Dallas Bragg argues that recovery and growth come from encouragement, not punishment. Most programs fail because they don't foster curiosity or compassion toward your emotions. Treat yourself like you'd treat someone you love: acknowledge the difficulty, ask what you need, offer support.
Growth happens through encouragement, not punishment. This is important. This is why a lot of recovery programs aren't working. They are operating through punishment instead of encouragement. You want to work through curiosity, not condemnation. You want to welcome the emotions, not go to war with them. So think about how you would talk to somebody you genuinely love who was struggling? You wouldn't berate them. You'd probably say something like, hey, I see you're having a hard time. That makes sense given what you're dealing with. What do you need right now, and how can I support you? Why can't we say this to ourselves? Why don't we talk to ourselves that way? The work isn't to become a different person.
