Get Sober-Party Girl Finds Her Path: Yoga and Recovery
Get Sober: Wake Up Call
This is my story. How a party girl decided to get sober. How I found my path, because I allowed yoga to open me up to peace and freedom.
Do you remember the day you decided to change?
The day you woke up?
The day you said there has got to be more than this!
Maybe that day you had every intention of changing, of stepping out of the toxic lifestyle choices and self loathing, because you want to begin again.
The day you decided to get sober….but, you didn’t, not that day. However, something cracked that day. There was a little spark, and you began to open up to the possibility of change, because you knew it was time to find a new way to live.
Get Sober-Party Girl Finds Her Path
Alone? Yes, OK good, but where am I?
I could barely open my eyes, because my head hurt so badly. A sliver of light from the window let me know that the sun had come up.
Slowly my eyes focused. I’m in my hotel room but, I wonder how I got back?
Where is my bag? I looked around in a panic….ahh there it is. Wallet? Check. License, and credit cards? Yes.
No cash though. Not surprising, I probably left whatever I had on the bar. Amazingly I had all my stuff, however I have no memory of how I got “home”. Home was a hotel room for this month. I was out of town for work, which I used as an escape from my life. At the moment, my life was a complete disaster.
Get Sober: The Last Hangover
This was a BAD hangover. I felt like I had been poisoned and run over by a truck…repeatedly. The hangover compounded by anxiety, depression, loneliness, and deep dissatisfaction made my whole body hurt. It wasn't just the physical pain in my body but a deep pain in my heart. Emptiness, I felt hollow.
This can’t go on, I have to get sober I repeated silently, as I cried myself back to sleep.
That day was not my last hangover, but it was one of the last. It was the day I decided something had to give. The “eye opener”, “aha moment”, “rock bottom”, whatever you want to call it, it happened.
Get Sober-Party Girl Finds Her Path: The Reset
How do you know the reset is on its way?
This is what I have learned:
When you refuse to make changes that are necessary for your true path, and you are attached to old patterns that you can’t seem to let go of, you continue to replay the story that keeps you stuck in the mud, often there is a reset on the way.
The Universe sends down a proverbial lightning bolt and forcefully removes the obstacles blocking your path, so because of my refusal to see the signs, my “reset” happened.
Get Sober-Party Girl Finds Her Path: Obstacle as Opportunity
The "reset" was a complete clean sweep. Anything that was assisting in my continued refusal to get my shit together was removed. This was horrible, heart-wrenching and painful, but I now can see, It was a gift.
The gift of opportunity. An opportunity to get sober.
Finally, a gift of time and space. I used this time and space, to find myself again, to get healthy, to get clear, to detoxify my body, mind, and spirit. To get sober.
Rehab? Nope.
Get Sober-Party Girl Finds Her Path: Yoga and Recovery
A 200 hour yoga teacher training. This was a full immersion program, four weeks at an Ashram in the mountains of Colorado. No cell service, no booze, and no bull-shit.
I had no idea that this plan, which seemed radical at the time, would crack me wide open to the possibility of transformation at my very core. Soul change.
This is how I stay on the path to a life of freedom and peace.
Open to the possibilities #soberlife
Get Sober- Yoga and Recovery
Five ways my yoga practice helps me stay sober:
Go to the Edge
A strong physical practice will transform the body. After poisoning the body for years with cigarettes, binge drinking, and a few other party favors, it feels good to sweat! A strong Vinyasa flow practice builds heat. The Agni, the fire of Yoga that brings transformation. An hour of continuous flow makes me feel powerful and strong. I can breathe deeply without the heavy anxiety, because now I honor my body, instead of dulling it with toxins. Now I absorb the benefits of the yoga, resulting in purification and peace.
Breathing through Difficult Situations
Finding the flow, moving with breath, holding a challenging pose…keep breathing…even and deep. When the shit hits the fan in life, which it will, turn to the practice. Take a breath, Yoga teaches us a new way to deal with difficulty. Obstacles as opportunities. Continue looking within and ask… how can I learn and grow from this?
Surrender
Letting go. Release all that stands in the way of becoming free. When we begin to shed the skin of our former self, we can let go of the gripping and grasping. We discover that the light is not on the outside, it lies within us. As we deepen our connection to our bodies in a daily yoga practice we begin to transform and step into this light. We want less and less of the distractions, the drinks, the drama…because as we surrender the craving and desire for it slips away.
People, Places, and Things
Finding a new Tribe. This was one of the hardest parts of my sober journey, but, we can’t continue to live the same story when we decide to get sober. We have to change our routine and fill our time with new experiences. Yoga is all about building community. Go to a lot of classes, at different studios, with different teachers…you will find a spot that fits your vibe.
Discipline
“Sorry I can’t I have yoga in the morning.” This is my go to line when an evening out invite comes in. I strongly recommend a morning practice. Find a studio with a sunrise yoga class or attend a live-stream sunrise class. Set an intention to practice every morning for 27 days. When the 27 days are over, celebrate with a green juice and do another 27 days. A disciplined practice will lead you to freedom. Getting up just before sunrise is way better than still being up just before sunrise, I promise.
It is my intention that sharing my story, and these tips will help you get sober and stay that way.
Just get on the mat…every damn day
