Back to Blog Posts
“Living your truth” can be a powerful reminder and mantra to help keep you focused and motivated in recovery. Whether you are just beginning your journey to lifelong recovery, or if you have been in recovery for years, actively seeking your truth is essential in maintaining healthy pursuits.
However, you might be wondering what living your truth means? You might wonder where one finds their truth? You might also wonder what you should do to start looking and make sure you live authentically to reach your most tremendous potential in recovery. All of these are common concerns when trying to figure out and accept your truths. Let's look at some strategies to help get you on the path to discovering and accepting your truths.
Practice Honesty
There is no forward progress without learning how to be honest with yourself and others. Honesty does not only mean speaking the truth but avoiding embellishment or withholding information out of fear of being judged—everything you say and do matters. The choices you make about your living situation and how you present yourself are also important. These things help influence how you feel about yourself and the world around you.
When you are honest, you can embark on challenges with more confidence because you are comfortable knowing that you are yourself. When you make the smallest choices thoughtfully, you are living honestly. Remember, this is your life, and you get to decide how you want to spend and experience it. Moving closer to making choices honestly brings you closer to living your truth.
Authentic Choices
Why do you like the kind of music you listen to? Why do you want to dress a certain way? Why do you like the books, television shows, and movies you like? Are these genuine choices that align with your interests that help move you and motivate you, or the kinds of things you like yet aren't even sure why?
Part of living your truth is taking the time to get to know your authentic self. Take nothing for granted. Explore new styles of music, try new foods, new exercises, and new hobbies. If you have never considered yourself a people-person, go out of your way to volunteer or attend group meetings or classes. These will all help you learn who you are authentically and will therefore start to define your recovery.
Who Are You When You're Alone?
If others do not see the things you do, these things still impact who you are and how you function in the world. In recovery, how you spend your time, the places your thoughts go, and the personal issues you might not verbalize to others impact your ability to live your truth. Working with a counselor or therapist or practicing meditation or mindfulness helps connect and assess how you think and spend time alone.
Contemplate whether you spend your time doing different activities. Decide how you feel when you're alone; are you angry, bitter, content, or delighted? Are you focused or distracted? Do you worry about future events that have not and likely will not happen? If so, make a concerted effort to be present. Do the little things like read your favorite book, take a hot bath, or brew yourself tea or coffee—all of these things will promote a comfortable space and increase your wellbeing. If you think negatively, then actively seek a brighter source to help move you closer to your truth.
How You Spend Your Time
How you spend your time each day contributes to your ability to live your truth. If you spend the most time working, consider your workplace. What service are you providing? Are you proud of that service? How does doing this job make you feel? If you could do any job, what would it be and why? How you spend most of your time, whether at work or home, helps you discover how fulfilled you are in what you are doing. When you can answer questions such as what you desire to do or be, you then add clarity to what motivates you and how you might want to achieve your dreams. When you set your compass toward the things you desire, then you are now being inspired by your truth.
Your Support Network
The people that you surround yourself with significantly impact who you are and how you act. If they are not supportive of who you are and your needs, then there is a good chance that you are not supportive of yourself and your needs. Look at who you spend most of your time with; this includes personal and professional friendships. These people influence the quality of your outlook and how you spend time in and away from social settings. When it comes to the company you keep, never settle for anything less than the support and acceptance you deserve. Having people in your life that you can rely on, trust, and who accept you for you, in turn, help you understand and accept your truths.
The journey to accepting your truth is all about looking inward, getting to know yourself, and changing your outlook on life. At START UP RECOVERY, we help you rebuild yourself from the inside out to achieve your best success. It all begins with acknowledging where you are now and where you want to be. We understand that it can be challenging to make positive changes in your life if you don't know where you are, which is why we provide a safe and judge-free space for you to begin developing these changes. We also offer a strong community that will support you in acknowledging your truth, including how to take steps toward healing the parts inside you that you have neglected. Success begins on your terms, so take that first step toward finding your inner truth today. To learn more, reach out to START UP RECOVERY by calling us at (310) 773-3809.