The Trifecta from within; which do we feed… For me, I ignorantly allowed so many things to feed The Victim side of me – especially my father, at that time The Villain and I don’t mean to paint him as a complete monster, even in the least, an intentional one.
And once the Victim side of me was well fed, the Villain role previously embodied by my father was no longer necessary; for now I was fully capable of embodying this role, The new Villain tricking the Victim into relief through nefarious vices.
I see the first Stage of Addiction as a search for relief from the pain being inflicted upon the Victim; a different approach than traditional recovery programs. While Addiction is of negative connotation by today’s perspective, this word was not always a negative.
The Latin term “addicere” is linked to concepts of devotion, sacrifice, or dedication. Before addiction to a negative vice(s), we are devoted, dedicated and/or willing to make sacrifices for relief from our pain not with the intent of harm to ourselves and/or those around us but with the intent of a better life through constructive habits and thoughts to relieve our pain, if not mitigate it.
Yet, if we are not aware we can control what we think about (a nod to David Foster Wallace “This Is Water”) and addict, side note: interesting how the informal definition of “addict” is: an enthusiastic devotee of a specified thing or activity – rendering neither a Negative or Positive aspect which must mean it is what we are addicted to that derives a Negative or Positive connotation, but I digress, we must addict ourselves to positive habits (consistent disciplines) like types of Cognitive Behavioral Therapies (Cognitive Restructuring, Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy, etc.)
When we attempt to abstain from the addiction to a negative vice(s) and give sobriety a chance, whether a day, a week, a month, we have at that moment embodied The Hero. And in that embodied moment, for however long, If we can stay aware, control our thoughts and begin resolution to what originally set us on our relief seeking journey, the First Stage of Addiction….
….The Hero will prevail.
