Addictions Reference Library
Addiction is Challenging
Inspiration Can Guide You To Success In Recovery From Addiction What motivates you to do the right thing? While the powerful forces of addiction may tempt you, inspiration can help you to stay on track.
WINTER MEDITATIONS
“Heal yourself – your physical and spiritual bodies.
Regenerate yourself with light, and then help those
Who have poverty of the soul.
Return to the inner spirit, which we have abandoned while
Looking elsewhere for happiness”.
- William Huayta, Quechum Nation, Peru
National Native Addiction Awareness Week
“Change Begins With Me” – Physical aspect of yourself, as we get older it is good to keep fit and eat right. Nutrition, Exercising and Yoga are examples of good health. Without these three we cannot function; we need daily exercise to keep our organs operating well and nutrition to provide the necessary vitamins our bodies need.
Look for a space in your home to exercise, listen to music and have a nutritious meal every day and journalize your daily activity. With this routine, you will feel better mentally and physically.
Miigwetch!
Patsy Sutherland, NNADAP worker
“Change Begins With Me!”
During this week on Native Addictions Awareness Week, today I will speak on the “spiritual” aspect of our native teachings. refers to possessing meaning and purpose in life, having a clear set of beliefs, and living in accordance with your morals, values, and ethics.
“What’s important in your life”? Family? Your spouse, friend? A movie? A hockey game? The answer is “you” only you. Let’s think of ourselves first.
Our emotions, mental & physical well-being are very important. We can help ourselves by going out, helping people, going for walks, joining a group, going to see a funny movie to laugh at.
“Faith” in yourself is great medicine, it can go a long way to helping yourself.
Miigwetch
Patsy Sutherland, NNADAP worker.
Just to let everyone know, next week is National Native Addiction Awareness Week. The theme will be “Change begins with me”.
I will be posting information on Spiritual, Emotional, Physical, and Mental Health Teachings.
Also, I would like to share information on the Wellbriety Program that we introduced last spring. It is 12-step Cultural teachings that provide words of learning about alcohol & drugs as they affect our Native people.
Here’s a quote from Louis Farmer, ONONDAGA “When we want to talk to Him we burn tobacco and it takes our prayers all the way up to the Sky World.”
If an individual is not taking care of themselves, they put themselves at risk; an individual may suffer by losing the ability to concentrate and the ability to cope with cravings and triggers can become comprised.
Based from Indigenous teachings of healing, we can identify areas in life that need attention.
Spiritual – Faith, Self-Reflection, Inspiration, Travelling, Learning & Meditation
Emotional – Support systems, Self-affirmation, Therapy, Crying & Laughing.
Physical – Nutrition, Exercising, Yoga, Dental Care, Sleep & Drinking water.
Mental – Journaling, Reading, Compliments, Saying “no”.
NATIONAL RECOVERY MONTH!
For this month, I will be posting videos regarding addiction recovery.
If you need help, please contact me at
807-982-2104,
Patsy Sutherland, NNADAP worker.
Holly’s Story about Drug Addiction Recovery
PSA: The Stigma of Addiction
NNADAP August Program Schedule
You are Somebody.
10 Strategies to Prevent Your Young Person from Using Drugs
Cravings & Triggers: How to get through them without relapsing – tips for addiction recovery
Addiction changes you. Recovery makes you… wiser and stronger. You will love deeper and work harder. You will smile at the little things and laugh at the chaos life brings. Now you can say that you are a survivor.
Recovery from addiction requires hard work, a proper attitude, and learning skills to stay sober, not drinking alcohol or using other drugs. Successful drug recovery or alcohol recovery involves changing attitudes, acquiring knowledge, and developing skills to meet the many challenges of sobriety.
Recovery is not a race. You don’t have to feel guilty if it takes you longer than you thought it would.
There is no shame in beginning again, for you get a chance to build bigger and better than before.