Addictions

[Asikinari]

I've been having problems recently with addiction.

No, not drugs or smoking or beer. I don't like the smell of smoking or the pointy needles or the kick-in-the-face beverages. I'm addicted to spending money somehow...
Whenever I feel a little bit down, I tend to find something to spend on just so I have that 'oh, shiny new thingy' feel. I need to stop, and it's really hurting my wallet. Lol. I've cut down on spending these past 3 weeks, but I find myself spending again just now. (Hence the post).

But anyways, I'm coping and I'm working on suppressing my impulses. Do you have any hurtful addictions that you realize but just can't help? What have you been doing to work against it?

[KanuTGL]

I guess my addiction at the moment is sugar. I've gotten used to having a piece of chocolate or some sweets pretty much every day now and it's not doing my teeth or my wallet any good :[ If I get to have a sweet snack it'll make me feel good for a while, but then I'll start regretting it because I don't really want to eat so much of it so often. What I try to do is find something else to munch on, like fruit or vegetables, because they're at least more healthy, but it's quite difficult to have a little bit of change in my wallet and walk past all these little newsagents on my way home from work... D: Not to mention that fruit is more expensive than chocolate... But I'm trying to see it as something to stop the cravings until I'm rid of the actual addiction.

It's not the first time I've fallen into the "sugar habit" and this time I want to get out of it mostly because I'm concerned about my teeth. I have several beginnings of holes already and I don't want them to get any worse. Because I haate going to the dentist o.-

[HasiraKali]

I'm addicted to Vinylmations. There, I said it. I've been going crazy the last two months because the closest Disney store is closed for the new rehab, and I'm trying to wait to buy more until we go to WDW where I will buy a TON. It's horrible. I find myself staring at the ones I have and then looking at the blogs and longing for the ones I see. I'm hopeless...

[lionloversam]

Hi, my name is Sam and I am addicted to caffeine.

[Simbaspirit]

^ I am also a caffeine addict.. That's what I get for being a barista at Starbucks

Having been addicted to more substances and behaviors than you can imagine, I know a few strategies. First off, you are on the right track because you are recognizing that you have a problem. That is huge - most people with addictive behaviors cannot admit to themselves that there is something wrong. I know it took me years. So since you have that down, you should probably create a budget. Write out all the money you earn in every month from every source. Then figure out what your expenses are on the things you need - rent, groceries, stuff like that. Again, only put down the things you NEED - restaurant food doesn't count . Once that's done subtract the things you need to buy from the money you have and you'll be leftover with hopefully some extra money. Split that in half - one half goes into a savings account, and the other half is for you to spend however you want. But sticking to the budget is really important. I'd say that your next best bet would be to find an accountability partner - either a family member, friend or mentor that will hold you accountable for your finances. This to you may mean someone who will ask you what you have been spending your money on and if you have kept up your budget. Or, if you know that you may bend the truth a bit, it may be best to find someone who will look over your spending statements every month and make sure that you're not "cheating." Yes, its a lot of work and its annoying, but if you really want to get out of the habit, its worth it. There really aren't any "easy way outs" when it comes to this stuff. That being said, I know you can do it Good luck!

[Kito]

For those of you that are having problems with food addictions and sweets-related stuff, here are some tips that I have that might help you guys understand why it's hard:

1) Our bodies are incredibly adaptable at being able to change to our environment. Let's say that the environment in context is our small intestine. Fruits like strawberries do have natural sugars in them, which from a molecular perspective, are not all that different from the refined sugars we see in candies. However, there IS a difference of sugar in what we eat with regards to amount. Those strawberries I mentioned earlier have a low concentration of these sugars in our bodies and when we absorb the sugar, it is a somewhat slow process since there is natural fiber in the fruit that allow for proper reabsorption of all the nutrients.

Now, when we consume something.. like.. 5 penny candies, these are HIGHly concentrated with sugar. In fact, they are nothing BUT sugar. When our bodies go to absorb the sugar from these penny candies when it's broken down inn our system, it's like it's in one huge rush to our bloodstream since there is no "sustinence" to the candy itself. Ya ever wonder why your tummy gets upset from eating too much candy? This is due to your body not coping very well with the fact that you've gone down and scarfed 3 doughnuts and your insulin levels are through the roof.

The FUN part comes when your body adapts to these candies when you eat them on a regular basis. Then you try and eat your strawberries again and then say that you don't feel "satisfied" anymore? Why is this? Adaptation, baby. Your body has gotten use to dealing with high concentrations of sugar and when the strawberries are at the intenstines, they're like "GIMMIE MOAR MOAR MOAAAARRRR!!!! :O" and the strawberry is like "No way man, I got small amounts. Just take it and go.." and you're body is like "MUST NEED MOAR! NOT SATISFIED!"

...

Ahem.. :blush:

Anyway, THINGS I did to help kind of "kick" my own sugar addiction:

1) Slowly substitute high-sugar things with low sugar things. This must be a GRADUAL process as you don't want to really shock your system into trying a new "diet" of low sugar. Some great alternatives that I have tried are:

- Lowfat ice cream with strawberries and blueberries

- sugar lemon fibre muffins

- SMOOTHIES!!!

- Water instead of juice (or even buy the frozen juice concentrates since then when you add the slush, you can add more water than is needed and reducing the concentration of sugar in the drink. Besides, those things can be already super sweet as it is. )

- Natural fruit bars (No, rocky road granola doesn't count :P)

2) Don't starve, man!!

I cannot emphasize this enough. You must be able to control your cravings to a level where you feel that you can safely be around food without having a freakout about not having that sweet thing in the window as you walk by. I always try to carry something to nibble on like a granola bar in order to help control my cravings. I always make sure I have a relatively full tummy when I leave the house unless we are specifically going out to dinner. Also, a tip to inexperienced shoppers:

DON'T SHOP WHEN YOU ARE HUNGRY!!!

3) Treat yourself <3

Because you know what? it isn't easy in today's world to stay alive. So live a little. Have that candy bar or super sundae or medium blizzard from Dairy Queen (fyi, it's 1115 calories for a large chocolate shake from there. Don't believe me? Go look on their site). You need to feel good about the fact that you've succeeded in weaning yourself off of those wonderful delicious snacks. Reward yourself. Pat yourself on the back. Who knows... maybe you'll even set a longer time you can go without these treats!

*Phew* Hope this helps for some people!

Also, my favourite penny candies are the bananas. <3

[Azerane]

Farmer's Union Iced Coffee.. it's not the caffeine, it's ze flavour!! Yum, yum, yum!!!

[Safila]

O.O the iced coffee ..yum.. Starbucks Iced coffee and chocolate <3

Kito.. stop picking on the strawberries I lub my berries

[Kito]

Strawberries are good for you!! I am not picking on ze strawberries!! :P

Also, my other newly discovered addiction is screen time. ((((((

[King Simba]

I like strawberries. The only problem is they're only sold here in the summer.

Hi, my name is Sam and I am addicted to caffeine.

Me too. The first drink I have in a morning is usually a soft drink containing caffeine (I don't drink tea or coffee that much) and even then throughout the day I have the same drink many times, but at least it's the non-sugar stuff, and at least it's not alcohol, so it doesn't really harm me.

And of course, I like chocolate, sweets and ice cream, but I wouldn't exactly say I have an addiction. Besides, I don't usually like eating too much calorific stuff because I like to manage my weight and I'd much rather have fruit instead, but I just treat myself every now and then. It doesn't hurt to do that.

[Revo]

Also, my other newly discovered addiction is screen time. ((((((

This.
Except for me it's not really newly discovered. Like, at all.

[Utora]

I've been having problems recently with addiction.

I'm addicted to spending money somehow...
Whenever I feel a little bit down, I tend to find something to spend on just so I have that 'oh, shiny new thingy' feel.

One of my main addictions is this also. It gives me a sense of brief satisfaction but I can still do so without running myself completely dry.

I'm addicted to staying up very late and have had to break that cycle recently.

Sugar has always been a thing for me but it's not so much an issue I worry about. I'm addicted to high speed driving. Shoes.

Minor things might be like clubbing and caffiene.

[Shadow]

I guess my addiction at the moment is sugar. I've gotten used to having a piece of chocolate or some sweets pretty much every day now and it's not doing my teeth or my wallet any good :[ If I get to have a sweet snack it'll make me feel good for a while, but then I'll start regretting it because I don't really want to eat so much of it so often. What I try to do is find something else to munch on, like fruit or vegetables, because they're at least more healthy, but it's quite difficult to have a little bit of change in my wallet and walk past all these little newsagents on my way home from work... D: Not to mention that fruit is more expensive than chocolate... But I'm trying to see it as something to stop the cravings until I'm rid of the actual addiction.

It's not the first time I've fallen into the "sugar habit" and this time I want to get out of it mostly because I'm concerned about my teeth. I have several beginnings of holes already and I don't want them to get any worse. Because I haate going to the dentist o.-

ditto on that though i myself is tottaly kicking my suger habbit " going strong on 7 days now" sense i started gyming properly every other day, im working to get my body in to shape, iv tried to stop eating sugar 4 times before" i swear to god its like quiting smoking for smokers" but now i have a real goal and a time limit, and well. best example today, instead of buying a whole 1.5 liter coke i bught a Loka instead!

i havent eaten anything containing un-healthy suger at all. and im talking the gig, even deserts will be chanced in to sallads to me.
though one thing im NOT giving up on is ice-cream i mean its summer come on!

coke ,chocklate, deserts, candy,any form of soda, etc etc are all out the window though.

chips im staying with once a week, sense its only once a week and chips themselfs are not THAT un-healthy and sugary more salty if anything, but yeah iv decided by the end of this summer im gona have myself a six pack!

[Leorgathar]

I'm an addict to chocolate too, quite ironically, since I'm a dentist

But for those sugar addicts there, I highly suggest trying products with Xylitol, such as Mentos or Trident chewing gums. Xylitol is a substitute for sugar, and it has multiple beneficial effects on your teeth, like helping lower the activity of bacteria, it has remineralizing effects and stops demineralization of the enamel.
Try Xylitol, your Lea dentist recommends it

[Guntur]

FRESHPOT!!!!!!!!

[Beware of Foul Language at the end of the video, It will be remove if the video are inappropriate with the language]

My only addiction are Smoking, But.... I usually smoke 2 box a day if I'm doing an event or a hard sales day! I'm trying to avoid Prescriptions Pills to be honest! Not that hard but it's a relief on my anxiety and schizoid disorder!

[shadowland]

I am somewhat addicted to confrontations o.O not sure why

[Sombolia]

Nooo, that Dave Grohl video.

I don't think I have any 'addictions' in the classical sense, but... I don't know. I have a habit of picking at my skin, particularly around my fingernails. I have a bunch of tabs of TV Tropes open right now. I eat chili ramen almost every day. And I have a morbid curiosity about things I know are going to end up scaring the crap out of me.

[Utora]

[/QUOTE]




Yeah when I was 16 I had 48 cans of cola and some monsters in about 48 hours and had what they would classify as toxicity..mm..I became paranoid of the sun outside, stayed awake for 4 nights straight, cotton mouth trying to eat goldfish crackers, the shakes, vomit, confusion, panic attacks..they doped me up with pain killers so I could sleep and once I rested the dopamines came back and I leveled off. Since then caffeine hasn't been an addiction..it's been a fear.

[Simbaspirit]

Yeah when I was 16 I had 48 cans of cola and some monsters in about 48 hours and had what they would classify as toxicity..mm..I became paranoid of the sun outside, stayed awake for 4 nights straight, cotton mouth trying to eat goldfish crackers, the shakes, vomit, confusion, panic attacks..they doped me up with pain killers so I could sleep and once I rested the dopamines came back and I leveled off. Since then caffeine hasn't been an addiction..it's been a fear.

That's brutal! That's about as bad as a minor hard drug withdrawl! Those were the worst Thats really good that you're being more cautious about it now Caffeine can be much more powerful than people think!

[King Simba]

I don't think I have any 'addictions' in the classical sense, but... I don't know. I have a habit of picking at my skin, particularly around my fingernails.

Ditto. That's something I really shouldn't do but no matter what I try, I can't seem to be able to stop. I've tried Stop 'N Grow but it doesn't seem to work. And I've been told that it's not so good for my teeth, so I probably should try again... xP