As recently as a few decades ago, addictions to drugs, alcohol, cigarettes, and gambling were seen solely as a result of their bad consequences.
These days, we’re aware that bad addictions may manifest themselves in several ways. Addiction to cell phones and the Internet, for example, have emerged in recent years as new forms of negative addiction. Some individuals are hooked on sex, eating, shopping, and even working. This article will walk you through freedom from negative addictions.
What Exactly Is Addiction?
Addiction is defined as a compulsive behavior. People who suffer from an addiction are drawn into self-destructive activities even when they are aware of the harm that they are doing.
An Alcoholic Or Drug Abuser
Over time, the addict increasingly loses track of their interests and routines in favor of the one or more behaviors that provide them pleasure. As a consequence, their health and social and professional lives suffer greatly.
The following are some of the most prevalent forms of negative addiction:
- Smoking
- Addiction to the Internet
- The use of illicit substances (cocaine, cannabis, designer drugs, etc.)
- Addiction to work
- Alcoholism
- Gambling, on the other hand (gambling addiction)
- Addiction to sex
- Addiction to mobile devices and other forms of technology.
People are susceptible to bad addiction on an individual level. A person’s dependence on others is based on a combination of biological, environmental, and psychological influences. Genetic variation is thought to account for just 1-2 percent of the overall risk of being addicted.
To get addicted to anything, a person must first go through a stage known as the “knowing phase.” At this point, the individual is exposed to the potentially addictive drug or activity and feels the impacts of its use. After this period, a person may either leave or continue to consume, depending on familial, emotional, intellectual, and educational considerations.
Many risk factors have been found throughout the years that make a person more susceptible to bad addiction, among them:
- Parents’ usage of drugs and addictive substances
- Family disorganization
- Problems within the family
- Abuse in the form of physical violence
- A lack of both material and interpersonal resources
- Friends’ positive views regarding addictive drugs or activities
- Conduct disorder and antisocial personality disorder are examples of psychopathologies.
Those who are addicted to drugs like cocaine, alcohol, or cigarettes are dependent on the compounds they contain.
It Starts With Your Thoughts
We have psychological addicts. The addict acts through violence and adopts a victim role in life or in front of others to justify their failures. Or even the addict reacts with distrust or contempt when relating to people.
We also have the addict demonstrate a childish tantrum when someone disagrees with him, the addict systematically imposes his opinions on others, or the addict goes shopping when he feels an inner emptiness.
This type of addict is not only hooked on internal chemicals that generate their behaviors or attitudes but is also hooked on another type of retribution. How his behavior manages to manipulate others (or himself) to obtain what he wants (be it power, money, compassion, or love) or to avoid what he fears (be it fear, pain, or facing his defects or deficiencies).
Addictions Results From Over-Indulgence
Negative addiction tends to repeat itself indefinitely, creating the same pattern of thought or behavior in the face of different circumstances in life.
This fact is your addiction will go against your interests and your own life if it manifests itself at the wrong time and place, something that will undoubtedly happen sooner or later. A tobacco or drug addict, for example, may get to the point of spending their money on their vice rather than buying food for themselves or their family.
An addict to violence, laziness, shyness, or fear tends to act in this way always, even at the least opportune moment, which can have disastrous consequences at a personal and work level.
You’ve Got A Chance To Change
The repetitive loop of an addiction limits your life by preventing you from changing the way you act when circumstances require it. That prevents you from developing your adaptability and manifesting your true potential, which stops your personal growth and the achievement of your goals.
A violent addict is unable to reconcile peacefully with his partner or his boss when there is a conflict. A person addicted to shyness will never be good at parties or public performances unless he learns to open up to others. And a person who is enslaved (synonymous with an addict) to fear will never be able to carry out his dream of traveling alone or creating his own company if he does not step forward and start taking certain risks.
So, whatever your addiction, keep in mind that it limits you, slows your evolution, and prevents you from realizing yourself.
Overcoming your addictions requires doing personal introspection based on humility and being honest with yourself. To do this, I’ll propose a 5-step exercise for freedom from negative addictions.
Habit Analysis
Analyze your habits, ways of reacting, and ways of behaving that you often repeat and that can be considered a negative addiction. Don’t forget to be humble and honest with yourself.
Write It All Down On Paper
And take your time; you don’t have to do it in a single day. You can write them down over the weeks as you discover them. Focus on the ones that can have the most negative consequences in your life.
Think About The Effects Of Your Negative Addictions
Next to each addiction, write down what effect it brings you or, in other words, why do you feed it? Again, be as honest with yourself as possible.
Are you addicted to going from couple to couple because you are terrified of being alone? Are you addicted to having a hyper steric diet because you don’t want to get fat, or are you obsessed with having a physical ten? Are you addicted to reacting in bad ways when someone tells you about your shortcomings because you are insecure and your weak self-esteem refuses to face them?
Each person is a universe to explore, so don’t be in a hurry and discover your own world and the reasons behind it. Probably what you discover will surprise you and, of course, it will also help you grow.
Create An Action Plan
Be creative and devise your own action plan to eliminate your addictions. If you have come this far, you will have reflected a lot on them and probably already have ideas about them.
In any case, sometimes, the simple work of identifying your addictions and analyzing them (previous steps) is enough to spontaneously develop the attitudes and actions necessary to erase them from your life gradually.
Seek professional advice
When you’ve tried all you could and still find yourself wallowing in your negative addictions, seek medical or professional advice.
End It Now
Negative addictions can be very intoxicating, and that’s the better reason why you must get rid of them now. We hope to have provided you with tips for freedom from negative addictions. Do all you can to stay free from negative addictions. Have you struggled with negative addictions in the past? share your experience in the comment session below.
