Wellness

💊 A person in recovery from substance abuse is more likely to relapse when they have poor eating habits and do not adopt a self-care routine.  I know this first hand!

The human journey is a culinary dance, in my eyes. It’s a blend of ingredients that each contributes some texture, some flavor, some sort of deepening sensory experience, that together form the way we see ourselves, and our world. We’re all born with some disability or disadvantage. We’re all born with some sort of privilege. All our traumas, sorrows, and challenges are as important to the dish as our victories and delights. What separates the finest cuisine from a dog’s dish? It all has to do with how you use each ingredient!

Although I’ve been legally blind my whole life, I really lost my vision through years of self-destruction. Thoughts, feelings and behaviors that moment by moment made me less of who I really am. Opioid addiction promised me clarity, but shrouded me deeper into darkness. Abusive relationships mirrored my self-loathing, although I was too blind to see the reflection. It wasn’t until I started cooking and adopting healthier whole foods into my diet, and no more processed foods that my vision and ability to start to focus on my recovery really returned.  Little by little step by step, one day after another my mind, body, and spirit started to strengthen, to lift and clarity came into my vision, not through my eyes but through my heart.

This is not my story alone. It’s not just a story about the visually impaired. It’s everyone’s story. It is the darker ingredients of life that blind us, and the passions and desires that light the way.

I had to accept the process of recovery, and it took truly proper nutrition and regular movement to slowly build up to the point that I started to experience more clarity.  When the glimmer of light came into my view, that’s when the momentum started to build, I took it and ran with more certainty that I deserved it! Because I was so close to losing my life and was in hospital twice from an Opiate overdose, I made a difficult conscious decision.  I had to accept and work through whatever I was faced in my recovery journey, I promise  you it wasn’t easy or a quick fix  However what I can promise you is that it’s truly possible and in your power if you are ready to do the work, and accept the process.

There were many, MANY things I had to learn.  There were many times of trial and error, or it just didn’t fit for me. There were many! Many! Different supports and strategies I had to incorporate into my recovery that complemented one another.  It’s not one Dr., it’s not one therapist or approach, it’s not one diet plan, it’s not one support system, it’s not one form of exercise, it’s not just one tool to put into my tool box that works best.  It’s putting many together in creating a kick ass recovery journey that strengthened my success. I also learned that I didn’t have to accept all approaches, ideas or methods that came my way, as they all didn’t either feel right or work best for me.  Because I was so eager to heal and get away from such a destructive addiction, it took time to learn this.  But becoming your own best friend, your own teacher, your own advocate is key, and it was for me. I did what many do when entering recovery, I tried to follow the advice I was given and attended a 12 step meeting as often as I could.  My gut was yelling at me, but I didn’t listen, finding many reasons and rationalizations why I’m wrong to have this feeling.  I would say,

“Oh Orly, not liking it and feeling uncomfortable, is because you want to go back to using.”

“Oh, Orly why are you so weak?”

“Oh Orly, don’t try to talk yourself out of the commitment you’ve promised yourself.”

“Oh Orly, what’s wrong with you?”

For me, dismissing my inner voice, my gut, was Bullshit! And almost led me right back to what was easy and run back to what I knew. However because I already started to put healthier foods into my body and exercise consistently I had more inner vision to gain more clarity.  The 12 step program might work for some, but that approach didn’t work for me.  If I can offer some insight for what worked for me, was to trust my inner voice, my soul which was trying to guide me through the fog.  At first I didn’t understand what was happening.  However, when I started to listen closer to that voice, it became louder and louder.  I realized it wasn’t there to misguide me.  It was there  to take my hand and walk beside me and guide me through some very difficult decisions I’d ever make.

“Please know on this day of your life that patience, above all else, is what is needed right now.  Do not let anxiousness or frustration take over.  Conditions on the exterior of your experience will change, but you highest benefit will be achieved when conditions in your interior remain the same.  Hold to your inner peace.  Reclaim your identity.  Trust your higher wisdom.  Look to the grander vision.  Do not agitate for a decision right now, nor seek an immediate solution.  Do not wish for an end to things as they are.  That end will come.  Yet let it arrive naturally.  Do not push the river.  Wait.  The Right Time is at hand, and resolution of this difficulty is on its way.”

“Please know on this day of your life that adversity reveals genius, prosperity conceals it.  During any time of adversity, your genius will be revealed as will that of all humankind.  We will find that there is another way to live other than ‘dog eat dog’, and another worthy goal other than ‘bigger, better, more’.  See this time, then, as a challenge to your ingenuity and an invitation from life to rediscover what is truly important:  love, family, friends, and … the journey of the soul.”

“Please know on this day of your life that God’s light shines through you when your light shines on another.  The darkness of the world can be illumined by your glowing presence — yet you must believe in yourself as The Source of that light and that love.  All the world awaits your arrival today, shivering in its sadness, looking to you for warmth.  Can you bring a radiance to those you touch today?  Will you?  Your answer will determine more for you than it will for them.  In this is “The Great Secret.”

“Please know on this day of your life that creativity is not something you wait for.  It is something that waits for you.  You must decide to be creative, not wait to be.  You must challenge yourself.  Pick up the brush.  Grab hold of the camera.  Turn on the computer.  Start cooking the meal.  Get to the workplace early.  Propose the solution.  Advance the idea.  Become the answer.  How do you suppose these very words were written by me?  Do you think I have time to wait for ‘an inspiration’?  I must be the inspiration.  And so much you.  Print this out and put it right in front of you today.”

“Please know on this day of your life that the struggle ends when the gratitude begins.  The search is over when the finding starts.  And the finding is not a finding at all, but a creating.  You cannot find what you have been struggling for, but you can create it.  And the jump-start of creation is gratitude.  Thank you, Universe, for helping me to know that all that I seek is coming to me now.  Thank you, Universe, for allowing me to feel, right now, the peace that comes with gratitude for what is, replacing the yearning for what is not.  Thank you for bringing me the understanding that from complete surrender with no resistance, and trust things right now are not exactly the way all is supposed to be, but will surely be.”

“Please know on this day of your life that the goodness in your life does not come to you from someone else.  When you see this, you will be free.  There is no reason and no need to ‘play up’ to another, or to try to remain in their good graces.  Remain in your own, by not betraying yourself.  Simply speak your truth, with gentleness and love.  And have courage, for what you seek is not outside of you.  It is not a gift from another person  it is yours — to give, not to acquire.  Let no one, therefore, hold you hostage.  Not your partner, not your boss, not your family … and certainly not your God.  You know right now exactly why you received this message today.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and a recent study from Disability and Health Journal, indicates that people with disabilities are more likely than the general population to have issues with substance abuse and addiction.  Specifically, about 40 percent of the population that has some form of disability also struggles with drug or alcohol use.  This includes people who have sensory disabilities, such as being deaf or blind.

Often, the frustrations of these conditions can leave a person feeling depressed, anxious, and isolated from the rest of the world.  For many people with these emotional issues, drugs or alcohol can be a way to numb negative feelings or create a false feeling of euphoria.

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🏆 Here are some great eating habits that may improve the mood and state of people struggling with addictions:

– Decrease caffeine consumption.

– Avoiding refined carbohydrates and foods high in sugar is so important to overall health, especially when trying to recover from any addictions or any mental health struggles. As refined carbohydrates and foods high in sugar can cause energy to crash, ups and downs, which translates into mood swings.  These types of foods are truly empty calories which results in a lack of needed nutrients for the body.

– Eat foods rich in antioxidants such as fruits and vegetables: they play a key role in boosting your immune system and help restore your skin and hair, which often deteriorate as a result of various addictions.

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Patients with disabilities often use prescription medications to battle painful conditions, many of which have high potential for addiction. Prescription opioids in particular are effective pain relievers, yet are highly addictive and can easily be abused. People with disabilities are more likely to abuse opioids, but less likely to get the treatment they deserve. Opioids are so highly addictive that even individuals that closely follow short-term prescriptions can quickly get hooked, a risk that only goes up the longer the prescription is for.

Once a disabled individual develops an addiction to prescription opioids, they will often end up switching over to cheaper and more readily available drugs such as heroin when their prescription runs out. This risk is heightened among the disabled, who are often under greater mobility and financial restrictions than the general population. These factors, combined with the fact that opioid addiction is by far the most likely form of addiction to end in overdose and death, make disability and addiction to opioids a growing cause for concern.

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