Mind and Body

 

Breaking the Habit Kicking Addictions and Starting Healthy Habits

Intro I hope this email finds you well. My name is Tommy. One day, I decided to make drastic changes to my lifestyle to improve my current situation and become the person I always envisioned I would be. Each blog entry in this series will contain actionable items that you can follow step by step as a simple guide on your journey to self-improvement. Making Progress, Slowly but Surely Over the past few weeks, if you have been following along with the blog posts, your vision for a new life has been formed, your mind and body are beginning to get in shape for success, and you have done some research and groundwork to achieve the goals you set forth for your future self. I just want to stop a moment and let you all know how proud of you I am for actively participating in this journey and taking these steps to self-improvement. Some of my readers, however, have hit a snag and really never got off the ground with their journey because they can’t get in the right mindset to do so due to their addictions to various substances or external stimuli. Let’s take a deep breath. It’s ok. I promise it’s ok. Just thinking about the steps, reading the emails or blog, and wanting better for yourself is progress. I too, have been hopelessly addicted. My unhealthy vices were alcohol, marijuana, and social media. The only way I was truly able to kick these habits and form new ones are outlined below in the actionable steps for this week. YOU GOT THIS. Breaking the Habit, Forming New Ones When I started this blog & newsletter a few weeks ago, I had not thought of, heard of, or read the book, Atomic Habits by James Clear. I was at my day job and a co-worker received a copy of the book from her director as a birthday present. Multiple people were raving about how the book changed their lives and was some of the best writing they had ever read, so I purchased a copy for myself. The author started to see patterns of success in his life by making small changes and forming small, healthy habits. He then started an email newsletter to document and write about the habits. Sound familiar? I was blown away. He was doing exactly what I sought to do and did it. His writing has been incredibly inspiring to me and put my focus into overdrive. I am not sponsored by James or his book or through his publishing company, I simply am a fan and highly encourage you to read his book. Where I’m going with this is that in order to kick the terrible habits associated with addiction, you must form new habits to take the place of the old habits. These must be sustained and followed regularly, even if you do not see immediate success. Even if you do see immediate success, there will be a plateau where you are no longer seeing that success, and this….this right here is the time when you keep pressing forward. Clear (2018) states, “All big things come from small beginnings. The seed of every habit is a single, tiny decision. But as that decision is repeated, a habit sprouts and grows stronger. Roots entrench themselves and branches grow. The task of breaking a bad habit is like uprooting a powerful oak within us. And the task of building a good habit is like cultivating a delicate flower one day at a time.”* I am trying to convey essentially the same message here in my blog & newsletter. I want you to start small and start planting seeds. Then continually plant those seeds until something great grows. That something great is YOU. Let’s Kick It Here is exactly what I did to kick my addictions. These are your actionable items to start putting into practice starting today. 1) Throw everything you have related to your addiction out. Toss it. I know it cost money, but it’s costing you something much greater: your health. It will not care if it ends up in the trash or flushed down the toilet, I promise. Alcohol? Pour it all down the drain. Social Media? Delete all of the apps. Whatever it is get rid of it now and get it out of your house. 2) Find a support group. I joined AA and still go to the meetings when my cravings kick in. Yes, I still get cravings almost daily. I downloaded the app called Meeting Guide. It will show you where the nearest meeting to you is without taking your information or having you sign in. Truly anonymous. There are online meetings too if you aren’t comfortable going in person, but I suggest you try it. Do the same whether you have a drug, porn, video game, etc. addiction. There are support groups for every addiction. 3) Start drinking water. I mean right away. Pour yourself a tall glass of water and get to drinking. It will put something in your hand to satisfy physical touch cravings, it will provide liquid to your mouth to satisfy oral cravings, it will quench thirst and even your hunger to a point. Drink water and keep the glass full, just don’t overdo it to the point you get sick. Plenty of water at all times of day. 4) Go back to emails, 1 & 2 regarding telling yourself you love yourself and getting in shape body and mind. Do these every single day. Create those habits and never let them break. Even if you are tired, sore, annoyed, bothered. Do the actionable items I listed in my first few emails every single day, especially when you are feeling cravings. Until you do these steps, we cannot move forward. Repeat weeks 1, 2 & 4 until you are ready to move forward. I’ll see some of you next week. For those who are still here next week, I am thinking about you and you have my support. Below are the links to my blog with my contact info and also a link to my email newsletter for references. Until Next Time… I hope that you enjoyed this content and will return and read my next email. We are still at the beginning of this journey, the money, relationship, career, overcoming addiction, and other advice are soon to come. I have so much more to share and will always provide you with direct, actionable tips that helped me and will help you find the joy in life that you have been seeking. Until we meet again. Here are the links I promised. Blog: The Time Is Now A weekly blog to help you live the lifestyle you've always wanted. tommypowers.blogspot.com Email Newsletter: The Time Is Now A weekly email that will help you improve your daily life and reach your life goals. thetimeisnow.beehiiv.com Cheers. -Tommy *Clear, J. (2018). Atomic Habits: An easy & proven way to build good habits & break bad ones. https://catalog.umj.ac.id/index.php?p=show_detail&id=62390