Recovery isn't a Straight Line
At the start, I thought recovery had an ending.
For a long time, I thought that if you set yourself goals and work hard, you'll go back to your "old" life. Eventually, it registered that it wasn't going to go that way.
During rehab, progress was more obvious. For me, though, it was slower than I would have liked! I learned to stand, walk, talk, eat and even breathe unaided.
As slow as progress felt, each thing was still significant. I had therapists who got me to celebrate the small wins but, at the same time, set new (realistic) goals.
Home was different, in more ways than one. Recovery no longer had obvious milestones. Progress was now ordinary life: going to the supermarket, crossing a road without someone holding me up, sitting in a cafe and going on holiday.
None of this was automatic. It all required time and a great deal of patience. Other times, progress was about knowing when to stop!
