35 Quotes to Know in Recovery

Recovery is often a difficult process. Along the journey, it might be difficult to see the light at the end of your path. If you start to lose hope, keep a collection of inspiring recovery quotes close by to help keep you going. Reference these quotes when you’re feeling down or just want a little pick-me-up.

If you’re looking for motivational quotes about addiction recovery, we’ve curated a collection of meaningful ones for you to peruse. If any speak to you, write them down or save them somewhere you can easily find them.

Motivational Quotes to Keep You Going

“Believe you can, and you’re halfway there.” -Theodore Roosevelt
“I’m not telling you it is going to be easy. I’m telling you, it’s going to be worth it!” Anonymous
“Life is 10 percent what happens to you and 90 percent how you react to it.” -Charles R. Swindoll
“If you prioritize yourself, you are going to save yourself.” -Gabrielle Union
“All shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well.” -Julian of Norwich
“It is only when we take chances, when our lives improve. The initial and the most difficult task that we need to take is to become honest.” -Walter Anderson
“Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence.” -Helen Keller
“The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes.” -William James
“Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is a quiet voice at the end of the day saying. ‘I will try again tomorrow.’” -Mary Anne Radmacher
“We need to accept that we won’t always make the right decisions, that we’ll screw up royally sometimes – understanding that failure is not the opposite of success, it’s part of success.” -Ariana Huffington
“Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.” -Oscar Wilde
“There are far better things ahead, than any we leave behind.” -C.S. Lewis
“All the suffering, stress, and addiction comes from not realizing you already are what you are looking for.” -Jon Kabat-Zinn
“Just because something is familiar, doesn’t mean it’s safe. And just because something feels safe, doesn’t mean it’s good for you.” -Brittany Burgunder
“Change must start from the individual. And the individual must want and feel ready to make such change.” -Efrat Cybulkiewicz

Quotes from Media

“The wide world is all about you: you can fence yourselves in, but you cannot forever fence it out.” -J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring
“Change is the essential process of all existence.” -Spock, Star Trek.
“It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters, in the end.” -Ursula K. Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness
“I am not afraid of storms, for I am learning how to sail my ship.” -Louisa May Alcott, Little Women
“If we wait until we’re ready, we’ll be waiting for the rest of our lives.” -Lemony Snicket, The Ersatz Elevator
“When you know about something it stops being a nightmare. When you know how to fight something, it stops being so threatening.” -Andrzej Sapkowski, The Witcher
“We must persevere and in time a new hope will emerge.” -Obi-Wan Kenobi, Star Wars: Rebels.
“And, now that you don’t have to be perfect you can be good.” -John Steinbeck, East of Eden
“All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us.” -J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring
“Now, I don’t pretend to tell you how to find happiness and love, when every day is a struggle to survive. But I do insist that you do survive, because the days and the years ahead are worth living for!” -Edith Keele, Star Trek.

Quotes About Resilience and Recovery

“If you can quit for a day, you can quit for a lifetime.” -Benjamin Alire Sáenz
“I realized that I only had two choices: I was either going to die or I was going to live, and which one did I want to do? And then I said those words, ‘I’ll get help,’ or ‘I need help. I’ll get help.’ And my life turned around. Ridiculous for a human being to take 16 years to say, ‘I need help.’” -Sir Elton John
“Life is not easy for any of us. But what of that? We must have perseverance and, above all, confidence in ourselves. We must believe that we are gifted for something, and that this thing, at whatever cost, must be attained.” -Marie Curie
“I think that the power is the principle. The principle of moving forward, as though you have the confidence to move forward, eventually gives you confidence when you look back and see what you’ve done.” -Robert Downey Jr.
“The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any.” -Alice Walker
“If you have made mistakes, there is always another chance for you. You may have a fresh start any moment you choose, for this thing we call ‘failure’ is not the falling down but the staying down.” -Mary Pickford
“People spend a lifetime searching for happiness, looking for peace. They chase idle dreams, addictions, religions, and even other people, hoping to fill the emptiness that plagues them. The irony is the only place they ever needed to search was within.” Ramona L. Anderson
“When everything seems to be going against you, remember that the airplane takes off against the wind, not with it.” -Henry Ford
“Remember just because you hit rock bottom doesn’t mean you have to stay there.” -Robert Downey Jr.
“I really mean when I say my biggest fear in early recovery was that I would never have fun again. The beautiful truth is that recovery has given me freedom and the confidence to go out in the world and leave my own mark.” -Tom Stoddart

Be Inspired with SoberMind Recovery

When recovering from addiction, it sometimes feels like nobody out there understands what you are going through. Even if you are not very far along in your journey to recovery, you can reference these quotes and maintain the motivation to keep going.

If you or a loved one is struggling with substance abuse, you aren’t alone. SoberMind Recovery is there to help. Follow along with our blog to learn more about our evidence-based care and LGBTQ+ sober living.