Working Through Addictions

[demonblaster]

Hi everyone ☺ Welcome aboard...hold on

Being creatures of habit makes addictions mighty to break as many would know.

Good news is we do have it in us to beat the brutes.

There are so many different types which usually have a major negative impact on our lives affecting and hurting those around us creating more anxiety and depression.

I've so far managed to break some including smoking. I've given up full time still have the odd one or packet but won't ever take it up full time again!

Compulsive gambling. 21 yr habit. After 10 + yrs of abstinence had occasional devastating relapses which have been in mania.
This will NEVER be an ongoing problem again! The compulsions not any longer there thank goods.

So far..

• To break a habit we need to create a new one.
Preferably not another addiction 😆

A new habit forms with persistence. By not indulging. Nothing easy tho either is the addictions consequences...but doable.

• Baby steps is one way

• Cold turkey's effective for many but puts tremendous extra stress on. Most people I've spoken with have been successful.

I think addictions are a way of blocking pain by finding a safe place. Survival.

Gambling gave me a bubble of security. I'd zone out.The excitement was phenomenal but devastating consequences. Financial insecurity's no ones pleasure.

We adapt...too well. I built a near unbreakable wall where pain depression guilt sorrow didn't enter my thoughts for the most. An average person would have suffered deep depression and been suicidal. Not a good life.

If only we could use that srength with Mental health (MH).

Thing is survival our strongest tool...it's in us. Learning to redirect it towards recovery.

• Our reasons to give up build our strength. Belief too that in most cases it'll improve our lives.

• Reinforce reasons constantly.

I'm going to write my reasons down and have them in sight and on my bedside table to read repeatedly. As well be thinking why I want to give up

A lifetime habit I'm embarking on.Weight loss. I know I CAN and WILL. I want to feel good again about myself.

A thought is I'll do this like I did with smoking. The craves go each time and there's many. They reduce in time.

Already worked. Resisted about um...🤔 let's see...50 craves yesterday. Feeling better already!

Good luck everyone. Support.

We got this.

The powers in us! ✊

[Paw Prints]

Hello Deebi,

I think giving up the drink was easier for me as I constantly saw what it was doing & had done to my family... I was terrified of ending up the same... I'm ok with the drink now... I even have a very very very small port (about 2 tablespoons) with my nephew once a year in memory of his dad.

Giving up the smokes was & is a lot harder... I tried cold turkey... just cutting down... making myself wait a minimum amount of time between smokes... I tried every which way so many times... giving them up for months then back on them... the habit of unconsciously reaching for one was so hard to break... even harder was my reaching for one as a coping aid... it took me years... I don't dare let myself even have a few puffs of a smoke though as I know I would end up starting again.

One tip I got from a co-worker... when I wanted a smoke to slowly sip a small glass of water... the theory being that you are still doing the hand to mouth motion your brain associates with smoking but replacing the smoke with water... I found it did help as part of staying off the smokes.

I also used your idea of telling myself when I wanted to have a smoke that I could have it later rather than now... that also helped me give up.

Reminding myself why I wanted to stop also helped... I didn't just focus on the health reasons... not being constantly in debt juggling every cent & the stress that caused... was a big reason...

You are so right about not beating ourselves up when we slip off the wagon... I found it just ended up making me smoke even more rather than try again...

Paws

[Bibbetyboo]

The only thing that pulled me out of drinking and smoking was getting pregnant.
Now wait i dont recommend anyone try that just for the sake of quitting something WOAH what a game changer.

But to be true i didn’t have anything to live for, which is why I kept going back to the same old.
I hated drinking by that time and smoking too even though I wasn’t what might be considered an addict of either I was using them as a coping mechanism to avoid the hollow.

The hollow is still there but it doesn’t get much attention anymore. Its shrinking.
I was given a new heart and i cant say that was an easy gift to accept, but my son saved my life.
He is only 10 months old.
I have no urge to return to my old self. I am so unattracted to the smell taste and affect of alcohol and cigarettes its like the old me has been completely erased
And there is nothing in my opinion that is going to test that harder than being a single mother with nobody to turn to.

Thanks for your amazing post.

[demonblaster]

Hi and thanks for your input Pawsy 🐾 and bibbetyboo 😊 hi readers too 👋

Pawsy I've heard giving up smokes is harder than giving up heroin. I think because the craves as you well know continue for yrs. Congrats it's a huge win.

I've given up so often I'm not too bad now except in mania tho type 2 now it's still a strong urge and craves.

Good hearing the yip I'll have it later worked. We tend to get pretty hairy when we say a hard no! Not easy but doable.

Yeah I think we need to keep reiterating reasons to stop. We're not so dependant which is good and yes the extra $ a bonus.

As with drinking you could see reasons to stop, apart from money which is big it's different isnt it with smokes. Good work hun 🤗

Bibbetyboo what a catchy name. Thanks too for your input it's great hearing different experiences and ways of achieving goals.

Wow very hard giving habits up when you feel you don't want to live poor darl so hard isnt it. You did tho even if it wasn't addiction it was still serving a purpose. Well done. Good hearing that hollow doesn't get much attention.

A new hearts massive. I'm so glad hearing since you've had no desire to return to that life. Powers yours.

Loven hearing you're dear son helped you push on. Beautiful.

You have here at bb now to turn to hun. I'd imagine you'll meet many in the same very hard position.

Wishing you every chance at smooth sailing and peace. This goes for everyone reading.

As the saying goes where there's a will there's a way.

We can!

[bluenight]

I like what OP said, that breaking addictions is hard but so is dealing with the consequences of ur addiction. So true.

[demonblaster]

Thanks for popping in bluenight and yes unfortunately addictions add so much stress to our and often other peoples lives.

The good ole saying about practise. I'm off the smokes again. Who knows how many times I've given up but now although some here and there it will never be full time again. That's the plan Stan.

It's been easier and I was a few days and another time a couple of wks back on.

Belief in our abilities and strength that we do have goes a long way. Think it opens up our minds to other parts that allow more positive backing.

Best to everyone and Kudos having a go.

[bluenight]

Thanks demonblaster,

I have to get off the smokes, awful shameful waste of money. Rue the day when I first started. Given up a few times and the longest I quit for was a couple of years. Whenever I've quit about 4 weeks in I think why did I ever smoke, I feel better in every way without them. But then, I get onto them again eventually. I've only got myself to blame for most of my problems.

Good on you though, didn't mean to be negative. I'm angry about myself

[demonblaster]

Hi bluenight and everyone ☺

No that's quite ok bluenight I didnt think at all you were being negative.

The moneys insane isnt it on smokes I too kicked myself over that. It was one of the top reasons to stop.

I think it's impirtant when tackling an addiction not to give up wanting to stop. The more reason and backing ourselves the more ammo we have.

You did well doing it for a couple of yrs and also for 4 wk periods. You are able to do it.

It is hard but fortunately it does over time become easier. I don't understand why but I found it easier before giving up off the lower mg. To my understanding its the tar content the lower mg.

Stay with it bluenight. Believe and back yourself ✊

Catch you later hopefully and thanks ☺

[demonblaster]

Hi good people ☺

Paul hey thanks so much for your post and lovely comments.

Well done how far you've gotten with the smokes too.

I'd be interested hearing the mental benefits giving up smoking. I'll try to squiz that sometime on the "sane" sight and post it.

I'm guessing a large part of addictive behaviour is down to maybe unresolved mh (mental health) issues and is a way of not fixing but escaping pain. Anything that gives us pleasure is going to be huge to kick.

I think if an addictions not hurting anyone including ourselves it's ok. A problem is when we don't see it's an issue.

Often is the case we deep down know it is but it's hard to admit because it's coming to terms with having to work through it. I think that'd be the starting point.

I like the theory behind moderation because although it's still hard there's still that pleasure fix and it gives us time to adjust and adapt to learning

Something I've touched on here that I realised in better headspace and had more impact was for example giving up smokes doesn't physically hurt us.

Our minds even when sleeping don't stop. We're having thought process constantly.

The good thing about thinking is eventually we forget because there's other thoughts going on too...until the damned next time of course blaghh

But the good is the more we don't the more practice we have which helps strengthen our resolve.

I also said mentally too which maybe isn't quite right because it does create stress but that too subsides in time. We're re learning.

I guess if there's something constructive we can do when urges come on we'd feel satistaction at working towards something that'll give us a sense of achievement. Positive from a negative like a reward rather than feeling angst.

We all have such a powerful tool at our disposal. Our brains are capable of unlimited things if we can learn to allow lateral thought.

One way of that happening is when we think past our initial first thought.

We're all capable of learning.

That's hope 🌱 new beginnings- better lives.

Wishing the best to everyone 😊

Geoff I'lllll beee back...sometime good man ☺

[Guest_1055]

Think I have addictions. Just got to get free of them. Feels like they are holding on tight

Will write more when I can..

[mmMekitty]

Hello DB,

I haven't looked into this thread until now.

I had smoked for twenty years, & quit in 1995. & was getting into some binge drinking for several months leading up to my quitting that too, very shortly after quitting the cigarettes.

I had reasons, & one was the money was getting beyond a joke, I loathe the idea of being in debt for anything. That's too frightening for me, so keeping myself out of debt was one incentive.

Another was getting angry about how the people, who own the big commercial cigarette manufacturing companies had been misleading, to downright lying to their customers for many years, about knowing how harmful the things are, & thereby causing customers to think the cigarettes weren't causing the the health problems they do.

Then, I realised I really wasn't enjoying the things. I felt I got nothing out of them.

Finally, while I was under stress, State Housing moving everyone to other locations, to tear down where we were, & rebuilding for new tenants, I saw the place I would be living, & thought:

😺I have a balcony! I can smoke out there.

But when it gets cold, I won't want to smoke out there.😾. so. I quit the day I moved in, April 1 1995: a decision set in concrete.

A couple days later, I lit one while waiting at a bus stop, & it tasted foul. That was enough.

It was probably a couple weeks before I also stopped drinking, because it simply wasn't doing what I wanted, which was to knock myself out, & think & feel nothing for a while. Didn't work. Waste of money.

& I would still like the taste of what I used to have, but I know, if I did have a little, I would still want more. So, coincidently, I began an anti-depressant, which the Psychiatrist I was seeing then, had told me I could have a little alcohol, but be okay, but to be careful. That's what the leaflet said too, & that was that, I guess. No 'little bit' for me.

I didn't tell anyone where I was doing volunteer work, that I had quit smoking. (kept the drinking to myself( & they didn't seem to notice, except I was not having morning tea/coffee with them.

Also, coincidentally I wasn't drinking so much coffee after. I hadn't even noticed that for a month or so.

Now, ex-smoker, I can't stand the smell, or some other strong smells either. I had to clean everything I owned, or replace it. In the first 8 mnths (with a basic private health fund policy) I bought myself a bridge for my front teeth. That's som-e saving!

The prices now!! OMG!!

I celebrate each year.😺

mmMekitty