No Texting After 9 Pm
Try no texting after a specific time in the evening. Set a boundary for yourself and decide how late you will be on your phone or computer.
If you do this, youll find it easier to wind down and get some sleep. This will help your relationships and make you feel healthier in general.
Its perfectly reasonable to have time to settle down in the evening without worrying about other people.
This habit ruins your sleep cycle and interferes with getting a good nights rest, so put the phone down before you go to bed and allow yourself a break from the constant stimulation of the digital world.
Controlling Behavior After An Addiction
Even if your goal was to quit completely, you may decide at some point in the future that you want to be able to occasionally indulge without doing so excessively. This is possible, but it is important to be very clear about what it is you want to do.
For example, if you want to be able to have an occasional drink with friends, then you need to be able to have one drink and then stop.
Many drinkers find it easier to stay completely abstinent than to drink occasionally. If you intend to have one drink and end up having several, you should reassess your goals and what is achievable for you at this time of your life. This might be a new experience for you, and it could be liberating. It could also seem boring and difficult.
Admit There Is A Problem
The hardest part to recovery is admitting you have an addiction. Substance use disorders affect the brain causing it to look for excuses and justifications to keep using.
Admitting a problem shows you have the courage to face your addiction and its underlying causes.
There are several places to turn to for help however, having a solid support system is essential in any treatment approach you choose. If you are not ready to turn to friends or family, consider talking to a therapist, doctor, or rehab facility.
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Take Our Do I Have A Substance Use Disorder Self
Take our free, 5-minute Do I Have a Substance Use Disorder? self-assessment below if you think you or someone you love might be struggling with a substance use disorder . The evaluation consists of 11 yes or no questions that are intended to be used as an informational tool to assess the severity and probability of an SUD. The test is free, confidential, and no personal information is needed to receive the result.
Consider Reaching Out For Help
If you think you might have substance use disorder, consider reaching out to a trusted healthcare professional for an evaluation and to discuss your options.
They may be able to refer you to a mental health professional or treatment program that best fits you. Treatment might include a variety of options, including:
Theres not a one-size-fits-all treatment for substance use disorder. Every person is different, and what works for one person might not work for another.
A mental health professional who specializes in substance use disorder will be able to tailor a treatment plan that is best for you and your needs.
Here are some resources that may be able to help:
- SAMSHA. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration has a national helpline thats free, confidential, and available 24/7. They may be able to point you in the right direction for help and support near you or online.
- National Harm Reduction Coalition. The NHRC is an advocacy group that provides support and resources for people with substance use disorder.
- Drugs and Me. This organization was created by a group of educators, scientists, and analysts. Drugs and Me offers a list of educational materials that might be helpful.
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Engage In More Mindful Activities
If you find yourself wanting to check your phone, think of more mindful activities that you enjoy doing. For me, I love to read, write, and practice yoga. These activities are so much better for my overall mental and physical health. I feel accomplished when I practice mindfulness. I know that I am doing something to better myself. I dont get that same feeling when I spend hours on social media.
We all have the same 24 hours in our days. We all get one life to live. How do you want to spend your time? I want to look back on my life with no regrets. I challenge you to seek new adventures and leave the phone behind.
S To Break Your Addiction To A Person
In his book, How to Break Your Addiction to a Person, Howard Halpern first explains what an addictive relationship is, then gives guidelines for recognizing if youre involved in one. Then, he offers several techniques on how to end an unhealthy relationship .
Ive compiled and adapted all of his suggestions into the following dozen techniques, excerpting what I found to be the most important passages for each.
1. Keep a Relationship Log
Keep track of the events and happenings of the relationship, but above all, and in as honest detail as you can, set down your feelings about the contacts with your partner. The reasons this can be extraordinarily helpful are It compels you to notice what is going on and how you feel about it, It can help you to look back through it and see the shape of the relationship, what it has really been like and felt like, what have been its patterns over time, and It can curb your tendencies to distort the relationship by either twisting events, repainting your feeling and forgetting either the unpleasant or the pleasant.
2. Find the Patterns
It can be eye-opening to see if there is a pattern in the people you have tended to get involved with and the types of relationships you have formed, so unless your current partner is the only love relationship you have had, I suggest you do a Relationship Review.
3. Write Memos to Yourself
4. Make Connections.
5. Foster a Supportive Network
7. Be Aware of Your Body
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How To Break Chains Of Addiction Off Your Life
Not everyone who is bound wants to break chains of addiction off their life until they finally come to terms with their situation and call out for help. The good news is that with God it is possible to break chains of addiction and be completely set free.
No matter what addiction we face, God offers us a way out. It could be anything from smartphone dependency to drugs and alcohol or lust and issues related to Sex in the Digital Age.
If youre caught up in a cycle of addiction, you probably think the way out requires a complex rehab strategy to break chains of addiction but thats not necessarily the case. With God, things are pretty straightforward, in fact so simple that at times we may not always see the solutions He offers though they are staring us in the face!
Reaching Out And Helping Others
This step encourages you to reach out to other porn addicts and share the effective steps and tactics that you employed to get rid of your addiction.
It is your time to give back, and to aid the struggles of porn addicts.
This will also work as a reminder for you about why you cant go back to your former life and why you made the decision to opt for this path of recovery.
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Make A Decision To Change
When it comes to dealing with any addictive behaviour, it all begins with you. The very first step towards recovery is recognising that you have a drug problem, and deciding to make a change. For most people struggling with drugs and alcohol addiction, this is normally the toughest step. Well, its quite normal to feel uncertain if its the right time to open up to your drug problem or if you have what it takes to call it quits. However, you must make tough decisions if at all you want to change.
Expect to feel conflicted about giving up a drug, even if you know its affecting your life negatively. Nevertheless, its still possible to get over such conflicts by committing to change. This will motivate you to begin the journey to overcoming your addictive behaviour, and, in the process regain control of your life.
Reasons Willpower Is Not Enough To Overcome Addiction
You may think that you have a pretty strong will, which is probably one of the reasons you are frustrated that it is not working for your efforts to stop your alcohol or drug use. Even people who are successful in exerting their will to reach academic, professional, and other personal achievements are baffled that the same determination will not seem to work for a substance abuse issue.
The truth is that willpower alone will not get you far when it comes to these complex issues. Here are five reasons willpower is not enough to conquer addiction.
1. Addiction is not a choice. First, if you had sufficient willpower, you probably would not have a substance use disorder. No one plans to become addicted to drugs or alcohol, but this develops when the power of choice disappears. At some point, you were no longer able to control the decision to drink, use drugs, or take part in other unhealthy behaviors.
2. Willpower suppresses trauma. According to Dr. Arnold M. Washton, people with trauma have a tendency to push it down with a strong will. It is difficult to overcome addiction with suppressed pain, and you will not be able to get to the root of your issues by continuing to fight a silent battle.
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Tips To Break Your Phone Addiction
Now that you know more about what smartphone addiction is, I want to give you a few tips on how to stop smartphone addiction.
1. Turn off notifications on your phone.
One of the quickest ways to help limit how often your phone distracts you is to go into your phones settings and turn off the push notifications from the apps on your phone. You can also turn off the sound for text message notifications. Making these simple changes can help lower your stress level more than you may expect.
2. Limit how much time you spend on social media.
If you cant unplug from these apps altogether, then set one time at the end of each work day to check Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and other social media apps. Check your phone and then put it aside. For those of you work on social media for a living, limit your use to your standard work day, and then unplug completely when you clock out.
3. Change your screen to grayscale.
Go into the accessibility settings in your phones general settings and change the color filters to grayscale. This will make your phones screen less visually appealing and help to cut down on the bright and shiny distraction.
4. Remove tempting apps from your phone.
5. Keep your phone out of your bedroom.
6. Dont bring phones to the dinner table.
7. Hide your phone.
Seriously, put your phone in a drawer or another room. The old adage out of sight, out of mind can apply to your phone, too!
8. Schedule work time without your phone.
Different Methods To Try
1. Cold Turkey Method
One common method of quitting vaping is the Cold Turkey Method. This is when you quit vaping with not even a drag method, meaning you dont ever succumb to smoking once you decide to stop, not even to smoke a bit when offered it by other people. You must set a date in the beginning to quit cold turkey and stick to it. You may feel more symptoms of withdrawal with this method. It is particularly important to get the support of your friends and family to hold you accountable for vaping and encourage you to push through symptoms and cravings.
2. Reductionary Method
Another method is called the Reductionary Method, where you slowly reduce the amount of nicotine you intake in your vape over time. This is a more flexible method you can reduce the amount of nicotine at a rate that works for you. Remember that reducing the nicotine level too fast is more likely to cause a relapse because of the withdrawal symptoms. It helps to find vape juice that is available in increments of nicotine, from your current level all the way down to zero. It is also important to have support from friends and family and to make sure youre reducing your nicotine at a suitable pace, not too slow and not too fast.
3. Nicotine Replacement Therapy
4. Natural Methods
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Its A Serious Problem
Though the term addiction is often thrown around lightly, having a true addiction is a serious condition that typically requires treatment to overcome.
The symptoms and thought processes associated with food addiction are similar to those of drug abuse. Its just a different substance, and the social consequences may be less severe.
Food addiction can cause physical harm and lead to chronic health conditions like obesity and type 2 diabetes .
In addition, it may negatively impact a persons self-esteem and self-image, making them unhappy with their body.
As with other addictions, food addiction may take an emotional toll and increase a persons risk of premature death.
SUMMARY
Food addiction increases the risk of obesity and type 2 diabetes. Excessive weight may also affect a persons self-esteem.
Completely avoiding junk foods may seem impossible. Theyre everywhere and a major part of modern culture.
However, in some cases, entirely abstaining from certain trigger foods can become necessary.
Once the firm decision to never eat these foods again is made, avoiding them may become easier, as the need to justify eating or not eating them is eliminated. Cravings may also disappear or decrease significantly.
Consider writing a list of pros and cons to think through the decision.
Write everything down no matter how peculiar or vain it may seem. Then compare the two lists and ask if its worth it.
If the answer is a resounding yes, be assured that its the right decision.
Ways To Break The Addiction Cycle
Breaking a cycle of addiction, which typically includes both bad habits and unhealthy rituals, requires action and maintenance. There are strategies to combat the addictive cycle, but it is important to remember that these are not ways to completely stop an addiction. Below are five effective strategies that can help break the addictive cycle:
1. Identify the problem behaviors.
2. Identify alternative healthy habits to replace the bad habits.
3. Attend therapy to explore the root of your bad habits and work through unresolved issues. You cant defeat what you dont understand.
4. Practice healthy habits consistently.
5. Make a routine out of practicing those healthy habits in order to maintain them.
Other behaviors that can contribute to breaking the cycle include:
- attending addiction treatment
- cultivating self-awareness
- creating a sense of accountability
- working with a therapist you feel comfortable with
- finding a strong relationship with a higher power
- being active in a recovery program
At Boardwalk Recovery Center, we work closely with our clients to pinpoint their personal triggers and help them distance from their old ways. Contact our team to find out how we can help you or a loved one break the cycle of addiction and achieve successful recovery. We are a recovery center that understands addiction and are waiting for you.
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Why 21 Days Isnt Enough
The assumption that it takes 21 days to break a habit comes from a book called Psycho-Cybernetics. In the book, author and plastic surgeon Dr. Maxwell Maltz noticed that his patients need about 21 days to get used to their new faces. But addiction is more powerful than an ordinary habit, and recent studies show that for most people, 21 days isnt enough time to see any substantial change.
Research shows that it takes about 66 days to change repetitive behavior patterns. One landmark study conducted by researchers at the University College London discovered that the time individuals needed to change their behavior patterns varied from 18 to 254 days. The study also concluded that most people take at least 2 months to develop new behavior patterns.
You Can Break Chains Of Addiction
The simple solution is REPENTANCE. As Jesus said to the woman caught in the act of adultery, Go and sin no more. Repentance means turning around from the way youve been going and to start heading in the opposite direction! It involves coming to terms with the fact that you have a problem and making a decision to turn your back on it.
This means naming the issue. It could be anything from overeating to binge watching TV to all kinds of things that steal your time, health and relationships, robbing you of your family, vocation, and destiny. There is no doubt about it, sin brings devastation. The Bible says the result of sin is death. It also tells us that the enemy comes to kill, steal and destroy. That is what addiction accomplishes for us. Yet many of us continue to flirt with our addiction and its false promises. It may offer temporary comfort but ultimately it will lead us down a trail of destruction.
This reminds me of the well-known quotation Sin will take you farther than you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and cost you more than you want to pay. The writer of this statement is unknown but the truth it shares should be made known to everyone to help them break chains of addiction. Even so, we may know whats best for us and yet somehow, in this world where anything goes, we can easily be anesthetized to the consequences of our negative actions.
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