You can become addicted to almost anything. Today, some of the most common forms of addiction are. Addicts are usually chasing a feeling of pleasure to escape their realities.
It can be easy to assume that you don’t have any control over your addictions, regardless of what you’re addicted to. The good news is, there are simple proven methods to help you overcome addictive behavior.
Whether you want to break the cycle of getting stuck on Instagram or need some new habits to increase your odds of success at drug rehab, these tips can help you to overcome addictive behavior. Thousands of others have done it before you, and you can too.
Five gentle and long-lasting ways to overcome addictive behavior
Reflect On Your Life
You can still enjoy your life and be happy without needing to turn to excessive drinking, wasting money at the casino, or watching TV all day. Every human is wired to be able to feel good. However, society and the media can encourage us to seek that pleasure in some unhealthy ways.
The modern world tells us that drugs, gadgets, and material things are the best ways to seek life’s pleasures. When we seek pleasure from these things, as time passes, the receptors in your brain start to build a tolerance to stimulants like drugs or alcohol, as they get overwhelmed. This then causes a reduction in your dopamine levels.
Once this happens, you need to drink more, take more drugs, spend more money, or eat more to release the same amount of dopamine. The more you chase your addiction, the more your brain will associate the substances or activities with pleasure and it gets harder to give up the damaging behavior.
In order to overcome an addiction of any kind, you will need to sit down and reflect on your life. Think about why you started to use these substances or started these behaviors in the first place. For most people, using stimulants starts in order to cover up something that is missing. Perhaps you feel unhappy or stuck.
When you can start to address these feelings, the rest will fall into place too. Reflecting on your life helps to gain an understanding of why you became addicted to something, and how you can best combat these behaviors, whether with treatment or new habits.
Harness Your Creativity
What creative hobbies do you enjoy? Do you paint, play music, cook, dance, or draw? Creative activities can be a very important part of recovering from addiction, as you can do them without suffering from any side effects or indulging in any other destructive behaviors. Humans are driven to seek pleasure, which is what builds addiction, but you can experience that dopamine hit in healthier ways.
Reconnecting with your creative side can help you to realize that everything around you drains energy from you, whereas being creative can make life a lot more fun. You don’t have to turn to activities or substances that will only do you harm in the long run. Experiment with some creativity, and find out what you love doing, and use this as a source of pleasure in your life instead.
Be Accountable To Someone
In the professional world, if you wanted to stop procrastinating and increase your performance and productivity, you could team up with an accountability partner to help you to keep on track.
You can do the same when you’re trying to overcome addictive behavior. An accountability partner can help you to beat your demons, keep you sober, and accelerate your rate of recovery. Choose someone who understands what you’re going through, supports you, and can communicate with a couple of times a week. You can share your thoughts, emotions, and your progress with them.
If you feel tempted to light a cigarette, call your dealer, or go to the bar, remember that you will be held accountable for your actions. Your accountability partner ought to be someone that you trust, and that will tell you the truth, even when it’s difficult.
Exercise Regularly
Physical exercise will improve your overall health, and reduce your risk of developing a range of terminal diseases such as cancer, heart diseases, and diabetes. Physical exercise will help you to feel better about yourself too, as it gives you more energy during the day and will help you to sleep better at night.
Working out can help you to beat your addiction. Recovering addicts who begin to exercise regularly report that they feel less worried and less stressed, which makes it easier to kick damaging habits. The hormones that exercise releases can also help you to feel more fulfilled and improve skills in other areas of your life.
You don’t need to take up working out as though you are training for a marathon. Start small, and find something you enjoy doing. Jogging for at least thirty minutes every day is enough to improve both your physical and mental health. If you don’t enjoy jogging, you can try walking, cycling, dancing, swimming, or anything else. Before you take up a new exercise routine, it’s a good idea to speak to your doctor first, especially if you’re still in a recovery program.
Identify Your Weak Spots
When are you most likely to indulge in addictive behavior?
- Do you always smoke after you drink alcohol?
- Do you turn to a glass of wine after a stressful day at work?
When you stop engaging in these behaviors, your brain is obviously going to object at first, especially when you’re in situations where you would normally smoke, drink, or take drugs.
It’s very important to make plans early enough to avoid falling into the same habits. For example, if you usually smoke in the car before you head into the office, think of something else to do with this time that will be better for you. This could be calling a friend, chewing some gum, or drinking some juice.
By replacing negative behaviors with more positive ones, you have a better chance of recovering and overcoming addictive behavior.
