ESSAY April 2026 - A Road to True Happiness - Lucy M., Guatemala.

She often forgets that being happy happens on the inside and not on the outside. I often tell newcomers, so they know it is part of the process, that it is okay to feel the pain of quitting lust. I also tell them that it is not me who stopped or quit lust. It was my Higher Power and the company of SA’s women´s meetings that I stayed abstinent and didn’t commit any harm to myself. Even though I was abstinent, I wasn’t sober because I was thinking: “Will I ever find love? Why did I end up in SA? I want to be a corporate manager again.” It was important to me who I was on social media, all on the outside. I wanted all these things to show off. I often asked myself, “If I stayed sober, would I look as happy as people do on Instagram posts?” Well, it turns out that no! It’s not even close!