As long as we are caught up in mood-altering fixes, we are not free: we do not have our addictions, they have
us! In the language of Step One of the Twelve Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous, addictions leave us “powerless” and our lives “unmanageable.” To say that one is “powerlessness” is not meant to be a cop-out, however -- as though we blame the addiction for our behavior. It’s actually a first step to taking responsibility for our situation. As long as we believe we are in control of our addictive involvements, we will most likely continue indulging them. When we finally stop and take a good, hard
look at our lives and our fix-indulgences, we begin the process of reclaiming the energy and freedom co-opted by our addictions. . .
This takes us back to Being Attentive. We honestly acknowledge what we use to avoid facing our inner pains, and all the ways we have given ourselves over to
these fixes. Maybe we have even told ourselves and others that we could stop any time we wanted, but now we notice that this is probably not the case. If you discover that you have a serious addictive involvement, do not hesitate to seek the assistance of a counselor or recovery group to break free. Even if your involvement is not so serious, it’s often a good idea to seek help.
As we let go of our addictions, we discover that we have more and more inner freedom available to us. With freedom comes responsibility, however. How shall we use our freedom? What values and priorities will guide our lives?
