Addictions come in many forms: drugs, alcohol, porn, technology, food, gambling, shopping, love, sex and many more. Initially, whichever addiction you chose brought about relief and there were limited consequences. And as the addiction progressed the cost vs. benefit began to show a greater and greater disparity. Regardless of the manifestation of the addiction there are common behaviors, thoughts, and feelings that make the life of an addict difficult to maintain.
There is a feeling of being on a merry-go-round, often the cycle manifests as follows: You might begin your day with a desire to not do your addiction that day, or at least just do a little. You overdid it the night before and have to show up for your life today. The shame and guilt feelings are pretty bad this morning and you hope those feelings will go away soon. You actually feeling like this might be the time when you can make it through the day and not use! As you go about your day you notice that your fuse is a little short, people are especially annoying or needy today. You are snapping at people and there is this nagging feeling that something is not quite right. Work finishes up and your buddy asks if you want to grab a drink, or driving home from work you drive past your favorite fast food restaurant, or when getting home you think just a few minutes of watching porn will take the edge off. And before you know it you're drunk again, or binged again, or its been hours and you're still watching porn. Falling asleep that night or waking the next morning you resolve again to not use that day; and the cycle continues.
Of course, you may have shorter or longer periods of this cycle, maybe staying clean or sober for a few days or weeks when you really work at it. But the common element is the inability to stay stopped when you want to, there is always a point when the addict gives into their addiction. So how does the addict who can not stop on their own find a way out of this cycle? The solution is often multi-faceted. Those who really want to get out of the cycle, and are willing to put in some effort, can find a far more meaningful life than the shallow and hopeless feelings that come from addiction. The solution often involves a combination of some of these services: groups (inpatient or out-patient), detox, counseling, 12-step programs, and possibly changes in diet and medication. There is no one-size-fits all way to stop addictions, but there are many resources and people who are knowledgeable of combinations that work.
