What's Your Addiction?

For years, food has been my go-to gal. No matter what dip in emotion I experienced a piece of food, usually a chocolate bar was able to restore my equilibrium, until the next time, usually 20 minutes later. 

The funny thing is no matter how much I ate, I never, ever felt full. I’ve had to unpack my relationship with food, and it’s been uncomfortable. In terms of a relationship, it’s been unbalanced. I discovered I wasn’t eating because I was hungry. I was eating because it offered comfort.

My emotional attachment to food impacted on other areas in my life. It felt safe when my cupboards were full. I overspent and had to throw out food. I ate in cafes and restaurants as well as having full kitchen cupboards. Then as the pounds piled on I felt more tired and wore black to hide myself. 

I wonder how much of this we can really relate to and see the similarities in a relationship with substances? Is feeling safe and causing less anxiety so we ensure we have additional supplies to hand in case we don't have enough to get us through the day. Our social lives presenting more appeal as they are in an environment that will make substances easier to access. Consequently, overspending on the substances which usually means going without something else. As well as visiting certain friends more because we know they use substances as well and eventually becoming isolated as the substances completely take over our lives.

Looking at our addictions and the way they can dictate our lives is not easy. Do we think that it does take over our lives or would we be more comfortable saying it's just a normal part of our life? Counselling can offer us an opportunity to examine the relationships we may have begun with any substances in our life and a safe space to explore this at a deeper level. 

I wonder when we use the word ‘addiction’ what image does it conjure up? I am sure that for every one of us this may be different raising lots of different questions. Addiction versus dependency - Do we see these as completely different, does one of them feel easier to say, do we think one is much more acceptable in society? Is it that we feel there is much more stigma attached to the word Addiction? Do we feel one of them is much more in our control than the other? 

No matter where you are in the process of change or the cycle of change, we refer to at FASS. You can be assured a warm welcome, understanding and a non-judgemental approach as you walk through our front door.  Even if you feel you are not in the process of change you may be willing to discuss reducing the risk of harm to yourself. 

And as for me, a few stone down I can say the learning is eternal and an apple and bike ride make me feel a lot better than a chocolate bar. While this sounds like a healthy choice the road to get there is thoughtful and not without courage. Remember every single step towards change can be celebrated. 

These thoughts make me curious about other addictions. I wonder are you reading this on your phone…?

You can find out more about our free services here: https://www.fassaction.org.uk