December 18, 2025 “Growing in Virtue, Growing in Recovery!”

I hope wherever you are, you know Recovery is with you right where you are.

Growth in virtue and good habits of character is important for our mental and spiritual health. Virtue means building inner strength through faith and good deeds. It is about being good, acting from the heart, and choosing to do what is right again and again. Virtue gives us a steady power for healing and spiritual growth.

Virtues help us cope with stress and keep going through the hard journey of mental health struggles and substance misuse. Changing ourselves and our habits is not easy. Still, we can move closer to happiness when we live in line with our values and practice good habits of character.

The Greek philosophers named four main virtues. These virtues are the roots of many others. Prudence, also called wisdom, helps us choose what is good and right. It reminds us to treat others the way we want to be treated. Justice guides how we relate to others and our place in the world, such as an employee being paid fairly for a day’s work. Temperance helps us control our desires for food, drink, and other pleasures. Fortitude, or courage, gives us the strength to face hardship and patiently endure pain, like when a family member is diagnosed with cancer.

Growing in character does not make us immune to mental health and substance misuse conditions. However, virtues can strengthen our ability to handle stress, loss, and setbacks. They help us face the challenges that can affect Recovery.

We are encouraged to include spiritual growth in our Plan of Care. My plan includes bringing God into my recovery activities through daily prayer, blogging, writing books, and taking part in support groups. There are many paths to God or a Higher Power. Each one of us discovers our own path.

Saint Pope John Paul II once said, “Whoever suffers from mental illness still bears God’s image and likeness, just like every human being.

Remember, Recovery is here right now in this moment.
Let us embrace it together.

Some of the content for this blog was taken from, The Catholic Guide to Depression” by Aaron Kheriaty, MD. Whether you are Catholic, Christian, or non-Christian, this book offers insight and practical ideas to support Recovery.