Survivor to Thriver Manual Chapter 5 - Stage 2, Step 8, Self-Help

Step Eight Self-Help

Go back and review the journal entries that you have made to date and make a list of the concerns and problems you have identified. Which of these problem areas are the most disruptive to your life? Which need to be resolved or eased before you will be able to resolve the other ones? Are there any that need to be dealt with so you will not lose something important, such as a personal relationship, a job or even your life? For example, if you can't afford the cost of therapy and have lost your health insurance benefits because of unemployment or underemployment, the lack of a job may be the biggest barrier to your moving forward in recovery. If you are depressed and immobilized in your life and are contemplating suicide, then getting help to manage your feelings is a high priority for you. If you feel that you might strike out at your child, thereby risking legal charges of abuse as well as renewed feelings of self-hatred, then you should focus on parenting issues. If you did not already do so in Chapter Two, rank each of these problem areas in descending order of priority and use this ranking to help you select those areas in which you need to focus your energies.
In ASCA meetings, talk about this process of making an inventory. What feelings arose in the process? What were some of the difficulties, surprises and successes in creating this inventory of your adult life?