by Ed Ostrom

Created on: May 24, 2010   Last Updated: May 25, 2010

The gilded quill of stately King Solomon recorded over three thousand one line, pith motivational statements that have had lasting effect upon many people down through the centuries. One such motivational ‘one liner” is found in Proverbs 26:11 “As a dog returns to his own vomit so a fool repeats his folly.” This is probably the most disgusting statement in all of Scripture. It is not something that would usually be read at a Country Club Tea party. But it is life in all of its stark reality. How often have you notice a dog throwing up? Then it immediately goes to its own vomit and licks it up.  This is not genteel, nor is it for those who do not appreciate the body function of the living.  But Solomon says as the dog returns to its own vomit, so do fools return to their own folly and repeat it again and again.

Once again today when I mediated on Proverbs 25:11 my mind was drawn to so many of the clients I have the privilege of working with. For the last five years I have worked in a Withdrawal Management Center, where clients come to withdrawal from the effects of substance abuse in their daily lives. So many of them come and as they go through painful withdrawals where they become very uncomfortable  and even physical sick, determine that they want to stop this madness of addiction. So many of them are determined never to drink again, or use drugs again. They state it loud and long. But this disease called addiction is so physically and emotionally addictive, that they often crash and burn and find themselves caught in its vice grips again.

Recently a man who had been in Recovery for about a year, admitted to me that he had “a slip” and picked up the bottle again and ended up on a week long binge. As he spoke to me I saw the tears in his eyes and heard him brokenheartedly sigh” Why did I do it? I was doing so well, but like a dog eating its own vomit, I returned to my old destructive practices and found myself drinking again.”

After working with addicted people for over a quarter of a century I have seen over and over again this phenomena that could be described as “dogs returning to their own vomit.” Time and time again I have asked them why they feel this happens and over and over I have been told many of the same things. Down through the years I have discovered that people relapsed back to substance use because of failing to watch in a number of very vital and essential areas. Among

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