Published January 23, 2026 | By Alyx E, Founder of Collectors MD

Step work is one of those phrases that gets thrown around a lot in recovery spaces. It can start to sound abstract, intimidating, or overly rigid if we’re not careful. But at its core, step work isn’t about perfection or performance. It’s about consistently taking honest personal inventory, even when it may feel uncomfortable.

In traditional 12-step programs like Gamblers Anonymous (GA), Alcholics Anonymous (AA), or Narcotics Anonymous (NA), the work asks us to slow down and look inward instead of constantly reacting outward. It’s a process of noticing patterns, naming behaviors, and acknowledging where our actions have drifted out of alignment with who we want to be. Not once. Not just in crisis. But regularly and consistently.

Within the Collectors MD recovery program, anchored by the CMD Recovery Guide, that same principle holds true. Whether you’re following the CMD steps alongside a 12-step program or using them as your primary framework, the heart of the work lives in personal reflection.

It often begins with step one; looking in the mirror and admitting that our spending or collecting has taken control in ways we couldn’t ignore. That admission can be one of the hardest steps of recovery, but it opens the door to honesty and self awareness. From there, steps four through six in particular encourage us to stop rationalizing and start recognizing patterns. What triggers us. What stories we tell ourselves. Where spending, collecting, or chasing starts to feel less like a hobby and more like a coping mechanism.

At the heart of Collectors MD is the CMD Recovery Guide. Inspired by the GA Combo Book but rewritten and repurposed for the world of collecting, it’s tailored for collectors, hobbyists, and enthusiasts who’ve felt their spending, chasing, behaviors, or habits start to drift out of balance. It isn’t a rulebook and it isn’t something you’re meant to power through. We use it as a moral compass. A shared reference point our community members can return to when they need to pause, reflect, and reset. It helps ground our peer-support meetings, gives us language for what we’re experiencing, and offers tools we can revisit whenever things feel messy or unclear. There’s no finish line and no pressure or expectation to move at anyone else’s pace but your own.

Practicing step work isn’t about beating yourself up for the past. It’s about creating awareness in the present. When we take honest inventory, we begin to see how behaviors repeat, how urges show up in familiar disguises, and how quickly old habits can resurface if/when left unchecked. That awareness becomes a form of protection.

One of the most important pieces of this process is ensuring we’re not doing it alone. Step five exists for a reason. Sharing our stories, experiences, and progress with people we trust helps break the cycle of isolation, secrecy, and shame. It reminds us that accountability isn’t punishment. It’s connection. And connection is what keeps recovery sustainable.

The CMD steps were intentionally written to mirror this flow. From admitting loss of control, to examining habits, to practicing ongoing reflection, the work is designed to be lived, not completed. Recovery isn’t a checklist. It’s a life-long commitment of daily practice. One that requires honesty, humility, and repetition.

When we commit to regular inventory, we give ourselves the opportunity to course correct early instead of waiting for another collapse. We stop pretending slips mean failure. We own them, learn from them, and keep moving forward.

That’s what the work looks like. Quiet. Repetitive. Sometimes uncomfortable. And absolutely necessary. The CMD Recovery Guide serves as the foundation for that work, and as step twelve reminds us that it’s sustained by showing up for and supporting our peers with honestly and without judgment.

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Taking personal inventory and practicing step work is how we center ourselves, how we turn awareness into restraint, and how we stay on the track of a life of peace and happiness.

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