Often, men in our support groups participate in addiction recovery programs. For many in these programs, the Serenity Prayer is a mantra. In his recent column for Sanford House Excursion magazine, Randy Flood addresses the challenges inherent in this popular adage stating, “Gender socialization and the roles assumed can often create unique challenges for women and men when trying to exercise the wisdom found in this timeless prayer. Historically, women were socialized to sit down and shut up, men to stand up and speak up; women to accept and yield, men to challenge and exert control; women to defer and subordinate, men to infer and dominate …”

Randy’s annotated Serenity Prayer encourages those of us who are stuck in a socialized gender box to move outside that outdated gender binary and toward full humanity. Read the full column “The Serenity Prayer: A Gendered Interpretation and Challenge.”