A good recovery tool for maintaining sanity on any given day can be found in the concept of living one day at a time. This tool can be especially helpful during the hectic holiday season. Here is a well-known reflection from 12 Step Literature that helps me focus on living one day at a time:

There are two days in every week about which we should not worry;
Two days which should be kept free of fear and apprehension;
One of these days is YESTERDAY, With its mistakes and cares,
Its faults and blunders, Its aches and pains.

YESTERDAY has passed forever beyond our control.
All the money in the world cannot bring back YESTERDAY.
We cannot undo a single act we performed.
We cannot erase a single word we said.
YESTERDAY is gone.

The other day we should not worry about is TOMORROW;
With its possible adversities, its burdens, its larger promise.
TOMORROW is also beyond our immediate control.
TOMORROW, the sun will rise,
Either in splendor or behind a mask of clouds;
But it will rise.
Until it does, we have no stake in TOMORROW
For it is as yet unborn.

This leaves only one day - TODAY.
Any man can fight the battles of just one day.
It is only when you and I add the burdens of those two awful eternity's
- YESTERDAY and TOMORROW -
That we break down.

It is not the experience of TODAY that drives men mad.
It is remorse or bitterness for something which happened YESTERDAY
And the dread of what TOMORROW may bring.

Let us, therefore, live but ONE day at a time. --24 Hours a Day.

Jan Edward Williams, 11/27/2012. As always, comments are invited.

Just a brief research update. Scientists may be discovering why recovering male alcoholics (and, of course those still drinking) seem to have difficulty with feelings--their own and others'. It seems well established, at least anecdotally, that even non-alcoholic men are often not very skilled in sharing their own emotions and reading the emotions of others; add alcoholism and that difficulty is compounded. A recent study,  www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/11/121108181911.htm?, suggests that recovering male alcoholics, perhaps because of the adverse effects of alcohol on the portion of the brain dealing with processing of information, tend to not accurately read the emotional verbal and behavioral cues of others. Thus, the study found that the "...alcoholic subjects tend to underestimate negative emotions; it also suggests that the same situation might be read in a totally different way by an alcoholic individual and another person." So, we recovering men have a lot of work to do in learning how to read the emotions and subtle verbalizations of others, and in learning how to react appropriately. As always, comments are invited. Jan Edward Williams, 11/19/2012.

From time to time I will present here samples of my Addiction Recovery Tips. Here is one. Easy does it, but do it! is a slogan oft used in 12 Step recovery, whose second part is as important for the newcomer to recovery in the Twelve Step Programs such as Alcoholics Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous or Al-Anon as the first part. Maintaining emotional balance by not getting too upset or too excited helps one to avoid relapse. HALT is a useful tool in this regard: Don't get too Hungry, too Angry, too Lonely, or too Tired. However, there ARE things the recovering person must do: like sleep, eat, pay bills, go to work, attend AA, NA, or Al-Anon meetings, get a sponsor and listen to him/her, and don't pick up a drink or drug even if your posterior falls off, to name but a few. So, easy does it, but do it! As always, comments are welcomed. Jan Edward Williams, 11/01/2012.

Just a brief research update. Marijuana is often thought of by people not in recovery or the addiction field as a benign drug that can cause no overdose problems. Well, in addition to addiction, paranoia, depression, and anxiety disorders, good old weed, synthetic (spice) or natural, can according to new research, cause hyperemesis in chronic smokers, that is, nausea, vomiting and colicky abdominal pain, severe enough to require medical help. We are talking about serious, unexplained, episodic abdominal pain with nausea and vomiting. A common associated phenomenon is that the symptoms just described are relieved through compulsive hot showers. See www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/10/121022081353.htm? As always, comments are invited. Jan Williams, 10/23/2012.

Just a research update. It has been known for years that cocaine use is associated with constriction of blood vessels and arteries causing adverse cardiovascular effects in users, including strokes. A recent research study on rodents using a new neuroimaging technique revealed that cocaine administered in dosages equivalent to those used by human cocaine abusers, caused striking adverse effects on cerebral blood flow in arteries, veins, and capillaries. A summary of the study can be found here: www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/10/121010151237.htm? Comments are invited. Jan Edward Williams, 10/11/2012