Recovery Bytes

by Matt M What did I use to be like, what happened, and what it’s like now? Every story has a beginning and mine starts

Logan Chamberlin, LMHC, CRRA, Clinical Director I have worked at Turning Point for 12 years. I am an alumni myself from Turning Point of Tampa,

Jennifer Flansburg Client Coordinator I have worked at TPOT for almost a year and a half. I attended my first AA meeting a little over

My Life in early recovery was not a cake walk in any sense of the word. I made mistake after mistake and felt so much

by Andy H. Visions of violence, pain and suffering. Voices of fear, doubt, anxiety, and torture. Thousands of men, women, and children losing their lives

When I started using and drinking, I had no idea the path I was on. All I knew at that point in my life was

by Victor K. I was born in Phoenix, Arizona as an only child with two loving parents. My parents were quite wealthy, so growing up

By Ashely N I grew up in a very small town, so small it isn’t even a town, it’s a Junction. The only things around

Looking back over the last 5 years of sobriety, I asked myself: What is the main reason that I have been able to maintain my

by Jeffrey I One of the gifts of sobriety is handling life when it throws you a curve ball and last year it sure did. Thank

by Sam F. I had every reason in the world to stop using and drinking, but never cared enough to ever do anything about it.

Since I can remember, I always had addictive tendencies.  Anything I could do to take my mind off how I felt, or what I was

At my first AA meeting, I decided I wasn’t an alcoholic. You see, I compared myself to every person who shared.  I listened to people talking

In my active addiction I thought I knew everything. I had all the right answers, I knew what everyone was thinking, I knew how everyone

Looking back on my drinking days, there are several things that I was missing that kept me where I was. In my self-reliance I was

I’ve worked at Turning Point of Tampa for 16 years as a behavioral health tech. I have spent probably ten or more holidays with our

I moved back to the area where I grew up at the beginning of the pandemic. I got clean in Tampa and my homegroup had

Balance is defined as a condition in which different elements are equal or in the correct proportions. If you would have told me 5 years

Because I Have 6 siblings, I sometimes hear “it should be easy to connect with others.” Well, that has not been my experience. Despite being

“If we are painstaking about this phase of our development, we will be amazed before we are halfway through.” ~ Alcoholics Anonymous p. 83-84 Thinking

My definition of fun, now that I am in recovery, is completely different than when I was using. When I was using I was staying

When I first came into treatment back in 2004, my therapist had me read ACCEPTANCE is the Answer in the Big Book. After reading it

Looking back to my years in early recovery, I remember that everything was a big deal, whether the situation was positive or negative. Something as

I had no idea what to expect when I started my journey into recovery. Before coming to treatment, I’d never attended a 12-step meeting, had