More than two hundred years ago the poet, William Wordsworth, wrote, “The world is too much with us; getting and spending we lay waste our powers.”
Many women in long-term recovery would agree with him. Long after we gave up drink or pills or food we are still –maybe secretly—struggling with managing money, too many trips to the mall and painfully joking that, “My name is Diane and I am a shoe addict.”
photo credit: Orin Zebest via photopin cc
Yes, it may be true that no one dies from a shoe overdose but it’s also true that we are not “happy, joyous and free” when we are ashamed or afraid because of our money or shopping issues.
In my new book, “Out of the Woods” I write about clothes, and shoes and even ways that woman use cosmetics in recovery. It’s light-hearted but also deadly serious. Our growth simply continues and it can be easy to switch from a chemical addiction to a behavioral one. It’s all about our motives, honesty, self-care and talking honestly to other women in recovery. Yes, I too have spent time in a meeting checking out another woman’s clothing instead of the speaker’s message.
I love clothes and had to try many strategies in my recovery. In Chapter Nine of “Out of the Woods” I tell you all about my inventories: emotional and sartorial both. It’s a woman’s issue and a recovery issue. And the very good news is that we can laugh and heal at the same time.
This blog was written by Diane Cameron, author of OUT OF THE WOODS
