And Why Your Absti-Versary Really Matters

Have you ever wondered why people make such a big deal about anniversaries and milestones in recovery?

I used to. Before recovery, I honestly didn’t understand the significance of a recovery milestone. Why celebrate this random date on the calendar. Why count days, months, or years? Who really cares?

But after reaching my own first Absti-Versary (my abstinence anniversary), I now see it differently.

The truth is that milestones are not really about the date. They’re about the journey. They give us an opportunity to pause long enough to appreciate how far we have come. In a world that constantly encourages us to focus on what’s next, milestones invite us to look back and acknowledge all that we’ve already accomplished.

---

This week marks my own food recovery Absti-Versary. When I stop to reflect on the past 12 months, I am overwhelmed with gratitude for how much has changed. I marvel at all I have accomplished. As they say in OA, it’s all “…beyond our wildest dreams“.

I never imagined how good life could be. I’ve changed my life completely in recovery. And, I’m here to tell you, The Promises of recovery really do come true. Every single one.

---

I wasn’t simply trying to release weight when I started this journey. Like many people in food addiction recovery, I was really searching for peace and freedom. I was exhausted from the constant food noise that occupied my thoughts from the moment I woke up to to moment I went to sleep.

Food was never just food.

It was a source of comfort, stress, reward, entertainment, and obsession. No matter how many promises I made to myself, I always seemed to find myself back in the same place, wondering why I couldn’t figure it out.

What I didn’t know back then was that recovery would give me so much more than just a different way of eating.

---

During the first year of my abstinence, I released 42 pounds. While that number is certainly worthy of celebrating, it isn’t event the most important or best change I experienced. The difference on the scale was just one metric out of many.

My blood pressure returned to a healthy range. My cholesterol improved. The inflammation that had caused me daily pain for years had diminished dramatically. I now sleep better then ever, and I now regularly wake up feeling rested instead of exhausted.

One of the greatest physical gifts has been quieting the food noise. For most of my life, my mind seemed consumed with thoughts of food: what I would eat, what I shouldn’t eat, what I had already eaten, and what I promised I’d do differently tomorrow. Living with that constant mental chatter is exhausting. Experiencing relief from the food noise has been one of the greatest gifts of my recovery.

But the changes have not only been physical.

---

Recovery gave me something I never realized I was missing: community.

In recovery, we often talk about finding our “we”, and now I understand why that’s so important. For years, I believed I was uniquely broken, uniquely flawed, and uniquely unable to manage my own food. The Big Book would call this “terminal uniqueness“. All addicts suffer with this “uniqueness”, to some degree.

Then I met people who understood exactly what I was experiencing. I found people who didn’t need long explanations because they had walked the same path. The friendships I’ve built in my recovery have become one of the most meaningful parts of my recovery journey. I have deep gratitude for each and every person in my “we”, which has become vast and full. I truly and deeply love them all.

---

And from my recovery, I was inspired to create our non-profit parent company, Intentional Recovery Foundation, and our beloved Abstinent Kitchen. Both were born from a simple desire to help others who feel the way I felt when I started. I know what it’s like to feel overwhelmed, discouraged, and convinced that nothing will ever change.

I also know what it’s like to discover that recovery is possible and that life can become so much bigger than the struggle!

This is why I believe celebrating milestones is so important.

---

A milestone is more than a celebration. It’s an opportunity. It’s a chance to stop long enough to honestly assess where we are. Sometimes we look back and realize we’ve made tremendous progress. Other times, we recognize areas where we need to grow. Maybe we’ve drifted away from practices that support our recovery. Maybe our spiritual condition needs attention. Maybe there are habits we want to strengthen or changes we want to make moving forward.

Either way, the reflection is invaluable.

Without milestones, it’s easy to forget how far we’ve traveled. We become so focused on the next goal, the next challenge, or the next thing we want to improve that we never take the time to appreciate the transformation that has already taken place.

Recovery teaches us something different. It teaches us to honor our progress, not perfection. It reminds us that meaningful change happens one day at a time, often so gradually that we don’t notice it until we intentionally stop and look back.

---

When I compare my life today to where I was when I started, the difference is remarkable. I feel healthier. I am truly happy. I feel more connected. I feel more creative. Most importantly, I feel hopeful. The life I have today is certainly not perfect, but it is peaceful and joyful and free in ways I never imagined possible.

So, I make a point to celebrate my Absti-Versary. And you should celebrate yours, too.

I celebrate, not because I have arrived at some final destination. Recovery doesn’t work like that. I am celebrating because I have spent this journey showing up for myself, trusting the process, leaning on my Higher Power, and taking recovery one day at a time.

And THAT is worth recognizing.

---

If you’re reading this and you’re approaching a recovery milestone of your own, whether it’s one day, thirty days, ninety days, one year, or ten years, I hope you’ll celebrate it. REALLY celebrate. Take time to reflect on where you’ve been, where you are now, and where you’d like to go next.

Your milestone matters.

Your progress matters.

Your recovery matters.

And you deserve to celebrate every step of the journey.

---

Food For Thought

• When I look back to the beginning of my recovery, what was I hoping would change?
• What positive changes have occurred in my life that cannot be measured on a scale?
• How has my relationship with food changed?
• What challenges have I overcome that I once thought were impossible?
• How has the “food noise” changed for me since beginning recovery?
• If I could talk to myself on Day One of my recovery, what would I say?
• How has my Higher Power worked in my life over the past year?
• What areas of my recovery deserve celebration right now?
• How can I honor and celebrate my progress without minimizing the work that still lies ahead?
• What do I want my future self to be celebrating one year from today?
• How has my life become bigger, better, freer, or more peaceful because I chose recovery?

---