Hello and Welcome Recovery Pals and Visitors,
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“Just when you think nobody is paying attention to what I try to do in recovery, and to help others in recovery along my journey? My Higher Power opens up more doors . . . . HP BABY!!”
My Higher Power (for me is GOD) seems to pull more blessings out of his bag to award me! Praise the Lord. It seems many enjoyed my earlier blog post here on my Recovery Blog: My HP Makes Me Successful In Recovery
SO I thought it was time to do a Recovery News & Update Post to share all things I’ll be doing the next few months of September and October. And there are lots 🙂 . . . And we all know September is Recovery Month.
So my first exciting news is that I was invited to become a contributing recovery writer over at “Addicted Minds ~ Fresh Perspectives” I’m A Writer On Addicted Minds! which is a New Recovery Directory that can find people looking for resources of rehabs & treatment centers in their area. They have several writers from different professional addiction and recovery backgrounds.
So far I have written 3 articles. So I hope you’ll come by and support my new venture there and let me know your comments and thoughts, and even ask questions about Gambling Addiction and Recovery.
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My second news is a Blog Talk Radio Show coming up this Friday on August 28th, 2015 and Hosted by: Dale Garrett of his show ~ “There Is Life After Drugs” airing at 7:30 PT, 10:30 ET, and 8:30 MST . . .
I hope you will join us for a little of my story of not drug addiction, but gambling addiction and alcohol abuse. About my current book, and my next book soon out later this year and my past childhood woes. The link to listen in and some of what will be talking about is below.
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“There Is Life After Drugs” ~ A Message from Host, Dale Garrett:
HELLO AND WELCOME TO GOD ALLOWS U TURNS THERES LIFE AFTER DRUGS, IM YOUR HOST OF THE EYEWITNESS, DALE GARRETT . . . MY GUEST THIS COMING FRIDAY, AUGUST 28th, HAS TRULY BEEN THROUGH SOME VERY BAD TIMES DURING BOTH HER LIFE AND ADDICTIONS, BUT BY GOD’S GRACE, HE STEPPED IN AND GAVE HER A “U-TURN WITHIN HER LIFE” WHEN SHE WAS AT THE VERY END OF HER ROPE, Literally …..
NOW CAT’S STORY GOES MUCH DEEPER THAN JUST OF ADDICTION & RECOVERY, FOR IT ALSO IS ABOUT A LITTLE GIRL WHO GREW UP BEING BOTH SEXUALLY, VERBALLY & PHYSICALLY ABUSED WHICH EVENTUALLY LED TO SERIOUS MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES & DISORDERS …. NOW CAT WILL BE THE VERY FIRST TO TELL YOU THAT BY NO MEANS WILL SHE USE HER PAST AS EXCUSES FOR HER ADDICTIONS ANY LONGER, NO!
FOR SHE HAS NOW BEEN SET FREE FROM THE BONDAGE AND NO LONGER IS A VICTIM …. BUT DURING HER TIME GROWING UP, NOR DID SHE KNOW SUCH PLACES AS THERAPY OR TREATMENT CENTERS COULD HELP HER, SO SHE FOUND HER ESCAPE WITHIN ALCOHOL AND GAMBLING …..AFTER MANY YEARS OF THIS MADDENING LIFESTYLE, SHE WAS EVENTUALLY CAUGHT AND ARRESTED FOR STEALING, BUT THIS DIDN’T STOP HER FROM HER BAD HABITS, BUT RATHER JUST FUELED THE FIRE EVEN MORE TO RECOVER . . . .
CAT WILL TELL YOU THAT SHE’S A WALKING , BREATHING, MIRACLE OF GOD, FOR WHEN HER ADDICTION TO GAMBLING AND ALCOHOL ABUSE BECAME TO MUCH FOR HER AND ENDED UP DRIVING HER INTO SUCH A DARK PLACE WITHIN HER LIFE THAT ALL SHE WANTED TO COMMIT SUICIDE AND END IT ALL… TWICE …BUT THEN SHE WOKE UP IN AN ADDICTION/MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS CENTER, AND REALIZED THAT GOD HAD STEPPED IN AND SAVED HER FROM CERTAIN DEATH! SO CAT GOT DOWN ON HER KNEES AND PRAYED TO GOD TO PLEASE TAKE ALL OF HER URGES AND TRIGGERS OF GAMBLING AWAY FROM HER, AND IF HE WOULD ONLY DO THAT THEN SHE PROMISED GOD THAT SHE WOULD DO THE REST. NOW AS WE ALL KNOW, GOD DOESN’T WORK ON OUR TIME TABLE. . .
SO I INVITE YOU ALL TO LISTEN IN AND HEAR FOR YOURSELF HOW GOD STILL PERFORMS MIRACLES IN ONES LIFE!
Some Of My Story:
WHO SAYS GOD DOESN’T PERFORM MIRACLES IN RECOVERY?
I AM A WALKING, BREATHING, MIRACLE OF GOD.
For mine is a story of Addiction & Recovery. About being Sexually Abused as a Little Girl, going years UN-diagnosed with Mental Health Disorders, and being Verbally & Physically Abused by my parents when I was disciplined. As time went by, I learned to numb the pain through the use of Gambling and at times abuse of Alcohol as well. And once my Addiction to Gambling & Alcohol Abuse took its toll & drove me into such a dark place within myself that I wanted to commit Suicide, TWICE!
Now these are by NO means excuses for my Addictions & I’m no longer a Victim either.. I don’t blame my childhood trauma, Abuse on anyone or anything for the Choices and path’s I chose to take in life, But I made God a Promise that I would work my Recovery if only He would take away the Urges & Triggers!
Now we all know that GOD ANSWERS PRAYERS, but He does it in His time, Not ours, So NEVER GIVE UP on your RECOVERY, For He walk’s with you each & every day, I Invite you to Join Me, Catherine Townsend-Lyon, as I’m a guest host on the EYEWITNESS With Dale Garrett, as I share my story of . “WHO SAY’S GOD DOSENT PERFORM MIRACLES IN RECOVERY?” Just Click on the Link below and it will take you to the show, God Bless!!…
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/thereslifeafterdrugs/2015/08/29/the-eyewitness-who-says-god-dosent-perform-miracles-in-recovery
When your on Facebook next, go follow my awesome friend Dale Garrett and his page. https://www.facebook.com/dale.garrett.547
Also Follow him & Join free on Blog Talk Radio Show! Join Blog Talk Radio Free!
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Now my next news is another ‘Recovery Guest Interview’ By Host, Omar Pinto, (but he is called O), He is the founder of “The Shair Podcast!” . . . . “HP BABY”
The Shair Podcast Website and on iTunes: The Shair Podcast on iTunes!
Now instead of writing everything you’d want to know about Omar, you can actually listen to his story of how ‘The Shair Project’ came to be, and his testimony as well. But here a just a few things about the podcast. I will be taping my episode with O on Sunday Sept. 6th 2015. I will make an announcement when my ‘Guest Recovery Interview’ will Air. I Thank Omar for the platform to share my story of addiction and recovery, about my life and my current book. And I will share what I am working on now for books 2 and 3!
About
Hi there, my name’s Omar but everybody calls me “O”. I am the host and founder of The SHAIR Podcast.
SHAIR pronounced “share”, spelled S-H-A-I-R, is an acronym for “Sharing Helps Addicts in Recovery”. It’s a podcast where we bring you amazing life changing success stories from addicts and alcoholics all over the world who share their inspiring journey of recovery and we will release a brand new episode every Tuesday on iTunes and Stitcher Radio.
The episodes will last between an hour and an hour and a half. During each episode, recovering addicts and alcoholics will share their stories with us, their battles against drugs and alcohol, the wreckage it caused in their lives, when they hit rock bottom, and finally their journey into recovery up until today. My hope is that these stories will inspire millions to stay clean and sober.
I have also been working on a couple more projects with my dear friend and fellow author, Melissa Killeen owner and Recovery Coach on her new business website, Recovery Coach New York City ~ Melissa Killeen . . . She has done a 4 part Guest Recovery Author Interview on her new site that started on August 6th 2015, and runs each Thursday with the last and 4th post on August 27th 2015. I’m honored to be a guest on her fantastic recovery coaching website.
Preview of My 4 Part Blog Series On Recovery Coach New York City . . .
Addicted To Dimes, Confessions of a Liar and a Cheat – Part 3
The Woman in the Mirror:
“I used gambling to get reactions from people who didn’t communicate feelings or get reactions from people who had hurt me.”
I know I’ve always had a compulsive type of personality and high anxiety most of my life. I had to always be moving or engaged in something. While in treatment, and during my first time in the crisis center, I found out I suffer from severe depression, severe anxiety and PTSD from my childhood trauma. I started on medications for them, in November 2002. I also remember, while in the crisis center after being there only a few days, I was getting ready to take a shower and I looked at myself in the mirror. I didn’t recognize the woman looking back at me. I’d always been a fun, bubbly, caring person, but this woman looking back at me, I didn’t know or recognize. I also was suffering with mood swings sleep problems and felt as though the medications I was taking weren’t helping these symptoms. I sure wished they could come up with a cure or a pill for gambling addiction.
Needing My Parents Love I Never Got
I found that there were other people going through some of the same things with their addiction as I was. The amount of money lost to our gambling may have been different, but I didn’t feel as though I was alone in this insane disease. There is a lot more to the addiction than just placing a bet or being in action. I learned to use my addiction as a way to cope with feelings and disappointments that I had pushed deep down rather than dealing with them. I would gamble to escape reality, which was very immature in retrospect. I was selfish and only cared about myself. Just as the addiction makes you selfish, so does recovery. Recovery requires hard work and the desire to want to stop gambling . . . .
So come on over and read the whole series on Melissa’s new website today! It is only the second time I have shared some sections of my current book, as book 2 will be out late this year. Now with September being Recovery Awareness Month, I will be doing some special blog posts and in October as well as Many gather in Washington, D.C. for “10-4-2015 Unite to Face Addiction” & Advocacy Day on Monday, October 5, 2015, .. .. ..
Citizen advocates will meet with policymakers on Capitol Hill to address solutions to the addiction crisis. On Advocacy Day, constituents will have conversations with their elected officials about the need for addiction solutions and the growing constituency of consequence that is demanding them.
Will you join us for Advocacy Day?
Advocacy Day has two overarching goals:
- Achieve a health response to addiction
- Improve public safety and protect civil liberties to enhance health outcomes of those in or seeking recovery from addiction involved with the criminal justice system
Additional information about Advocacy Day can be found here.
Thank you for joining us.
The UNITE to Face Addiction team!
I was Invited to be a part as a Blogger of Addiction on both days by the organizer, Michael King. . You can follow him and Unite to Face Addiction on Twitter to keep up with all the fabulous events! There will be MUSIC TOO!! @michaelking1981 @FacingAddiction
“Joe Walsh, Steven Tyler and Sheryl Crow are a few of the artists headed to Washington, D.C., this fall to take part in the “UNITE to Face Addiction” rally. The event aims to “change the conversation around, and bring new solutions to, the addiction crisis in America.”
***So there is all the exciting recovery news and updates that I will be involved with. YES, I always put my Recovery First by way of ACTION!!! ***
God Bless Recovery Friends!
Author & Recovery Advocate, Catherine Townsend-Lyon
Bet Free Recovery Now...Sharing Hope, Help & Recovery From Gambling Addiction, News & Resources. 