Dignity and Self Worth Important to Sobriety

When we set out in search of sobriety, we may not understand all the factors at play in our lives. But one thing for certain is that if we believe our willpower will get us to sobriety, we are destined for a bumpy road.  Willpower alone is not enough.

Dignity* & Self-worth are Critical to Recovery

Most of us need people to help us along the way.  Also, there are many self-help activities—whether online, in books and through self-help groups.  In some cases, medications and professional counseling can help.  But the starting gate to sobriety is hard to find if we don’t feel a sense of self-worth and dignity.  If we don’t feel our value as a person, (or that others value us) why would we try to better ourselves? If we don’t take ourselves seriously and our right to be valued and respected, then our reach toward sobriety is in a vacuum, and reduced to a behavior or habit we are trying to change. And then, the next time we are insulted by another, or beating ourselves up, our sobriety is at risk.

Our circumstances play a big role

Our circumstances play a big role.  We may have suffered big injustices, we may suffer discrimination, we may be struggling economically, and we may be avoiding traumatic memories.  Gambling, alcohol, drugs can provide a quick escape route to our difficult circumstances, horrible memories, loneliness, and just plain feeling badly about ourselves.

I wish someone could bottle up and distribute self-worth.  I wish the crop dusters could spread dignity to all. Well darn, this fantasy is now over.

We must find people who treat us with dignity

We have to look for people who believe in us and treat us well, who treat us as if we are deserving of good things.  We may need social services, churches, schools and other institutions with programming which is truly supportive.  Then we need people in our lives who pick us up and dust us off when we fall down.  If you don’t have supportive people or institutional resources, start by treating yourself with dignity!

Dignity also means looking honestly at ourselves

We regain our dignity and self-worth when we conduct an honest inventory of ourselves and when we recognize our given abilities alongside our weaknesses. We need to look at the messages we give or are given about ourselves or others.  Did someone mistreat us, or historically mistreat our ancestors? OR did we purposefully mistreat another? Owning up to this and attempting to rectify the situation is a way we regain our dignity! When we treat others well, we plant the seeds not only for their self-worth and dignity, but also for our own!

Here’s to reaching the starting gate or taking another lap of sobriety!

*Dignity = “The right of a person to be valued and respected, and to be treated ethically”.  Also defined as “a way of appearing or behaving that suggests seriousness and self-control.”

Peopleworks-NM was founded in 2009 by Cindy Anderson, MSW, LCSW, IGCC-I, to provide mental wellness services to older adults, without consideration to economic status.  Though Peopleworks specializes in older adults, we provide services to individuals over 18 years of age. PeopleWorks NM Is here to support your mental health therapy needs.