Hurt people hurt people. Read that sentence again. While a popular cliche nowadays, it’s true. Those who have been mistreated by others and their actions may inevitably redirect their feelings towards someone else. Addiction falls into this category. Addictions may form because of a variety of reasons. Whether it be by poverty, a mental illness, childhood curiosity, or trauma, addiction can weasel its way into a vulnerable person’s life. Addiction is a harmful thing to be in possession of. It harms the user and those around them. It’s just the fact of the matter. The addicted should not be ashamed of their addiction. Shame can further lead into depression. Instead of wallowing in guilt, start the exciting, life-changing road to recovery by beginning with these three steps:
Tell Someone Who is Trustworthy
This is arguably the most important step in fighting addiction. By telling someone about the addiction, the addiction itself can no longer live in secret because another person knows about it. This sounds scary. That is a normal feeling. The brain can come up with reasons for why struggles should stay hidden. Break that barrier of the mind by confiding in someone you trust. It can be a friend, a family member, a counselor, or someone else. For those married, it can be beneficial and healthy to have a third-party who will listen freely to what you have to say. When the time is right, let a spouse know. But one must not feel pressured to do it at once.
Set Up Barriers Against the Addiction
The mind can be a person’s best friend or worst enemy. It can ingrain the belief that we are strong enough to beat the addiction on pure willpower alone. This is false. The next difficult step is to create barriers and distance between one’s self and triggers. These barriers can include ridding the house of any access to the addiction, doing positive activities that exercise the mind, and scheduling time away from the places or persons that trigger the addiction.
Meet with Someone Often
While it can be annoying and can bring back feelings of shame, meeting with someone to discuss your struggles is vital to being freed from any addiction. This can be the person that was originally reached out to, an accountability group, an addictions specialist, a therapist, or anyone who will listen, encourage, and not judge. Addicts need tough love at times. Judgment causes shame and should never come up in one of these meetings. For this partnership to be successful, meetings should be every or every other week. This person can also be of aid in the middle of desiring to act upon the addiction. By calling or texting them, someone else now knows what is going on. They can help in the fight.
Addiction is way more difficult to handle than people give it credit for. Yet addiction is possible to overcome. Every fighter’s journey looks different. The most important thing to remember is to never stop fighting, never stop reaching out to others, and always stay hopeful. Fight on.
