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On August 13, 2016, my life changed forever. Actually, my life began. I was reborn. Only nine months prior, I had just gotten out of my fifth treatment center. And now, finally, I was truly happy.

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Claiming I wasn’t hungry or that I had already eaten would prove to be difficult once we started to spend entire days together.

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Choosing recovery doesn’t necessarily mean you will be cured, or never struggle again, but what it does mean is that you are making the conscious decision to fight. To not be a victim. To walk in the light of life, instead of in the shadows of darkness of death.

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Managing a loved one’s drug or alcohol addiction is never easy, but those whose spouse has a substance use disorder face an especially tough and lonely road.

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Once I stopped being so ashamed of it, I saw that anxiety was my superpower too. Because of my anxiety, I worked and loved harder. I strived to help others who were going through the same thing.

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Broken, alone, defeated. I was so close to giving up. Wasted away to nothing but a disorder and stubbornness. Rock bottom lead to rock bottom, repeat times ten.

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There is no comfort in an eating disorder. This two-finger diet has left me empty in more ways than one.

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They may romanticize the relationship and re-idealize you, taking back all their hurtful words and actions in one fell swoop (or cleverly constructed text message).

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The definition of a disease is an impairment of health or a condition of abnormal functioning. What could be more abnormal than wanting to inject a foreign substance into your body just for fun several times per day?

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Recovery is scary, confusing and lonely. But recovery is created by you. So here’s to defining a “normal state” in terms which are special to you.