Have you heard of the parable of the two wolves? It’s a story about an old Cherokee teaching his grandson about life.
“A fight is going on inside me,” he said to the boy. “It is a terrible fight and it is between two wolves. One is evil. He has anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.”
He continued, “The other is good. He has joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith. The same fight is going on inside you and inside every other person too.”
The grandson thought about this for a minute and then asked his grandfather, “Which wolf will win?”
The old Cherokee simply replied, “The one you feed.”
Which Wolf Will You Feed?
Sophie Aghdami, an addiction recovery coach in Australia, was greatly inspired by this parable. It changed her perspective on recovery so much that she named her company The Wolf You Feed.
Sophie explains that as someone in recovery, choosing which wolf you feed is a life-changing decision. When you choose to feed your bad wolf, the relapses begin and the addiction continues.
On the other hand, when you choose to feed the good wolf, you release shame and give yourself compassion, love, and connection. Only then will recovery start to strengthen and only then are you able to maintain it.
Take Small Steps Everyday
In early recovery, you might still have a lot of self-hate, loathing, self-doubt, and low self-esteem. When you’re overwhelmed by all the big things you need to do and changes you need to make to move forward, you don’t end up doing anything.
Therefore, the best thing to do is break your day into small steps. They could be as simple as being kind to others and focusing on things that will improve your health not just physically but also mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. Do something tiny and celebrate that tiny thing.
Recovery is not an overnight process. In some ways, you have to hold space for the bad wolf and accept it because there’s going to be residue for a while. However, as you start feeding the good wolf, that residue gets smaller and eventually gets removed entirely.
If you want to learn more about achieving recovery through feeding the good wolf, check out Episode 145: Achieving Recovery Through The Wolf You Feed with Sophie Aghdami.