Oh, hi there! How are you? All good?
I know, I know, it took such a long time to publish this post, but that’s because I tried so hard to find a way to say what I want to say without offending anybody…
Okay, let’s get started! So this post is about addictions. Mine and others.
I started writing this post because I think I became an alcoholic…
It all started a few months ago when I was going through my divorce. I couldn’t find a way to cope with all that crap and I started drinking some wine. Just a sip here and there. It couldn’t hurt, right? Oh well…
That sip became a glass and all those glasses transformed into a bottle per day. And that was arguably okay somehow because I was going through some crappy times (no, it’s not ok!).
The thing is that the time passed by, but the habit stayed. And yesterday I thought I was making a progress because I managed to drink nothing the whole day… but today I started with an Irish coffee and I’m pretty sure I won’t stop with that because I have some wine in the fridge.
The “funny” thing is that I don’t feel the pain I felt then that made me start this addiction… Actually, I feel nothing. I’m somewhat pleased with my life right now, so why do I keep drinking? Why do I still feel the need of doing this?
This actually led me to thinking about all addictions. Everybody starts with an addiction because there is a need for that, which is either a replacement of a friend, a way to avoid the real life or a reason to be socially accepted. And doing that over and over again for a period of time, the addiction will remain even though the reason disappeared. It became a habit and you won’t feel you anymore without it, because the “new you” is the one with the addiction, not the one without it.
When I was younger, I used to be a harsh critic of those that are addicted to something or someone (yes, there are addictions to people as well). I couldn’t understand why they just don’t stop and move on. But now I get it. It’s because now the addiction is part of them. Just like an arm or leg, so it’s hard to learn once again how it is to exist without that part of self.
My conclusion it is that we shouldn’t judge the people addicted to something, especially when we don’t know what led them there. Yes, their life might seem perfect. They might have an amazing spouse and beautiful children and 4-5 vacations per year in exotic places, but what was the cost for that? Were they prepared to pay it? Are they know? Who knows? They might be clueless as well…
These are my thoughts about addictions…
Judge not lest ye be judged.
~ Matthew 7:1-3
We all have addictions, whether it’s drugs, alcohol, sex, watching television, or spending too much time on social media. The problem is most of us refuse to face our addictions. I applaud Elena’s courage to not only acknowledge her addiction but to put it out there for the world to see.