Recovering from our addictions and mental health issues is one of the most challenging experiences of our lives. One of the things that can bring us comfort is realizing we’re not alone in our journey. There are so many others also in recovery who we can share our journeys with.

Many of us fall into patterns of isolating ourselves when we are struggling with our addictions and depression. We feel hopeless and don’t think anyone would be able to understand what we’re going through. We don’t want to be a burden to the people around us, and we don’t want to involve people in our problems. We feel ashamed of how much we’re struggling, and when people know about our situation and are worried about us or disappointed in us, it can add to our sense of shame. Sometimes we isolate from other people, even those who care and want to help, because of this shame. This isolation can cause us to feel as though we’re alone in our pain.

When we open ourselves to connecting to other people in recovery, we realize how many people have lived through very similar experiences. We can find this shared experience very comforting and reassuring. We realize that our addictions are the challenges we were meant to rise to, rather than moral failings on our part. We realize how universal pain is to the human story. It is a common element of human nature and something that ties us all together along the varied spectrum of the human experience. None of us is immune to it, and addiction is a very common manifestation of that pain for so many of us.

Realizing we’re not alone can help us shift the shame and isolation that have been holding us back and preventing us from getting the help we need. It allows us to reenter the world with hope and find possibility and opportunity where we were used to feeling hopelessness. It allows us to connect with other people on a deeper level, when we were hiding parts of ourselves from other people for so long. It helps us to be more receptive to the people and resources that can help us in our recovery. We often close ourselves off from other people and from the world entirely when we isolate. In that space we aren’t able to see that there is hope for us. There are people, programs and resources we can benefit from in our healing, and we open ourselves to these things when we realize we’re not actually alone after all.

You’re not alone. Our community is here to provide you with support and understanding in your recovery. Call 888-570-7154 for more information.