SEEKING EMOTIONAL STABILITY

Ah, seeking emotional stability—that's a theme that runs deep through every page of our Big Book, isn't it? In recovery, we find that stability isn't about a perfect, unruffled life; it's about a growing peace that comes from living in God's will. The Promises on [Page 83-84] tell us we will 'know a new freedom and a new happiness' and that 'the feeling of uselessness and self-pity will disappear.' That's the bedrock of emotional stability—not the absence of problems, but the presence of a new way of reacting to them.

Our program gives us practical tools for this. The daily reprieve [Page 85] reminds us that our recovery—and our emotional balance—depends on 'our vital relationship with God.' That means staying close to our Higher Power through prayer and meditation [Page 86-87], constantly turning over our will. And when we feel shaky, we can revisit the Seventh Step prayer [Page 76], asking to be 'relieved of the bondage of self,' which is usually the root of our emotional turmoil.

So stability isn't a destination; it's a daily action. It's the result of working Steps Ten and Eleven consistently [Page 84-88], continuing to take personal inventory and promptly admitting when we're wrong. That keeps our side of the street clean and our hearts steady.