Definitions of Sobriety
and/or progress in recovery from hurts, habits or hang-ups
Sobriety in Celebrate Recovery is more than just the definition in a dictionary. It is an understanding and a measure of progress in dealing with your hurts, habits and hang-ups through a more enriched relationship with Jesus Christ. Basic Sobriety and/or recovery means: I set my life's anchor in my relationship with Jesus Christ and am faithful to commit to my recovery program and consistently use my Celebrate Recovery tools which includes; attending meetings, being accountable, daily inventory, transparency and rigorous honesty.
Anger: I demonstrate progress in not lashing out at others or harboring ill will towards others but have taken appropriate steps to forgive others and resolve conflicts.
Abuse Victim: I demonstrate progress in not harboring anger, resentment, bitterness or unforgiveness for my abuser(s). I demonstrate progress in allowing myself to feel my feelings, to accept them and express them appropriately. I demonstrate progress in not continuing to use my history of abuse as an excuse for engaging in addictive or self-destructive behaviors that so easily entangle me. I demonstrate progress in not allowing the pain of my past to keep me a victim, but continue to allow God to heal me.
Chemical Addiction: I have not consumed alcohol or drugs, except for appropriate over-the-counter medications or medications prescribed by my doctor.
Codependency: I demonstrate progress in no longer trying to control or manipulate others, give unsolicited advice, or engage in care-taking in order to feel needed or gain the approval of others. I demonstrate progress in releasing control of situations and people to God and am relating to others in a healthy manner, including setting and enforcing appropriate boundaries.
Depression: I demonstrate progress in not giving into feelings of passivity, hoplessness or despondency in response to difficult or negative situations and I strive to not isolate myself from God or others.
Food Addiction/Eating Disorder: I demonstrate progress in not overeating compulsively, binging/purging, starving myself, over exercising or engaging in any ritualistic eating pattern. I demonstrate progress in releasing control of food and eating to God and am learning to eat in a healthy manner.
Gambling Addiction: I have not participated in any compulsive games of chance or betting activities with or without a monetary payoff, including, but not limited to the lottery, off-track betting, sports bookies, bingo or poker.
Love/Relationship Addiction: I demonstrate progress in not seeking out obsessive emotional attachments to people or relationships, or focusing obsessively on romance and fantasy solely to shield myself from intolerably painful feelings or to avoid separation anxiety and loneliness.
Pornography Addiction: I demonstrate progress in abstaining from purchasing or viewing pornographic material including magazines, films, internet, phone sex, and from obsessive sexual thoughts or images.
Self-Harm/Self-Mutilation: I demonstrate progress in not engaging in self-harm behaviors such as cutting, burning, self-hitting, hair-pulling, etc. harming yourself in any way for relief from intense feelings.
Sex Addiction: I have abstained from compulsively searching for sexual partners and from sexual activity with any person (other than my spouse, if married), or from intentionally placing myself in a position of tempation.
Shopping Addiction: I demonstrate progress in abstaining from spending sprees. I demonstrate progress in not being preoccupied with ritualized thoughts about shopping, planning shopping trips or the shopping act itself as a way of escaping negative feelings.
Unresolved Grief: I am learning to trust Jesus Christ to fill the empty place in my life and to help me return to living my life as He intended me to. I continue to work through the grief process of denial, anger, bargaining, and acceptance and I ask for help when needed.