Sarasota, FL Addiction Recovery Coach, Dr. Christina Winsey: “Do you suspect alcohol may be a bigger problem for you than you thought?”  Do you suspect that you have a dual addiction: food and alcohol?  Do you think your problem is that you just need to lose weight, but you don’t want to have to give up alcohol or wine?

There is nothing wrong with celebrating the New Year with the bubbly. There is nothing wrong with enjoying a glass or two of wine with dinner. So when does alcohol become a real problem?  How do you know you’re addicted?  How do you know if you’re addicted to food or to alcohol?

I’m Dr. Christina Winsey, a Sarasota-Florida-based Addiction Recovery Coach.  Many of my clients don’t even realize, nor do they want to admit, when alcohol or food are big parts of the problems they are facing in life.  Using an addictive substance to “deal with life” is never a strategy that works for long.  It is inevitable that addiction ends up destroying the very careers, relationships and health and lives we really want. 

Is alcohol affecting your life?

Foods you can't stop eating

As an addiction recovery coach I work with men and women from all over the Country by phone.  These clients may have any kind of addiction, though alcohol and food are the most common ones people turn to coaching for.  Some have two or more addictions, (sometimes a combination of food and alcohol).

Many come to coaching saying they want to lose weight, and they get surprised to learn that alcohol may be one of the major causes of their extra pounds.  But they also then realize that giving up that alcohol is much more difficult than they ever realized.

Do any of these three profiles fit you?

*Weight is a challenge because over the years you became more sedentary but your eating habits remained hearty (filled with rich, high calorie foods).  You want to lose weight but you don’t want to give up alcohol or at the very least, you want to be able to enjoy wine with their dinners – and not just a glass, but a bottle a night.  Weight has packed on over the years and now you are even afraid to look in the mirror.

*You are beginning to get hangovers more frequently and your drinking amounts have increased.  You look for excuses to go out and party, and the partying always seems to include lots of food, and perhaps some behaviors you’re not too proud of.  Perhaps you’ve been late to work, or you just aren’t on “top of your game” like you used to be.  Maybe you know that alcohol is becoming a problem for you and you are worried that you really can’t stop. 

*You binge on carbohydrates (sugary foods, cakes, cookies, deserts, pastas and breads) and this has become a big problem.  Make no mistake; these carbohydrate foods are equally addictive in nature.  Wine or alcohol  go with the overeating “territory” and you have noticed how, over the years, you are drinking more and more.   You have tried many diets, including the “drinking man’s diet,” but nothing has really worked for you to keep the weight off, and you are still craving at least a couple of drinks a day. 

It may be one of these or anotherWhatever the case, don’t go it alone in your quest for health, recovery and real change.

Four  Vital Keys to Recovery:

What does it really take to recover from addiction, and to stay in recovery?  There are four absolutely vital keys to recovery that should be incorporated into any program you embark on.  These are: commitment, structure, support with accountability and a whole-person approach. 

Commitment.  When a client comes to a treatment program, to addiction recovery coaching or therapy it must be he or she who is making the commitment to recovery for the long haul.  One of my favorite sayings about recovery is “The only way out is through.”  In other words, there are no short-cuts.  There is no skipping around addiction.  Recovery is process that you have to go through and there are specific steps to be taken.  Without real commitment that “when the going gets tough, the tough get going,” recovery will be a fleeting thing.  Diets, and swearing off the booze are not a long-term answer, as we all know.

Structure eliminates guessing games as to what is expected.  Structure provides a framework that creates order from what may have previously been a real chaos.

Support and accountability go hand in hand and are probably two of the most important aspects to successful recovery.  In addiction the ego plays a strong role in holding you captive, so to speak, to the addiction.  The ego says “I can do this myself.”  So many times addicts tell themselves they’ll stop tomorrow and promise themselves that “If I really wanted to stop I would.”  But without support and accountability to another person or program these are usually idle words that never translate into reality.  It is not weak to need support.  Asking for support is actually a sign of strength – a sign that the ego is softening.

A whole-person approach to recovery means that it is vital to consider all aspects of you, of your life and what makes you tick, and to what makes your life work.  Since addition is a multi-pronged problem affecting mind, body, spirit, emotions and all aspects of your life,there are tools, skills and techniques that address these different aspects of you and your life must be included in a long-term recovery plan.

Addiction Recovery-Life  Coaching

Addiction recovery  is not as simple as “just say ‘No’!”  This specialty arm of life coaching requires special training.  Recovery requires  a strong and structured recovery plan that may well incorporate community addiction recovery resources, and/or other professionals, as necessary.  An addiction recovery coach is not a therapist.  Utilizing both coaching and therapy together may be recommended.  Most important is that you, the client, are committed to the process for the long haul.  At least a solid year of following a structured recovery program or plan is highly recommended.

Some free resources can assist you in discovering whether you may have an alcoholic addiction pattern.  Alcoholics Anonymous has a questionnaire which may help you decide whether you are in trouble with alcohol.  It is not a questionnaire with which to diagnose yourself as an alcoholic, but it is a strong indication that alcohol is a problem in your life.  http://www.aa.org/lang/en/subpage.cfm?page=71 American Society of Addiction Medicine Patient Placement Criteria: http://www.asam.org/PatientPlacementCriteria.html.  Overeater’s Anonymous has telephone and online meetings, as well as in-person meetings in your town.  http://www.oa.org/meetings/find-a-meeting-online.php.  Psychologists who specialize in serious eating disorders: http://www.findapsychologist.org/eating_disorders.html

Recovery isn’t an easy path.  There are habits to change and cravings to deal with.  There may even be medical issues that must be addressed.  But if you are suffering and if it is affecting your job, your relationships or your success in life, you owe it to yourself to catch the problem now and start to turn it around.

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Recover with an experienced coach:  Dr. Christina Winsey practices as an addiction recovery coach, alternative health coach, weight loss coach, and life and confidence coach.  You can receive a free consultation with Dr. Christina Winsey:  http://www.ferocecoaching.com/contact/free-coaching-consultation/

Our addiction recovery coach serve clients in Los Angeles, San Francisco and the Bay Area, Miami, Chicago, Detroit, Minneapolis, St. Louis, New York City, Charlotte, Philadelphia, Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, Madison, Milwaukee, NYC, Washington D.C., San Diego, Denver, Jacksonville, Atlanta, Honolulu, Baltimore, Boston, Kansas City, Omaha, Las Vegas, Newark, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Dayton, Portland, Pittsburgh, Nashville, Fort Worth, Salt Lake City, Seattle, San Jose, Phoenix, Tucson, Tampa, Olympia, Spokane, Tacoma, Palo Alto, Pasadena, Sacramento, Santa Monica, Greenwich, Hartford, New Haven, Albuquerque, Austin, Birmingham, Huntsville, Montgomery, Eugene, Salem, and many more!