Friday, July 02, 2010

Overheard in Recovery: Not As Obvious As It Seems

Here from Yahoo! News and Livescience earlier this week:

Getting drunk increases the risk for violent behavior, but only for people who have a strong tendency to suppress feelings of anger when sober, a new Scandinavian study suggests.
So it isn't necessarily everyone who gets drunk that gets violent? I think I already knew that. But it may be more important to think of this in terms of recovery.

In order to build a better recovery it may be important to be in touch with one's anger- when sober- and find ways to let it out in healthy ways. Learning to deal with strong emotions, and anger is certainly a strong one, is not just important in recovery, it is a rock solid foundation for maintaining sobriety.

Admittedly it isn't learned overnight or just from staying away from the booze. It is part of the process of recovery. Putting the "plug in the jug" alone doesn't produce recovery. It is more than that. Learning healthy anger management is definitely part of it.

No comments: