Greetings, Resilience Warriors. I’m Jim Lunsford. In life’s journey, we often find ourselves at a crossroads where the path forward is obscured by the shadows of past traumas. The weight of these experiences can sometimes feel insurmountable, like carrying a heavy load with no place to set it down. As someone who has walked through the dark valleys of addiction and emerged into the light of resilience, I’ve come to understand that the discipline I applied to overcome my struggles with substance abuse can serve as a powerful tool in recovering from trauma.
Recovery from trauma, much like recovery from addiction, is not a linear path. It is a journey marked by setbacks and victories, moments of clarity, and periods of overwhelming pain. However, in the structure, the routine, and the commitment to a disciplined life, I found the strength to continue moving forward, even on the darkest days.
Discipline, in the context of trauma recovery, is not about rigid self-control or punishing oneself for experiencing pain. Instead, it’s about creating a framework for healing—a set of practices and routines that provide stability and comfort amidst the chaos of emotional upheaval. For me, this framework included daily physical exercise, a practice I’ve championed as a fitness trainer and as a cornerstone of my recovery journey.
Physical exercise, in its essence, is a dialogue between the mind and the body. It’s about pushing through the momentary discomfort for a greater goal. In the gym, lifting weights became more than just a physical activity; it was a metaphor for the emotional resilience I was building. Each rep, each set, was a reminder that I could endure, that I could lift the weight of my trauma and set it down again, stronger for the effort.
But discipline extends beyond physical fitness. It encompasses the routines that structure our day, from the moment we wake to the moment we rest our heads at night. In the early days of my recovery, I found solace in making my bed each morning. This task, seemingly insignificant, was a declaration of intent. It was my way of telling myself that I had already accomplished something, no matter what the day held. It was a step towards normalcy, a strand of order in the entangled mess of my thoughts and emotions.
Discipline also means showing up for oneself, even when the motivation wanes. It’s about attending therapy sessions, even when we feel we don’t have the strength to speak. It’s about writing in a journal, allowing our thoughts and fears to spill out onto the page, giving them form, and then working through them. It’s about choosing to engage in self-care, to nourish our bodies with good food and our minds with positive thoughts, despite the numbness that trauma often brings.
This journey is deeply personal and unequivocally challenging. There were days when discipline felt impossible when the routines that I had set for myself felt like mountains too steep to climb. On those days, I learned the importance of forgiveness—forgiving myself for not being able to maintain the discipline I so valued. I realized forgiveness is an integral part of the disciplined approach to recovery. It allows us to reset, to begin again without the burden of guilt or perceived failure.
Recovery from trauma, like recovery from addiction, is a testament to the human spirit’s resilience. The disciplined approach I advocate for is not about strict adherence to a set regimen but about creating a supportive structure for healing. It’s about finding the practices that bring us peace and strength and committing to them, not because we must, but because we know they guide us a step closer to healing.
In embracing discipline, we find not constraints but freedom—the freedom to heal, grow, and emerge from the shadows of our past, not unscarred but unbroken, resilient, and whole.
Stay disciplined. Stay resilient.
Jim Lunsford
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