Popular Post LILTEX41 Posted March 8, 2013 Popular Post Report Share Posted March 8, 2013 Hey everyone! This is for anyone out there who is struggling with the idea of quitting an addiction. I wanted to share it because I know there are a lot of people that come to this board and are probably very ambivalent to the idea of change. I struggled with sobriety for a LONG time. I'm talking over 15 years of being back and forth. It wasn't until I found this tool that my sobriety finally stuck. Hope you find it as helpful as I did. I got it from Smart Recovery. Enjoy! Four Questions About My Addiction Using the CBA (Cost-Benefit Analysis Tool) 1.What do I enjoy about my addiction, what does it do for me (be specific)? List as many things as you can that you liked about whatever you are/were addicted to. a. Where possible, find alternative ways of achieving the same goals. b. Recognize positive thinking about the addiction as a potential relapse warning sign. c. Realize that there are some things you liked about the addiction you will have to learn to live without. d. List what you enjoy about your addiction so you can ask yourself if it is really worth the price. e. Realize that you aren't stupid; you did get something from your addiction. It just may not be working on your behalf anymore. 2. What do I hate about my addiction, what does it do to me (give specific examples)? List as many of the bad, undesirable results of your addiction as you can. Here it is extremely important that you use specific examples. Specific examples have much greater emotional impact and motivational force! a. Ask yourself honestly "If my addiction was a used car, would I pay this much for it?" b. Review this list often, especially if you are having a lot of positive, happy thoughts about all the great things your addiction did for you. 3. What do I think I will like about giving up my addiction? List what good things you think/fantasize will happen when you stop your addiction. a. This provides you with a list of goals to achieve and things to look forward to as a result of your new addiction free lifestyle. b. This list also helps you to reality test your expectations. If they are unrealistic, they can lead to a disappointment based relapse. 4. What do I think I won't like about giving up my addiction? List what you think you are going to hate, dread or merely dislike about living without your addiction. a. This list tells you what kinds of new coping skills, behaviors and lifestyle changes you need to develop in order to stay addiction free. b. It also serves as another relapse warning list. If all you think about is how much life sucks now that you are not doing your addiction, you are in a relapse thought pattern that is just as dangerous as only focusing on what you liked about your addiction. Notes This is not a do once and forget about it exercise. It is an ongoing project. Most people simply can't remember all of the positive and negative aspects of addiction and recovery at any one time. Furthermore, seeing all the negative consequences of addiction listed in one place is very powerful. On the positive side, no one really knows what they like or don't like about living free of their addiction until they have done so for some time. I know of people who continued to add items to all four questions for a full 6 months. See Also: CBA Worksheet 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ashley6 Posted March 8, 2013 Report Share Posted March 8, 2013 This is fabulous, LilTex. I will be doing this soon, and I'm kind of excited to see the results, because I already know immediately that my new life is the best life, but I think seeing it on paper will be good for me. Thank you for sharing 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LILTEX41 Posted March 8, 2013 Author Report Share Posted March 8, 2013 So glad you like it, Ashley! Maybe you'll share your feedback with us?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeHereNow Posted March 12, 2013 Report Share Posted March 12, 2013 WOW step one, being 100% honest with yourself about the good things it did. Rather than writing it off as 100% negative or denying its draws. What a powerful tool for compartmentalizing the addiction so that you recognize what was good, when you might relapse, and how to deal without it. LOVE IT Acknowledging all aspects of the process. This tool is pretty deep! Thanks for sharing LILTEX! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ldmcniel Posted March 17, 2013 Report Share Posted March 17, 2013 What a wonderful tool to use!!! I think that this would be great for everyone. It can work for people who are trying to make the decision to quit and people who are in the quitting process. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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