PATHWAY TO JOY AND HEALING

I have been reading a lot about addictions during the last several years, and learned that addiction is symptomatic of our emotional states and not just a condition in itself to treat.  When we treat one addiction, we merely find a substitute with another addiction. How many times have you heard that when the drug addiction is treated, then you just find another addiction such as alcohol, sex, gambling, etc.

All addictions are coping techniques for emotional pain or negative emotions.  When we experience emotional pain or negative emotions, it can be triggered by a person, memory, or situation of our emotional wounds from the past or present.  These emotional injuries can be from abuse, trauma, or other negative life experiences.  When we experience emotional pain, we physically and mentally want to avoid this pain. Addiction is one form of avoidance or escape from this emotional pain.

When we feel this emotional pain, we want to avoid this pain at all cost, and replace the pain with good feelings achieved through drugs, alcohol, sex, gambling, etc.  Our physical and mental bodies then become tolerant of these, and we need more drugs, alcohol, sex, gambling to physically or mentally reach the same level of these good feelings.  However, it is simply not possible to satisfy this tolerance, and we become addicts.  These addictions create chaos and destruction in our lives as they begin to control us.

The truth is that it is not only the alcohol, drugs, sex, gambling etc. that we must avoid, but to treat the causes of the emotional pain that is creating the need for our addiction to manage and cope with this pain.  Addiction is a coping technique that our mind and body use to deal with our emotional pain.  When we heal the underlying cause of the emotional pain, they will no longer be triggered, and the addiction will no longer be necessary to manage and cope with this emotional pain.

Therefore, treatment is necessary for the underlying trauma, abuse, or other negative life experiences.  This means facing our trauma, abuse, or other negative life experiences instead of avoiding or escaping them through addiction or other forms of escape or avoidance. Furthermore, healthier ways of managing  and coping with this emotional pain is necessary until the underlying trauma, abuse and other negative life experiences are healed.  May you find freedom from your addictions. (Copyright 2015 Awakening Journey with All Rights Reserved)