That’s right, fun.

Last weekend while driving home on a rainy Saturday afternoon I spotted this sign, and circled the block just to take a photo.

It got me to thinking of how sometimes — no matter how awful things are — you need to take a break, even from therapy.

In times of crisis and heartache, it’s easy to become preoccupied or even obsessed with reading books about addiction, googling for recovery information, going to meetings, or falling into the trap of focusing on “the problem” 24/7. Before you know it, your life becomes imbalanced and brittle.

As helpful as it is to arm yourself with information and work toward your own healing, too much of a good thing can rob you of opportunities to experience joy.

Spend some time in nature, pet your dog or cat, listen to your favorite music, engage in some [moderate] retail therapy, read that novel that’s been sitting on your bedside table, queue up some videos of your favorite comedian, or just stare out the window into space.

Consider having a daily “addiction-free” zone of time between you and the sex addict in your life when you intentionally choose to talk about anything other than addiction or recovery. Use this time to focus on the positive qualities of your partner that you appreciate, and find ways to enjoy being together.

Whatever brings you joy, relaxes, refreshes, or makes you laugh — find time to do it.

What do you do for fun? Write down 5 ideas and make a commitment to do at least one in the next week.

© Vicki Tidwell Palmer, LCSW (2015)

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