I have always wondered why and how people could be addicted to drugs and alcohol.
I watch shows like Intervention...and think holy wow...those people are messed up. How can they let something take over their life like that. How can they let a substance control them like that. When see or know someone who is all strung out...you wonder...how can they live like that. Why cant they just get clean and STOP?
I smoked off and on from when I was 14 until about 2 years ago. My parents smoked and so it was easy for me to pick up the habit. But I was always able to stop when I wanted to. I wasnt addicted to smoking. I haven't had a cigarette in a little over 2 years...and the smell of smoke makes me sick. I think about it sometimes...but dont feel the need to smoke. My husband smokes...and I hate it. I am always asking nagging him to stop. I tell him things like "if you loved me, you would quit" or "I am never going to kiss you unless you stop". He was a smoker when I married him...we both were. It makes me mad that he cant just STOP. But he is addicted.
I never really realized that I am an addict. I am addicted to food. I think about it when I wake up, when I am at work, and when I go to sleep. I love food...I love cooking food, trying new food...food has been my comfort.
Until this past month I never realized HOW addicted to food I was. When I was on my 2nd week of no fast food and no crap..I felt SO sick. My head hurt...my stomach hurt..and I craved taco time and french fries. My body was literally going through withdrawals from FOOD. are you kidding me? Aren't withdrawals for people who are addicted to METH? People who need to shoot drugs into their veins to feel something? Well..I have news for you...when you put any kind of junk into your body whether its meth, cocaine or a cheeseburger....your body gets used to it. You get used to it. I never understood that I was addicted to food.
Thats just crazy.
So here goes.
My names is Heather...I am a food-a-holic. Food has become my joy and comfort. Instead of what I fuel my body with. I am getting clean. I am giving up my addiction. But I will always be a food a holic....just like someone who is an alcoholic...they never stop being an alcoholic, they just stop drinking.
God made our bodies perfect. The emotions and sensations that He lets us experience are a million times stronger than the high that any drug or substance we can put into our body can give us. That's pretty awesome. But we all use something...we are all addicted to something.
So whats your addiction? Food? Porn? The Internet? Drugs? Pepsi? Vodka? Sex?
Now I understand addiction. I understand how you cant just STOP. But I also understand that YOU CAN change.
Aw food! It's such a tough one. I think that might be my addiction. Unless you can be addicted to laziness? Can you. Sometimes I need to know that I can come home and veg...and do nothing. I get in such a slump. Especially in the wintertime. But food. I think about it daily, too. I have a love/hate relationship with it. The thing about food, though, is yes it is fuel, but I also still always want food to be a joyful thing for me, too. I want good/wholesome food to be something I look forward to and enjoy. I want to still moderately enjoy going out to dinner or having a treat. And therein lies the real challenge. HOW?!!? How do you stop using food emotionally in a negative way but still find joy in it and use food in a positve/moderate way? I'd love to hear what others say about this.
ReplyDeleteI was addicted to cigarettes fo 10 years. It was SO hard to stop. Addiction is tough.
ReplyDeleteI took a few classes in college that concentrated specifically on addiction and let me tell you it was so interesting because a person can be addicted to literally ANYTHING. That show "My Strange Addiction" is prime example.
ReplyDeleteSomeone suffering from addiction whether it be cocaine, prescription pills, alcohol, shopping, food or ANYTHING else usually cannot just stop cold turkey. Addiction is a very vicious cycle, and it's a constant struggle for that person every day even when they become clean, sober, pure, healthy...or whichever way you look at it.
I am blessed to say that I don't personally struggle with an addiction to food, drugs, or anything else (although I do love my reality shows a lot :-P )but I have seen others who have hit rock bottom because of their addiction.
If you want to overcome your food addiction you WILL, you have the power to do it, and I have faith in the fact that you can :) Sending you best wishes!!
love this post!! I totally agree with thinking how people can let themselves become so addicted to something. I find it crazy and often can't imagine that I NEED feeling. but then, I also LOVE food. i find it very hard to not just eat crap. i'm not overweight or anything but i do eat a lot of crap food when I know it's not good for me. and i make plans in my head to stop but i don't/can't resist choosing mcdonalds over a sandwich or whatever. i am also definitely addicted to the internet, but i honestly don't consider that a bad thing. for me anyways!
ReplyDeleteI quit smoking about eight years ago and it was one of the hardest things I have ever done. Years before I was finally able to quit, I took a quit smoking class where I worked. The woman asked why we weren't out picking up butts out on the street and such. She said the reason is that we were able to buy shiny new ones. I know that sounds weird, but it was the first time I realized that smoking was just as much an addiction as heroin or crack addiction. Without the behavior of being high, of course. In the end though, addiction is really just a behavior IMHO. You can stop that behavior. One can put down that fork and not pick up that cigarette.
ReplyDeleteGreat post, I am a caffine addict and really trying to cut back!
ReplyDeletexx
Kelly
Sparkles and Shoes
What a great post! Love ya, girlie!
ReplyDeleteToday it has been 3 months since my husband quit smoking, after doing it for 22 years (he is older than me). We have been married for 2 years, but he just now quit. He explained to me that he had to do it for himself, NOT me...he didn't want to be able to "blame" me for the quitting.
ReplyDeleteMaybe that's why your husband hasn't done it (and I mean no offense by this). If it's something that was his own thing before he met you, he might need to end it on his own.
But, trust me, I know what it's like to worry about a husband's health due to smoking, and not understand how they can like it!