ADDICTION

Recently a friend posted something on Facebook about his sobriety and the amount of years he has been sober. My brother had alcohol and drug issues and beat them all years ago, and also has posted a similar acknowledgement of his accomplishments. I am so very proud of my brother, and all my friends who have succeeded in this realm. This is huge.

Overcoming addiction is a lifelong commitment. When we make that choice to take on this demon it begins as a day to day challenge, but those days meld into months, years and then it just is a part of us. It has to go that route be successful. Otherwise it is that dance, back and forth, up and down, until...until finally, this time is the last time and it sticks. It could be any addiction, but the same will always be true: at some point we have to want it bad enough to go the distance.

I celebrate every day that it finally stuck for me, and I finally got off the food obsessive merry-go-round. I know too many others who are still in either the "I can't deal with it" zone or the "I'm trying but failing" zone. I have been in both those realms and know the reality of them both.

The "I can't (won't) deal with it" mindset is that of fuck-it-all. Excuse my language, but those of you who are in this place know exactly what I mean. You simply do not want to face the issue. You do not have the wherewithal, the drive, the real motivation to go forward. And I support you in this decision, to be honest. I have gone in and out of dealing with my weight since I was 16, and know that when I have acted to please someone else, or because I "should", or for any other reason that did not stem from true kick-in-the-pants motivation, I failed. And all that did was push me further backward on the self destructive path I was following.