Shannon’s SCW Blog

As I spoke this week at a Celebrate Recovery meeting at Green Acres Baptist Church, I couldn’t help be reminded of how grateful I am to be a sex & love addict… in RECOVERY!

I remember slithering into my first Sex & Love Addicts Anonymous group in 1996, completely broken.  After my incredibly promiscuous teen years (probably over 50 partners between the ages of 15 & 2o years old), I thought putting the wedding band on my finger and becoming Mrs. Greg Ethridge had changed everything.  Unfortunately, 6 years into our marriage, I realized that my wedding band had changed absolutely nothing about me except my last name.

I remained incredibly vulnerable to the powerful lure of emotional infidelity, and I knew that on any given day I was only a phone call away from indulging in an extramarital affair.  To do so would have ripped me away from a man who loves me dearly, and two young children who depended on me to hold it all together.  And thanks to my support group and the grace of God, I did indeed hold on to my emotional sobriety.  We’ll celebrate our 19th wedding anniversary next month, and my children celebrate their 17th & 14th birthdays next week.  Oh, THANK GOD I’m still here to celebrate all of this as part of this precious family!!!!  I can’t think of anywhere else on earth I’d rather be!

If you’re struggling to remain faithful in your marriage, I encourage you to PLEASE FIND A CELEBRATE RECOVERY GROUP or Sex & Love Addicts Anonymous (S.L.A.A.) group in your area.  Although it’s an incredibly humbling thing to recognize the magnitude of your own stuff and the power all of it holds over your life and the lives of those you love, it’s worth it to put on your big girl panties and deal with those issues before it’s too late to spare yourself, your husband, and your family such pain.

Rather than letting your extramarital fantasies and desires become a stumbling block,  turn them into building blocks.  Build the life and marriage you’ve always dreamed of.  The answer isn’t finding a different man.  The answer is becoming a different person yourself.  Become the woman you’ve always wanted to be, and you’ll inspire the marriage relationship you’ve always wanted to have.

It’s been 20 years since I had an inappropriate sexual relationship.  It’s been 11 years since I had an inappropriate emotional entanglement.  And I give thanks for every ounce of strength God has given me for every step of my journey.

Wishing you strength for your journey,

Shannon

P.S.  Do you need a good book on recovering from female sex & love addiction?  If so, I recommend my first book, Words of Wisdom for Women at the Well.  Order any book from www.shannonethridge.com between now and March 31st, use the code SPRING, and receive a a 25% discount.  You’ll also receive my follow up book, Words of Wisdom for Well Women, absolutely free.