Before recovery, I couldn’t understand why my life wasn’t getting better despite what I did to fix it. If my boss was a jerk, I’d quit. If my girlfriend wasn’t paying attention to me, I’d go out with someone else. If my landlord didn’t like it when I was late with the rent, I’d move. No matter what I tried, things only seemed to get worse.

When I began working the program, I told my sponsor all about my problems. He listened for a while and then asked me how good an employee, boyfriend, and renter I had been. At first I was insulted, but then he told me to carefully write about each problem, focussing only on my part. Well….that certainly opened my eyes.

After many thorough inventories, what I’ve found is that my problems start with me, and the reason my solutions make them worse is because they are driven by the same selfishness or self-centered fear that caused them to begin with. Today the only solutions that work start by acknowledging where I’ve been at fault, and end with a sincere desire and offer to make amends.

Today I have solutions that make my life better.

Solutions to health problems? Get Ann Wigmore’s RECIPES FOR LONGER LIFE.