Addictive Escapes

January 16, 2009 by Kathie Keeler
Filed under Addiction, Daily Habits

When you think of addictions, what comes to mind? Alcohol? Drugs? Cigarettes? Certainly those are three common addictive escapes, but there are so many more. I define an addiction as a repetitive behavior that has life-damaging consequences. Therefore, even reading too much can be an addictive escape. And there are times in my life when I did read too much as a means of escaping from painful circumstances. It worked! Of course, nothing else got done while I was reading. But I was having a good time.
eating addictions Addictive Escapes
Other addictive escapes could be too much tv, too much internet time, too many hours playing video games, eating too much, gambling and on and on.

It has been said that most people give up what they want in the long run for what they want in the short run. In other words, we trade our long turn goals for our temporary pleasures.

Taking good care of yourself means acting in your highest interest. The main thing people worry about when I talk about taking good care of yourself losing their creature comforts. (”I’d give up anything to be healthy except my cigarettes” a client once told me.) So, we have to create creature comforts that do not have life-damaging consequences. Habit replacement is the easiest way to change unhealthy creature comforts for healthy ones.

Some people scare themselves into changing their life-damaging habits. Their doctor tells them something scary about their health. Negative consequences add up and break through their denial. Scaring yourself may be a good place to begin, but it is generally a temporary measure unless you do some habit replacement.

In creating new creature comforts that do not have life-damaging consequences, think of your five senses. What do you like?

SIGHT–Do you have a favorite photo that you enjoy looking at? Do you have a beautiful scene from a magazine or photo that pleases you? Do you rotate the pictures on your walls so that you’re continually exposed to beauty and novelty?

SOUND–What sounds do you like? I enjoy relaxing music, the sounds of nature (birds, ocean)

TASTE–There are a lot of healthy foods that are very tasty. Educate yourself on this. And be careful here. Avoid addictive substances like sugar and flour. You can use them sparingly, but know that they often lead to life-damaging circumstances. Do you enjoy the taste of Mediterranean food? Asian food?

SMELL–A nice candle, freshly cut grass, autumn leaves, spring rain, forest

TOUCH–A warm comforter, a fuzzy teddy bear, the smooth feel of a baby’s skin, the feel of a fire in the fireplace or the feel of the sun’s rays on your face; a gentle, breeze blowing through your hair.

Although this generally doesn't happen overnight, you can begin to build new habits that will eventually make it easier for you to squeeze out the old ones. They will no longer serve you. Bear in mind that doing this willingly is far more effective than doing it because you "should."

An interesting piece of research that I stumbled across also said that people are more successful in giving up tough habits (like heroin, cocaine, cigarettes, alcohol, gambling, etc.) if they also give up their small vices at the same time. If you've ever been to an AA meeting, you've probably seen the smoke-filled room and the very large pot of coffee. This research suggests that the coffee and the smokes are thrown out along with the big addiction. Good luck!

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