A Cry for Help

Addiction is not just being unable to say no to illegal substances; it is not being able to control yourself to whatever it is that you cannot do in moderation.  It doesn’t necessarily have to be a chemical addiction.  It doesn’t matter if it is gambling, sex, pornography, food, shopping, smoking, gaming, Facebook (etc) if you do it to the excess that you cannot control the urges, you have an addiction problem.

My friend you are looking at a recovering food addict.  I am not just a person who eats too much, this is something that I cannot control.  I don’t look at food as a means of survival, I see a taste that will take me to someplace dreamy, fun, happy, celebratory…it is all about emotions for me.  I crave those wonderful emotions that eating certain foods is tied to.

Food is the center of parties, celebrations and get-togethers.  Whether they are happy, sad or indifferent…let’s have food.  Let me cook you something to make you feel better.  Let me give you a cookie for getting that good mark on your paper.  Let me feed you so you don’t think about what is going on.  Let’s eat as we catch up on our lives….FOOD FOOD FOOD.  Food has become an acceptable drug as we all need to eat in order to survive. 

However, for us that have a problem saying no or even the sense of moderation…food is our drug.  Leaving that bag of chips out is like leaving a bag of dope out for a drug addict or leaving a bottle of booze out around an alcoholic. 

Being an addict is a day to day battle.  The battle begins in the mind and you have to start there.  You have to make the decision that you want a different lifestyle than the one you have been living.

You also need a plan of how you are going to get through it.  Just saying “I am not going to do that anymore” isn’t really a plan. 

You need to know what you are going to do when your addictive item (AI) is in your face saying “here I am, I am your friend.”  (When in fact it is your enemy).

You need to know what triggers you to want to turn to that AI.  What emotion are you trying to create or recreate?  What hole are you trying to fill?

What helps you to not think about it?  What keeps you from going there?

You need to know who to call to talk to that will hold your hand to keep you from falling (or jumping) off that wagon of sobriety.  An accountability partner is only for support, as it is YOUR RECOVERY.

You need to know that you have to actively participate in YOUR RECOVERY.  Until you are willing to do the work is necessary, you will not succeed in breaking the bondage that you are bound in.

God is my main “Go-To” when I am struggling.  I do have my counselor and she provides me sound advice as I work through my days.  I also have friends that are great source of “You got this girl!”   You are not alone and don’t have to take this on as if you were the only one going through it.

I pray that if you have an addiction that you realize that you have a serious problem, you need help.  Never be afraid (or ashamed) to cry for help.

Turn to God, turn to someone who has been there, turn to the professionals that are trained to help you through it.    Do what you got to do to turn away from that destructive lifestyle. 

Until Next Time, God Bless!!