Have you or anyone you've loved ever experienced substance abuse or addiction?  Personally, I've struggled with both and find myself reflecting on it all this morning.  Why am I thinking about this?Currently doing the "Past Authoring Program" or the Self-Authoring Suite.What is the Self-Authoring Suite, you ask?The Past Authoring Program helps you remember, articulate and analyze key positive and negative life experiences.The Present Authoring Program has two modules. The first helps you understand and rectify your personality faults. The second helps you understand and develop your personality virtues.The Future Authoring Program helps you envision a meaningful, healthy and productive future, three to five years down the road, and to develop a detailed, implementable plan to make that future a reality.Doing the "past authoring" work and find myself working what is effectively the outline of my life.  The self-authoring program is structured this way and accordingly, it is proving to be an effective tool as part of the work I am doing to finding "my passion, my purpose, and my why."So...what qualifies me to talk about "substance abuse & addiction?"This is an important question for the challenges that come along with this topic.Context:Past Authoring / AutobiographyPre-Grade School Significant ExperiencesMy First MemoryReading to the Kindergarten ClassOne More Time (riding bike / broken nose)Skipping Stones (age 6 or 7, 1st or 2nd grade)Grade SchoolSignificant Experiences...no boys allowed (story of my sister's fort)Running AroundDiagnosis of EpilepsyDealing with side effects of medicationSkin peelingItchingEmotionalHigh School (Mid-Late Teens)Significant ExperiencesFrom Bloody Nose to Best FriendsLeaf Collection'The Discovery of CannabisThe ApartmentAthletics and BeyondFinding The StashOutpatient RehabFirst experience of Alcoholics AnonymousCollege Years (Late Teens / Early Twenties)Just started today These are the years of the "most experience" with substance abuse / addictionIncluding a DUI at the age of 23Second experience with Alcoholics AnonymousNot being even 50% complete with the self-authoring / autobiographical portion of my life, I find myself struggling with sharing this part of my life.  There's shame associated with it.Acceptance.  Giving myself a break.Allowing people to see my own fault.Demonstrate what and how I've done the things to overcome adversity in my own life.Sometimes, life is hard.People want to pick on us.We are our own worst critic.Substance abuse & addiction is to be taken seriously.Learn from everyone, everywhere the best ways to deal with it.Do not have fear about doing so.Love yourself enough to do it.Support the showBecome a Patreon of the Show! ➡️ patreon.com/allaroundgrowth