Not everyone turns to alcohol and drugs in their attempt to feel better. Even though we hear more about alcohol and drug addictions because of their negative consequences, they are not the only ones.
Have you noticed that every time you turn on the television or open the pages of a magazine you see ads for pills to help with depression or anxiety?
Look at how many people use food to feel better.
Some people turn to gambling, sex, shopping, or television for the same reason. Others think that what it takes to feel better can be found in a bigger and better house, a new car, a closet full of designer clothes, an ivy-league education, the right job, or a better relationship partner. There are those who believe that when they move across country to a new location they will feel better.
For countless individuals feeling better may simply mean numbing the pain.
Individuals who become dependent upon someone or something outside of themselves to feel better are everywhere and come from every walk of life. They are not limited to a lower class of society, a third world culture, the uneducated, or the financially distressed. They come from all classes of society, every culture, all educational levels, and every financial situation. Some have not completed high school while others have earned a doctorate degree. Some are wealthy, some are living paycheck to paycheck, and others are living in total poverty. A few even know what it is like to be homeless. Some have successful careers and professions while others can’t find or keep a job.
The need to feel better, and the dependency upon something outside of oneself that follows, doesn’t pick and choose favorites. Everyone has an equal opportunity to enter into the struggle of life. But not everyone has an equal opportunity to recover from the struggle because not everyone knows what to do or how to do it.
If you need to feel better or have sought relief from the way you feel through “something or someone out there,” then treatment may be right for you.
If you have a need to fit in or belong, if you want to relax or get rid of stress and don’t know how, a recovery from life may be right for you.
What I Am Feeling Now Is Exactly What I Choose To Be Feeling ©1991