person writing on brown wooden table near white ceramic mug

Why write about my recovery?

I'm here to say, you aren't alone. Perfectionism isn't a hopeless cause.

WRITING

person's hand on light
person's hand on light

My post contentListening to an episode of Armchair Expert today I heard guest, Kimberley Quinlan, a therapist and anxiety specialist, discuss how people in different stages of recovery become advocates. Dax said, “a lot of people get an impulse in their first year of sobriety…I feel very motivated, I’ve just experienced this huge shift so my next thing is I’m gonna write a book about it, proselytize and be vigilant about this.” I stopped and thought, whoa is that me? And if so, is that bad?

I have to go back to my initial inspiration and connect the dots. I was looking for help for my child and I couldn’t find it. The research I was doing on perfectionism seemed valuable and I figured, instead of keeping this to myself (it was a LOT of research), maybe I write a book (I’ve always thought I’d publish a memoir, but this could be just as rewarding and maybe safer).

During those early weeks of research, I had a conversation with a therapist in Canada to ask about her master's thesis and she said a book like this would be a great resource for families because there aren’t any out there that she’s aware of. I later connected with Dr. Kirsten Gilbert, after seeing her quoted in Parenting magazine on the topic of perfectionism. She conducts research on the concept of over-control, which includes aspects of perfectionism, and see agreed there’s a need for this book.

I often get panicked and think maybe I’m wasting my time or maybe I’m not qualified. Impostor syndrome is tough. But again and again I remind myself I have a unique voice, my experiences combined with extensive research are most definitely worth sharing.

The take away: To avoid proselytizing or being too vigilante, I keep my initial goal in mind. I don’t stray into the territory of I must convert others. This project is about sharing information that I uncovered. It’s a take it or leave. Just like with drug and alcohol addiction, people have to ready to accept help. I’m here for those people. If perfectionism is dragging you or your kid down, I’m your sponsor.