Hugging The Cactus… Facing The Pricks of your Past

In the vast desert of human suffering, addiction stands out as a particularly thorny cactus. It is a plant that grows in the hearts of many, its needles representing the myriad hurts, regrets, and traumas that puncture our souls throughout life. This book, "Hugging the Cactus: Facing the Pricks of Our Past," is an invitation to embrace that cactus—not to remove it or pretend it doesn't exist, but to hold it close, acknowledging every sharp point as a step toward healing.

The journey of recovery from addiction is as much about confronting the pains that led us to seek solace in substances or behaviors as it is about abstaining from those coping mechanisms. Each needle, each thorn, represents a hurt from our past: abandonment, shame, trauma, the awkwardness of adolescence, the sting of rejection, and the shadow of sins we commit in our struggle to cope. These are the pricks that we must face if we wish to heal truly.

This book does not propose a quick fix or an easy path. Instead, it offers a deep dive into the soul, exploring the steps necessary for recovery, which, while challenging, pave the way for a restoration that is both profound and lasting. The process outlined here is one of spiritual awakening, emotional intelligence, and, ultimately, peace—a peace that comes from having faced the deepest and darkest parts of ourselves and having found that, even there, we are not beyond love, not beyond grace.

The twelve steps, though not explicitly named in their original form, serve as the backbone of this journey. Each step is a chapter, a phase of growth that builds upon the last, leading us from admission of our powerlessness over addiction to a spiritual awakening that allows us to serve others from a place of joy rather than obligation. Along the way, we learn the importance of making amends, of living a life marked by continuous personal inventory, and of relying on a higher power who is not a distant force but a loving presence deeply invested in our restoration.

"Hugging the Cactus" is about more than just surviving addiction; it's about thriving in the aftermath. It's about becoming safe people who can be trusted and respected, about repairing relationships, and about finding our place in a spiritual narrative that speaks of redemption, not condemnation. It invites readers to find the right mentor, the right higher power, and to see themselves through a lens of compassion and hope.

As we venture into the heart of our pain, we discover that the cactus we've been so afraid to touch holds the key to our healing. This book is for anyone who's ever felt unworthy, unlovable, or unredeemable. It's a testament to the fact that no one is too far gone, that every one of us has the capacity for transformation, and that healing often comes not in spite of our past, but because we've had the courage to face it head-on.

Welcome to the journey of hugging the cactus. It won't be easy, but I promise, it will be worth it.