Think of a time you did something wrong and you were ashamed of your behavior. Or how about the time someone else did it, but you still feel bad about it anyway.
Are you carrying it around with you? Has it become part of the baggage you drag around day to day?
What does being your own hero mean? Are you good enough? Are you capable? Can you do it alone?
When we wait for other people to take control of our lives we are sending the message that we don’t trust ourselves with our own lives. Could this be true for you?
Have you ever sat around wondering about how much better your life would be if only someone would come save you?
I spent most of the time in relationships thinking that they would get better if only my partner would decide that they really wanted to be with me. Surely they would change the way
I would be stuck in my stupidity…er, I mean that I would be making my latest attempt to feel better when I would suddenly realize that I’m actually feeling worse. I would be sitting at my machine of the moment and I would experience a brief moment of clarity when I could see that I was losing too much money and that I was hungry and had to go to the bathroom.
When you’re stuck in your stuff it’s hard to pry yourself away from it. I had to figure out a way to get my mind off of it.
One of the most important steps I used to overcome my gambling addiction was to take my DOSE. DO Something Else.
When my chance at change came with my moment of clarity I usually would remember that being hostage to the stupid machine sucked. I cashed out my money (if I was lucky enough to have any left), got up and left the casino. Just doing that helped clear my mind and made me feel better. The next step depended on the situation, but I would usually go for a walk or go home to sleep. Whatever it was that would lighten my mood and help me feel even better.
What can you do differently? Stop mid-bite. Throw the bag of chips away. Don’t return the email from your affair. Turn off the computer. Something for you came to mind, right? Now that you have some new ideas you can choose to do something else. Celebrate your success!
What is your DOSE? How has it helped you?
Please share your comments below.
P.S. This tip can also be found in my book Numb No More along with more helpful solutions.
Have you ever sat around wondering about how much better your life would be if only someone would come save you?
Numb No More 