Hi Artemus,I can relate on so many levels to what you're feeling. The hopelessness, the exhaustion...Sometime it feels like we are at battle with an unseen enemy more cunning than COVID. But the good news is, the battle can be won, and everyone here is rooting for your victory.It's quite alright if you don't want to call this an addiction. It doesn't have to define you. Just keep doing the things you're doing to fill your house with good habits. That seems like a good way to go.Best of luck to you, friend.
Hi Artemus,Well done on dispatching those thoughts and turning your attention elsewhere. I'm not sure if you are a regular user of the Headspace app https://www.headspace.com/, but if not, I'd encourage you to give it a try. There's a series of meditations that the guide (whose name is Andy) refers to as the "craving pack." The actual name of the series is "Coping with Cravings." It includes a whole month's worth of meditations on the thoughts and feelings that tempt us. The idea of the meditations is not to chase or resist the thoughts and feelings but to sit with them and observe them with curiosity and detachment. I know that sitting with one's thoughts and feelings doesn't sound very proactive, but I have personally found the meditations to be very useful in preparing myself for cravings, because they will come back. And sometimes the very act of resisting them makes them even harder to resist - if that makes any sense.Anyway, I'm glad to see that you're taking the time to prepare yourself for the inevitable. That seems like a wise approach.Keep planning, preparing for, and most importantly, living the life you want to live!
I sat down at my PC, pulled up our entire music library and went artist by artist, song by song deleting every single thing that even hinted at sex and deleted it
Hi Artemus - Good to have you back, friend. I took a bit of an unscheduled holiday myself, so I also have some ground to make up on this forum.QuoteI sat down at my PC, pulled up our entire music library and went artist by artist, song by song deleting every single thing that even hinted at sex and deleted itThis sounds like a pretty big sacrifice for you to make given how much you seem to love music, so I give you props for even trying it. Best wishes to you on continuing this streak and on having more good days ahead with your wife.
The loneliness is distracting and I confess I've had passing thoughts to "self medicate" with my favorite drug, but I haven't. Today I came here, to vent I suppose, but "this too shall pass" as they say.