We tend to associate our struggles with an addiction to being unable to control ourselves. We believe we have no self-control when it comes to our drugs of choice. We believe we have no willpower. At the root of our addictions are deeper underlying issues that go well beyond a lack of self-control or willpower. We’re dealing with pain from past traumatic experiences. We’re grappling with crippling feelings of shame and worthlessness. We might have been genetically predisposed to develop a problem with addiction. While a lack of self-control is not the whole problem, it can be a significant part of the problem for many of us. We can find ourselves easily tempted by our drug of choice and not able to access the self-control we need to stop ourselves from using, even when we know how much it will hurt us to use. We can feel emotionally triggered and instinctively turn to our drug of choice in order to cope, rather than using other internal resources for self-soothing and self-nurturing. We can feel totally out of control in our addictive patterns and completely powerless over our drugs of choice. How can we develop more self-control?
Limiting Beliefs and Behavioral Patterns
Exhibiting a lack of self-control, in any area of our lives, not just pertaining to our addictions, is a behavioral pattern we’ve been practicing over time. We’ve been perpetuating this idea that we have no self-control. We’ve been telling ourselves that we’re powerless. We’ve been reinforcing the limiting beliefs telling us we’re weak, helpless, and unable to make a change in our lives. We can start to develop new behavioral patterns, though, and over time these behaviors can become our new default ways of handling things. How can we demonstrate self-control in other areas of our lives, so that when it comes to using our drugs of choice, we feel even stronger and more empowered to let them go?
Applying Self-Control In Our Daily lives
We can practice having more self-control by changing the habits we’ve developed around our health and well-being. We can practice making healthier eating choices, getting regular exercise, and ensuring we get adequate rest. We can practice prioritizing our wellness over anything that might distract us from it. We can practice shedding our destructive relationship patterns. We can practice having self-control in our daily lives, by not doing things we know are harmful to us. The more we practice applying self-control in any area of our lives, the more we confirm to ourselves that we do in fact have the strength to be able to control ourselves when it comes to our addictions.
Are you ready to take the first step on your journey to recovery?
Call The Guest House today! 855-823-5463.