playnext.fm

Spirit of Recovery · Mind Body Spirit.fm

Courage to Change

July 5, 2022·39 min·3 clips
Dan Beckett reveals how 27 years in recovery involves constantly peeling away layers of shame and negative core beliefs.
Rev. Dan Beckett and Rev. Michelle Vargas, both ordained Unity ministers with long-term recovery, host this episode on the spiritual work of facing one's past in addiction. They frame the recovery journey as a courageous path of increasing self-awareness and spiritual growth. The conversation centers on the psychological concept of the "shadow" and the practical work of the Twelve Steps, particularly Step Four's moral inventory. The hosts describe early recovery as a state of being "out to lunch" regarding self-awareness, often due to pain and shame. Beckett shares carrying a "dark cloud" of shame and core beliefs like "I'm not good enough" for over 27 years. They characterize recovery as peeling away layers of "crap" to discover the root causes of addictive behavior. The process involves uncovering and healing deep-seated "error thoughts" rather than a one-time fix. A key insight is the idea of "befriending" or integrating one's shadow elements instead of waging war on them. Vargas recounts a speaker, Peggy M., who reframed her inventory items as "my grubs"—unpleasant but integral parts of the self. Resistance is seen as giving energy to the problem, whereas non-resistance and acceptance, aligned with spiritual teachings, allow for change. The hosts suggest that intense emotional reactions to others often point to a personal "next assignment" ready for healing. They compare repressed character defects to a "crying baby" that needs to be held with love, not further shamed. Practical tools include the acronym H.O.W.—Honesty, Open-mindedness, and Willingness. Beckett shares a humorous example of practicing open-mindedness by noticing his internal drama over how a collection basket is passed at a meeting. The ultimate courage to change comes from a sustained relationship with a higher power, described as a source of unconditional love. The tone is conversational, reflective, and supportive, blending personal anecdotes with spiritual and psychological concepts. The style is educational, offering practical steps within a framework of Unity principles and Twelve-Step philosophy. Listeners actively engaged in a Twelve-Step program or interested in the intersection of spirituality and psychology would find this episode resonant. Those seeking a clinical, secular analysis of addiction recovery might find the spiritual language less applicable.

As heard by us

A steady recovery conversation about owning what was hidden instead of pretending it is not there.

Courage to Change treats recovery as plain self-inventory, and that plainness is part of its force. Rev. Dan Beckett and Rev. Michelle Vargas keep coming back to the fourth-step image of grubs under a lifted rock, which gives the conversation a sharp, almost uncomfortable…

Read the full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

You want a steady recovery listen about courage, integrity, and taking ownership of the wreckage of the past.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →
Listen to the show on
Apple PodcastsSpotify
Play clips from this episodeMore from Spirit of Recovery