How to find the root causes of your addictions

As you become more familiar with the recovery community, you’ll begin to notice that many members have pet metaphors and analogies they repeat to help them describe the process of overcoming the battle of addiction. My sponsor’s personal favorite is the idea that addiction is like a computer virus (more on this in a future post).

Taking a page from my sponsor’s book, after some brainstorming I realized that the recovery process is also like solving a puzzle. A puzzle that’s similar yet unique to each individual. After you’ve taken the first step (accepting that you have a problem with your drug of choice), then the work to actually fix the problem and break free of the substance begins. It’s during this phase that you’re “putting the pieces” of your puzzle together.

Many of the pieces of recovery look the same for everyone. In the 12 step community, all the members go through the steps (sometimes quickly, sometimes slowly). In Recovery Dharma, members reflect on the 4 noble Truths.

However, oftentimes there is one or more “missing” pieces to your plan that winds up being essential to your mission to becoming sober. How many times have we heard about the sick and suffering addict who goes to detox, only to relapse immediately upon release? (guilty of that).

For me, the biggest “missing piece” to my alcohol and marijuana sobriety was community. I was isolating myself from the outside world (still working on this), and this was causing me to replace relationships with alcohol. When I finally went to a meeting because I wanted to, not because I was forced to by my detox program, that’s when everything changed.

Other “missing pieces” could be a limiting belief, getting on the right medication for you (many addicts have co-occurring disabilities), exercise, or distancing yourself from the friends who you partake in substance abuse with.

In fact, many of the resources in the recovery community could be seen as addressing one or another “final pieces” to different individual’s addiction puzzle. Yours will likely be the same as someone’s, but it almost certainly won’t be the same as everyone’s.

So today, I invite you to consider searching for what your addiction puzzle pieces are. If you’ve already racked up some clean time, it can still be an interesting exercise to reflect on what was the final “straw that broke the camel’s back” for you to ultimately break free from your vice(s).

May the Force be with you. If you found my work interesting or helpful, feel free to sign up for my newsletter in one of the signup fields on this page or at faithworks.beehiiv.com. Until next time!