April 13

People pleasing is a defect of character; we used this tool in our active addiction to get what we wanted, more drugs. Approval seeking behavior is a form of manipulation and control. Sometimes it disguises itself as Kindness, but it's all ego based. As using addicts we wore many masks, with each mask worn, our real selves continued to disappear.

Toward the end of our using, we were no longer present, it was our disease. One of the symptoms of the disease is our low self-esteem. Since as long as we can remember, we never felt as though we were enough.

We've always tried to fit in, even if it meant sacrificing ourselves and our values. When it came to the drugs, all bets were off. We used this defect of character as a tool to enable our using, and it worked.

In Narcotics Anonymous, the real value is in being our true selves. As we progress in our Recovery, we Recover ourselves. This Journey, with the help of the Steps, takes us back to the people we were supposed to be all along.

The process of Self-Acceptance leads to Self-Approval and we are finally comfortable in our own skins. We no longer seek things outside ourselves, to make us feel good about ourselves. We no longer need people, places, or things to validate us. Our Faith is in our Higher Power, not in people.

Each day we ask God to remove our shortcomings. We pray to be the best people we can become.

Just For Today.