Recovery Café

Natalie I. – Hanley Center Alumnus My name is Natalie and I am an alcoholic/addict and proud Origins Alumni. When I came to Origins, I was a broken and defeated woman. My life was filled with empty relationships and my disappointments. Everything I worked hard for was gone except for the few that never gave… Read On »

Joe Hartwell, Alumni Care Coordinator Greetings family, In the spiritual life, what we think we are doing is actually being done to us. All we can do is say yes to it! During this time of crisis, the Origins Alumni Team has tripled our efforts in providing support to our future alumni leaving treatment and… Read On »

  By Cara O’Neil, Regional Director of Alumni Services There have been times in my life when I have been feeling low, and I’ve told myself, “Cara, you still have sports and you still have 12 Step meetings.” Well, I woke up the other day and there were no sports on my television. There was… Read On »

Claire Lavergne, Hannah’s House Alumni Care Coordinator For the longest time, I felt like I was running up a hill because I kept fighting everything and everybody. I was full of fear; my family completely cut me off and did not want to participate in my life anymore. I was on my own in Dallas,… Read On »

Bart Ross – Recovery and Alumni Services Coordinator, Hanley Center at Origins A common question is if God is so loving, why do we suffer from alcoholism and other sufferings in our life? I still don’t personally know the whole answer to this question, and probably never will, but I can understand and accept that… Read On »

by Kellye DeBerry, Alumni Coordinator, Hanley Center at Origins When I came into the rooms of the 12-Step program, I played a scene in my head of how I pictured my life from that point on. And I imagined my life looking a lot like what is portrayed on TV and in movies. I pictured… Read On »

Chad Lentscher, Director of Alumni, Origins South Padre Island I had a profound experience in recent years around Step Six. Following a Fifth Step, I was staring at several pages of character defects, and three things occurred to me. One, the list was almost identical to every other character defect list I had generated. Two, if… Read On »

by Bart Ross, Alumni Coordinator, Hanley Center at Origins “Doubtless you are curious to discover how and why, to the contrary, we have recovered from a hopeless condition of mind and body.” – Big Book, pg. 20 I want to talk a little about “recovered” vs. “recovering.” I’ve experienced that this can be a controversial… Read On »

My name is Amber W. and I am a recovered alcoholic. I did not ever think I would be able to say that. Before Origins, My life was full of misery and hopelessness. I could not stop drinking and using drugs; I could not manage my life; my relationships were non-existent. I had already been… Read On »

Those of us living with addiction and mental health issues are no strangers to insecurity and low self-esteem. We lack the confidence and sense of self to prioritize our health and well-being. We reject ourselves so much that we compound our own mental and emotional pain. This can make us resort to unhealthy coping mechanisms… Read On »