Support Groups?
What are support groups anyway? Why do I need it? If I am trying to get better why do I need to tell the whole world my problems? These are just some of the many questions I hear on a daily basis from people when they walk in the door. Well the simple answer is this. Your best thinking got you in the chair you are sitting in so obviously you cannot do this on your own. However, how will you go about starting this process is important as this is truly a major process.
Many people decide to get into recovery for a multitude of reasons. Some purely because of mandatory reasons while others due to personal decisions. Whatever the case may be it is time to look as to why choices were made in using certain behaviors as an escape from reality. These behaviors over time becomes reinforced as solidified behavior patterns which helps us to cope with life stressors. Does it make it right?
It does deem it as being as nothing more than life’s journey. Everyone in life has a journey and understanding why we do what we do is important in learning how we cope with life’s stressors. When working on understanding addictive behavior determining the root cause is imperative. However, this is done in therapy not in support groups. Support groups is there to provide support in times when you feel life is overwhelming and just need a caring ear. A group is there to assist in knowing you are never alone and there are others who are just like you. So the next time when thinking about a support group view it as a new development of friendships not as a requirement of recovery.