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1. Stinkin Thinkin
Posted by Into Action Treatment on November 30, 2015 in Articles, We Do Recover
How your Ego Sabotages Your Recovery
Ego is a Latin word that literally translates to ‘self’
but when we are talking about your ego in terms of
recovery, we mean your self-image. Ego’s tend to be
fragile and even someone with a seemingly huge
sense of self-importance can find theirs bruised and
depleted.
A person with a healthy ego has a realistic sense of self but doesn’t take themselves too seriously.
When your ego becomes inflated or deflated, it affects the way you see yourself and the way you think,
making it easy to fall prey to the many traps we lay for ourselves to sabotage our recovery.
When you first realize that you have a problem, it’s easy to fall into an egocentric mind frame and deny
that it’s even a problem. The spiral of stinkin-thinkin continues with the conclusion that “I’m not like
the others.” Which can mean that either you alone can resist addiction or that everyone else is weak-
willed and you don’t need help in recovery.
Even when you seek help, and admit yourself into a recovery center, you may be faced with that
damning ego again with the stinkin-thinkin of “Now that I’m detoxed, I can handle doing more… this
time.” Or you might find yourself considering lying and sneaking a fix. Because again, you’re
different from the other addicts. You need it more or suffer from it less.
It’s important to realize that this damaging egocentrism is deeply rooted in fear and insecurities. It’s

2. even more important to realize that you are not really alone in this. Stinkin-thinkin is a common trap
that the recovering addict lays for him or herself.
A big function of an unhealthy ego is manifested as shame. Shame is one of the most
damaging emotional conflicts we can faced and when it rears its ugly head during recovery, it can
facilitate a backslide before you even recognize it for what it is. It’s important to get ahead of the shame
game and be prepared to work through some painful revelations. [Brown] The twelve steps to recovery
deal directly with this egocentric mindset and many of the steps are there as specific tools to help you
deal with them.
It’s important not to mistake a healthy respect for yourself as being egocentric. It’s good to believe in
yourself and to feel encouraged when you make progress in your recovery. Self-efficacy is the belief in
your own capabilities- like the ability to follow the twelve steps and abstain from using. It is one of the
traits consistently shared by people who are successful in their recovery [Miller] and when you
cultivate a believe in yourself along with a willingness to accept help from others, you have one of the
most important recovery tools you will ever need.
References:
http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1300/J020V08N03_07
https://books.google.com/books?
hl=en&lr=&id=c_F0_Wg6Wv0C&oi=fnd&pg=PP1&dq=ego+sabotage+recovery&ots=4LNzDnGOXh
&sig=HzUp0-Y0_CJ8h5HoOLTxF9v8tq8#v=onepage&q&f=false
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/074054729190051B

3. http://recoverydays.com/?p=451
http://www.melanietoniaevans.com/articles/ego.htm
http://www.thecabinchiangmai.com/blog/15-ways-you-might-be-sabotaging-your-own-addiction-
recovery#.VlCXEvmrTIU
http://blogs.psychcentral.com/addiction-recovery/2013/01/signs-of-self-sabotage-in-recovery/
http://www.spiritualriver.com/addiction-treatment/sabotaging-recovery/