My reflection: The words above resonate deeply with me. When my son was in active addiction, exhaustion took a mighty toll on all of us, even him.
Today’s Promise to consider: No matter how much we love someone, exhaustion can take over in the face of hardship. It’s our body’s natural reaction to all the chaos, trauma, problems, money issues, car crashes, fights, physical depletion, and emotional desperation. During my son’s fourteen-year addiction, I finally learned to wait 24 hours to make any important decision. Why? Because most of my immediate decisions were hasty and reactive. Today, let us care for our own needs first. Let us strengthen our inner resources before we respond.
4740
View Comments (6)
There is so much truth and wisdom within this message. Giving ourselves space can bring unexpected clarity. Thank you both for sharing!
Thanks, Leigh, for staying close all these years. Here's to continued clarity and wisdom, for all of us. My love to you.
These are very wise words, I never learnt until recently to wait before making decisions. Therefore, some of the divisions I made have truly affected my life, even to this day, and I'm sure affected both my son's lives, the eldest son being the addict. So much to learn, so much to look back on and say to yourself, I wish I had dealt with that one differently! Hindsight and not being hasty are valuable though sometimes hard lessons to learn!
Staying calm and strong during very testing times can often mean the difference between a lifetime of regret, or, no regret!
Dear Angela, Your words are wise, and I thank you for sharing. Yes, some of our hasty decisions affected our lives and the lives of our children. I, too, wish I had learned years ago to wait before action, but every crisis seemed to demand attention. Only in hindsight did I learn that time offers us clarity. My thanks to you. xp
Great wisdom shared here! The wisest decision I made was learning to tell my addicted child that I needed more time before I could make a decision. I would then contact my counselor and my sponsor who helped with my response. This gave me strength and serenity in knowing my response was in my son’s best interest as well as mine. Prayers for all who suffer from this disease.
Dear Pat, This is GREAT advice: to wait and to contact your trusted allies. It took me years to learn to wait, but after years of suffering, I, like you, learned the value of time and advice from others. I join you in prayer for all of us and our children. My sincere thanks.