and uplifted mood. For therapy, orange oil can be used to work through trauma, put a positive end on an otherwise difficult session, or help lift the symptoms of depression in order to examine it through a different light.

Eucalyptus Oil

There is little doubt that Eucalyptus oil is healing. Many ointments used to treat pain or sickness use eucalyptus oil. This powerful oil helps open the nasal passage and the lungs, inspiring deep breathing for relaxation. Used for purifying and balancing, eucalyptus can be an oil for strength and hope during times of doubt and sickness.

Rosemary Oil

Rosemary makes any dish delicious in the kitchen. In therapy, rosemary can be an empowering scent. When fears are being faced with uncertainty and doubt, rosemary oil can help settle nerves and bring clarity to mind.

Lavender Oil

Few scents in the world have the instantaneous relaxing effect that lavender does. Lavender has the ability to heal wounds, relieve stress, and reduce tension. During times of anger, rage, or extreme emotional distress, lavender can create a sense of calm, feeling of being grounded, and a soothing sensation of comfort.

Using essential oils are part of the life skills we teach our clients in our integrative programs. Bringing together holistic healing and clinically proven therapeutic modalities, our programs for treating addiction and dual diagnosis issues are designed for transformative healing in mind, body, and spirit. Call us today for more information at 844-234-LIVE.