Comments (15):

• Ted N @ 12/16/2008 ( 10:19:57 AM )
  I am not on Step 10 yet, but I can still take daily inventories when I need to and without perseverance, I would not have made it this far. I have been in recovery for over three years and I have been in this program for over 2 years. And it has been a long and hard 2 years and yesterday and I picked up a 60 day chip which was a long time coming. After my first year of being in the program and acting out right and left with all of my dangerous inner circle behaviors and then this past year of working on some of my less dangerous but still inner circle behaviors I have finally been able to put some time together. The definition of perseverance is: steady persistence in a course of action, a purpose, a state, etc., esp. in spite of difficulties, obstacles, or discouragement. Well, that is it in a nutshell. I have been on a steady course and have had my difficulties, but have always kept moving in the same direction. I pray that I keep moving in the right direction working towards green, blue and purple chips and taking care of daily inventories as I need to along the way until such time as I am actually on Step 10.
• Tom @ 12/19/2008 ( 2:16:39 PM )
  They say patience is a virtue. Perserverance must be one too. I have been in the program only 95 days and the prospect of going through all twelve steps is daunting. I listen to my brothers and sisters in the rooms tell their stories, the challenges they face and overcome. Some slip but they keep coming back. I keep hearing "keep coming back", "work it your worth it", "one day at a time". The founders of this program knew what it takes to stay in receivery, and perserverance is certainly one of the more important character traits to develop. The road ahead is long, but I have already been "amazed" by the power of the program. I have demonstrated perserverance in my life before. I trust that it will serve me well in my recovery, to keep coming back, and to work the program daily. It is a new way of life, a healthy life, a happier life free of lies,deceit and self loathing. It is simple but not easy, but the alternative is no longer an option, even more so now that I can no longer use denial and rationalization to minimize the consequences of acting out. May my higher power grant me the perserverance to stay with the program each day, one day at a time.
• Tom @ 12/21/2008 ( 1:53:44 PM )
  If patience is a virtue, then perserverance must be one too. I am only 96 days into recovery and the challenge of the 12 steps is daunting. I have experienced perserverance in my life before recovery, I hope it serves me well in recovery. There is a lot to do. I hear the mantras, "keep coming back", "one day at a time", "it works if you work it". They all indicate that the program requires being persistent in attending meetings, making calls, doing the 12 step work and using the tools of the program. I pray with the help of my higher power I will have the perserverance to stay the course and benefit from the rewards of a healthier life, and experience the serenity I have seen in others who have perservered. The alternative is not an option.
• Tom @ 12/21/2008 ( 2:04:12 PM )
  If patience is a virtue, then perserverance must be one too. I have only been in the program for 96 days and the challenge of the twelve steps is daunting. I hear the mantras, "keep coming back", "one day at a time", it works if you work it". They all suggest that it takes being steadfast, persistent-perserverance. With the help of my higher power I will do whatever it takes; come to meetings, make calls, meditate and pray, write in my journal and act in health ways. The alternative is not an option.
• ally @ 12/23/2008 ( 3:42:29 PM )
  Honesty.... that is such a tough one for me. Being honest with myself is the hardest. If I keep myself deluded then I don't have to come clean to others. I have been in a Step Group for sex addiction recovery. There are about 25 men and women at this group. Painstakingly each week we share with new group of six people our pain and stories. And sometimes what little hope we have.
  
  Knowing I have different groups of support, my home group, SAA meetings, SLAA meetings, my sponsor, online suport groups and some amazing blogs out there of others path in recovery. All of this brings me to no longer want to lie to myself to hide from the pain. Now I would rather feel this pain and move past it than to stay in the insane unmanagablity that my addict causes for me.
  
  Thanks you for this safe place to share and to hear others journeys in recovery.
• Ally @ 01/02/2009 ( 9:14:39 PM )
  UGH... do the cravings ever go away!!!!!!!! I have been able to stay away from internet trolling for a few weeks again and then BAM it hits me tonight really hard.... Guess it is time for some prayer.... I really hate the cravings....
• Tobe @ 01/10/2009 ( 6:20:06 AM )
  Talking about the cravings and the perserverance in the same paragraph is so on target. For me the craving to medicate is most often a daily experience. Often is it hitting me more than a few times in a day. Early mornings on the way to work, times during the day when I am free and able to travel where I don't need to be, or getting off early from work are all risky times for me. The perserverance of using any and all tools available to me make all the difference needed to save me. Sometimes I don't realize this and fail to use a tool when necessary. Acting out will and has resulted. Just the simple tool of "THINKING IT THROUGH TO THE END" would have possibly saved me the other day. I want and am thinking I need saving grace of a higher power, so I am "acting as if" for that higher power to take over for me. Perhaps it is my HP that is helping me to use the tools I use right now. I know where the SA can lead and I know I don't want to go there ever again. Man, this 3rd step is tough.
• Ted N @ 08/04/2009 ( 9:45:06 PM )
  Perseverance – This is something that I was only ever able to have in bits and pieces before coming into recovery. What I mean is that I could never focus on more than one thing at a time. If I was successful at work, everything else suffered. If I was focusing on my health, everything else suffered. I would attack something with perseverance but just that one thing. Nothing was in balance. And then of course as things became so completely unbalance as a result of addiction, I could not approach anything with perseverance. Today this is not the case. Today I am almost 4 years in a recovery program, over 2 ½ years in SAA and at this point almost 7 months since I had to pick up a white chip. Today my life is the most balanced that it has ever been. As a result, I am able to approach multiple things with perseverance, most importantly, my program. I work it everyday. Without my program, I would not be here so it is my first priority. But after that I need to take care of myself, of my health and well being. Today I can do that with just as much gusto and perseverance. Lastly, I can approach my career with the same amount of perseverance. Imagine – all of these things happening at the same time am I am able to do it. As long as I do each of them to the best of my ability, don’t allow myself to get overwhelmed, take time out for myself, be sure to take care of myself, then I am going to be able to approach anything with perseverance and keep it balanced. Who Knew!
• Ted N @ 08/20/2009 ( 9:35:17 PM )
  Although I recently shared on this topic I felt the need to share on it again tonight. There are times when I get frustrated with some things in my life, when something does not go the way that I thought it would. I can look at different parts of life and see where I might get frustrated: looking for work, looking for new friends, losing weight. If any of these things don’t happen at the rate that I want them to happen my first reaction is to get frustrated. But I need to remember that everything is going to happen when it is supposed to happen. My Higher Power has not let me down yet. Why would He start now. As long as I continue to do what I have been doing I should continue to see the successes that I have been seeing. I need to persevere with my program and with the programs in all the areas of my life and not get frustrated or discouraged. I am moving in the right direction and everything is ok.
• Ted N @ 08/31/2009 ( 10:24:26 PM )
  Today I want to share on this topic once again yet for a different reason. Today I worked out with my trainer and he commented on how hard I was pushing myself and on how well I was progressing. This is all a result of perseverance in my weight loss and fitness program. Then at the meeting tonight during the sharing I was listening and I realized that there is a direct relationship to my current length of sobriety and my weight loss / fitness. The corelation is that the more I take care of myself the less likely I am to act out, the less likely I am to want to act out, the perseverance in my fitness and weight loss program has had an effect on my recovery, and probably vice versa. And I don't take anything for granted. I work my recovery every day because I don't want to lose it. Especially now that I have worked so hard to get where I am emotionally, spiritually, and now physicially. I need to persevere so that I can continue to stay in sobriety and keep these blessings that I continue to receive from my Higher Power as a result of the daily footwork that I do. So, for me, I will continue to do my daily footwork, I will continue to pray for one more day of sobriety, I will continue to do my step work, I will continue to work with others, I will continue to work my program, I will continue to take care of myself and my body, I will continue to push myself, I will persevere, because today I love my life and I know I am worth it.
• Tobe @ 09/24/2009 ( 4:54:37 PM )
  Perseverance for me is the ability to keep taking forward steps. Looking at each step as a milestone in recovery lets me feel the importance of the progress I make. Nothing is free, it is either earned or learned, and keeping my nose to the recovery grindstone has given me many rewards. The intimacy with my S.O. is growing daily, and the peace of mind I get from the little accomplishments hints of a better future. Who could ask for more? I know I am not alone anymore in my struggle, which helps me to see the big picture and how perseverance can only reap many loving rewards yet to come.
• Anon @ 10/13/2009 ( 11:34:28 AM )
  "Through perserverance many people win success out of what seemed destinesd to be certain failure"
  
  Benjamin Disraeli
• Ted N @ 11/01/2009 ( 7:22:28 PM )
  Perseverance – That is how I got where I am today. Not only is it how I got to my fitness goals which has led to what I am doing right now, but it is what got me to where I am in my recovery. Perseverance is what drives me on a daily basis to do what I need to do. It is what allows me to turn my will over to my Higher Power so that I do not take my will back and do what I sometimes want to do even though it may not be best for me. I trust my Higher Power to take care of me so I turn my day over to Him every day and just do what I need to do and let Him take care of the rest. As a result I have made it this far. I will continue to do this each day because I do not want to go back to where I came from, I only want to move forward. And this has worked so far so I am going to continue to do it.
• Ted N @ 01/02/2010 ( 10:01:18 PM )
  This is the topic that showed up for me tonight. I just closed my eyes and selected it. However, it is a good one. Because Perseverance is what I need right now. I need to move forward in my program and I need to stay focused on what I need to achieve each day. I pray each morning to my Higher Power to allow me to keep my focus and to get done what I need to get done. I done ask for the result, just for the focus and motivation. I have a lot going on and it is easy to allow myself to get overwhelmed. I need to stick with it and persevere.
• Phil @ 03/21/2010 ( 11:08:34 AM )
  It seems to me that I can only persevere in a course if I keep the ultimate benefit in the forefront of my mind. In this case, it's to become a better person, an honest, caring, loving person - a person who does not act out his addiction and cause himself and others great pain and suffering.
  
  Sometimes it seems that nothing is happening, that all this reading, meetings, discussions with therapists and sponsors isn't going anywhere. That I am in the same place now that I was when I started realizing this incredible mess that I created. Then I think of what life CAN be like, beautiful, peaceful, loving and serene, and it gives me the strength to take that next small step forward, knowing that if I keep going, I will reach someday that distant wonderful destination.
  
  And the scenery gets a little different, a little better with each step. Something I need to remember.

• Out Of Bondage: Memoirs Of A Sex Addict