From Strengthening My Recovery p13- January 12 Trait One
“We became isolated and afraid of people and authority figures.” Big Red Book p.10
So many of us shut down and hide because of our fear of people and authority figures. Most of this fear stems from the way we were treated when we were young. Understandably, what we learned as children carries over into most everything we do today: fear of our partner or boss, fear of success or failure, fear of conflict- the list can seem endless.
Our childhood authority figures, our parents, were often physically, verbally, emotionally abusive. One thing many of us thought we learned for sure: if anything went wrong, it was our fault.(…..)
On this day I acknowledge the fears I’ve carried for most of my life, and I remind myself that I a now safe. I take deep breaths and feel gratitude for the people in my life who are kind and loving.
What a miracle to realize my absence of fear, from my daily life. My pain comes from remembering what happened, not worrying about what could happen. PTSD. I know there is work to do here and I also am taking note of how far I have come.
