WHAT'S YOUR ADDICTION?

So how do you cope with life, with pain and disappointment?
How do you distract yourself from your unrest?
What’s your drug of choice?
Alcohol, Cocaine, Crack, Heroine, Uppers, Downers or both?
Or are you one of us sophisticated addicts who wouldn’t dream of taking drugs?
Do you medicate your life with something a little more socially acceptable?
Sex, Affairs, Love, Relationships, Romance, Religion, Spirituality, Emotions,Intellect, Family, Marriage, Care-taking, Controlling, Having Babies, Food, Exercise, Work, Money, Smoking, Gambling, Spending, Volunteerism, Perfectionism, Under-achieving,Meetings, Television, Vacationism, Soap Operas, Nail Biting, Sadness, Negative Thinking, Denial and Lying?

Whew…wait a minute… aren’t some of these (you might be asking)…good things?
Well yes, of course they are.

As you can start to see, it’s not so much what we do to escape our lives, it’s why we do it and the way we do it (or don’t do it).

Some addictions that reside within us are never acted upon, yet they are still destroying us from the inside out. These are the silent killers of our soul, our energetic body and if they remain hidden long enough go deep into our psyche and manifest as disease and illness in our physical and emotional bodies.

Yet, using addiction to cope with life, in fact does not necessarily stop you from being functional. Many people who use addiction to cope lead fairly productive lives. And my opinion is that we're all addictions and in fact have incarnated to release all attachment. Addictions don't stop us from living life in most cases. Addiction IS our process. In fact, many great things have been accomplished by people who are trying to fill a hollow space inside of them, dull some aching pain or simply escape the disappointment of life. And some of us are so adept at employing the process of addiction, that we have a host of addictions that we play like a symphony.

Addictions and unhealthy attachments are pretty good coping mechanisms….At first…especially the ones that don’t “look” like addictions. At first, you think you’ve rifled through your life skills toolbox and found just the right tool. Because at first the pain is lessened and you can function.
But then comes time for the awful payback. Because you made a trade that you didn’t know about. Some people think that we slide deeper and deeper into addiction because we were fooled.
But the real story, is that we are the ones who fooled ourselves.

At the top of everyone’s addiction list is Denial and lying..
So if you plan to release yourself from the bondage of your addictive processes that is obviously the first one to break with.
Right? Make sense?
Addiction is bigger than you are.
It seems to fill a….NEED.
And once it take hold in your life there is no reasoning with it.
You can’t control it.
No YOU cannot control your addictions.
Want to know why?
Because attempting to control and forcing is what got you here in the first place.
You are so much smarter than you think you are…
That’s right…you are absolutely brilliant
You know exactly what you need. This knowledge is part of who you are.
You are programmed to desire, it’s part of your eternal flame. You are also programmed to succeed.
But you tried to second guess yourself and you simply missed the mark.
We know how THAT feels!
You need to FEEL GOOD!
You need to erase PAIN.
You need to be able to FUNCTION in society.
You need to be HAPPY.
Deep in your soul you know you are not meant to suffer.
And so you set to work to stop the suffering.
Your natural state is to be joyfully creative.
You are meant to be in the LIGHT
This knowledge is encoded in your DNA.
The only problem is that you saw a light
You saw it and went to it…
And it was not really the LIGHT.
Just like a Moth to a flame or a Whale to a beach
Hey, if it can happen to them, it can happen to you, right?
You were fooled.
Know why?
Because you were looking in the wrong place. Kind of like when you can’t find your glasses anywhere, only later you REALIZE they’re been perched on top of your head all along.. Hmmm…
So, where is the best place to find the light?
Well, how about in the dark… right?
Something shiny isn’t going to fool you in the dark, that’s for sure.
It’s too dark in there! Only real LIGHT can illuminate the darkness.
But where can you go where it will be dark enough to get to the LIGHT?
How about inside of you?
Now we’re getting somewhere.
In the dark night of your soul, in the womb of your Self is a flame.
That flame…..
That’s the LIGHT.
That’s the one you want.
You have to travel through the dark
To get to the LIGHT.
It’s OK.
We’ve got your back.
We’ve been through it and we made it.
And we’ve come back for you.
We’ve come back to tell you that there is an other side.
To tell you that people can change.
There is an actual map which can help you navigate this.
No, really…a geographical map…North, South, East, West…all the directions….Up and Down, too.
It’s a map of you and it’s a map of your world.
It’s a sort of diagram to your human landscape and the terrain of your life.
This map is thousands of years old. You already know about this map, but you forgot.
And this map will help you find your way. (No, it’s not the Bible, Torah, Talmud, Buddha or anything else outside of you –(You can take these things on your trip if you want to).
Make no mistake, it is your way to find.
In fact, finding your way….that’s what heals you.
All we and your fellow travelers do is hold the space and hopefully some LIGHT, so you can see your way when you’re in the dark places.
It’s your journey to make.
We made it through and we are living proof that it is possible to do so.
There are many others who know this, too.
There is a cure for addiction.
All and any addiction can be healed.
Chances are you’ve got more than one.
And many things we don’t consider to be addictions are.
Really anything you do that prevents you from going to the dark and finding the LIGHT can become an addiction.
Some people are so clever that they have a host of socially acceptable addictions, which they play like a symphony.
Whether you’re addicted to booze or your girlfriend, food or sex.
Addiction is not a genetic disease.
It is a dis-ease of the spirit. To be more precise it is the result of an imbalance.
It is a misguided attempt at self-healing, really nothing more….and nothing less.
But paradoxically, dis-ease is part of how we evolve and so it's all perfect.
Maybe your family taught you how to be an addict
And maybe society played a hand in it, too.
But it is not
WHO YOU ARE!
And when it is truly healed…
It is TAKEN from you.
And you will KNOW when it is gone.
The desire to do the addiction is gone because the addictive coping process becomes obsolete and unnecessary.
It is replaced with a measure of wholeness and a feeling of completeness unlike anything you have ever previously experienced.
And with every day you spend on this journey the connection to your Self is restored, the hole in your heart heals and your cup will begin to overflow, like a crimp has been taken out of the garden hose.
The only way to get to this is to forge all the way through
To the OTHER side, come full circle and get back to where you began.
We’re going to take a trip, fellow travelers.
A trip to the core of your Self.
You’ll need hiking boots, bathing suit, pen, journal, binoculars and camera (zoom and wide angle lenses are a bonus)
Oh yes…and don’t forget your compass. You’ll be needing that for sure.
We’re going to take a journey. I know what you’re thinking….not another spiritual journey.
This isn’t just a spiritual journey.
When we said get out those things, we weren’t kidding or speaking metaphorically.
This thing we call life…That’s the journey.. and you’re kind of already doing it. The only difference now, is that you are going to begin to become aware, awake and alive during the process.
So, while we will be dealing with things you can’t see, we will be dealing with plenty that you can.
Everyone’s journey is the same, but everyone’s journey is different.
Oh yeah, and you’ll need to get real comfortable with paradoxes.
After all you can’t solve a problem with the same mind that created it, right?
We’ll visit breathtaking vistas you’ve barely dreampt of, hear a song like you’ve never heard it before, discover the magic of air, the miracle of water, the flame that ignites our souls, the power of the earth and the simple truth about being human.
Ultimately, when you end this journey you will be back at the door to yourself and you will carry with you the wisdom that in fact you are the door to everything. (Now where were those glasses?)
Don’t worry there’s lots of guides and lots of help along the way.
You’ll learn how to spot them and call to them. We’ll help you if you ask.
Remember to ask…that is key (remember that thing about desire?)
So get ready…Get your supplies and your bearings
Because this trip’s going to take about 8 months, maybe longer for some.
We’re starting in the East.
In the East we deal with Illumination, Clarity and Shattering of Illusions. The view here is magnificent!
That wide angle lens comes in real handy right about now.
So, are you Ready?
OK then, let’s go…
One foot in front of the other.
Click here to Start Now.

The Alchemy of Addiction

Addiction typically makes us feel weak, out of control and self-destructive. We think that we have no will power and are weak willed. We may even think we are unredeamable, a lost cause, blocked, too far gone, hooked, out there, too weird, stupid, ignorant, broken and possibly just plain dumb. I would agree that if this is how we are feeling, then this is in fact our reality. Yet even these lower levels of reality have doorways into new tracks of thinking. For there is nothing that can help us jump track quicker than overwhelming pain, doubt, fear and humiliation which can often give us a glimpse of another world, even if it is something that we can't quite put our finger on yet. Because there is much more here than meets the eye and somewhere in our heart and soul we know it. There is a mystery here and it is begging to be solved. Our soul is trying to get our attention. And if we will sit with and be still and let our spirit communicate with us in language and symbol, rather than through our own bewildering behavior and polluted thoughts we will start to see an alternate and even a parallel reality...not in some metaphysical airy fairy way, but with our physical eyes and even our logical mind!

In the concrete levels of reality we may be doctors, lawyers, accountants, janitors, librarians, college students, homemakers, technicians, life coaches, psychotherapists, financial planners, soldiers, teachers, self-employed or unemployed. We may drink, take drugs, get depressed, overeat, under eat, work too much, volunteer too much, give too much, take too much, try to control everything, get cancer, steal, rape and kill. But amidst all that even in the lower levels, the good, the bad and the ugly we are also lightworkers, angels incarnate, bodhisattvas, shamans, exorcists and alchemists. We are human. We are divine. Above all we are healers in whatever it is that we do. Many of us, however, may have started to notice that the vanquishing of one addiction leads to ever increasing levels of sobriety in multiple arenas of our life. And if denial is allowed to continue to peel away we may be staggered at the sheer volume of layered and hidden addictions that are often covered in "goodness" and repression. Crafty, resourceful and clever are we! Yet as we bravely continue to face our darkness, some can see the addictions peeling away often in quantum leaps as we excavate our soul and bring in the Light. And this is where our treasure is buried.

Addiction is the path of the earth/spirit warrior. It's what we came here to conquer. It has taken us thousands of years to even recognize and understand our "foe". All darkness and negativity arises out of the addictive process. We walk into this battle in spite of our fear, not because we don't feel it, but because we know that who we really are and what we can evolve into makes it necessary to engage with our own personal Armageddon. Some of us have seen what is on the other side of our pain and fear and we have been forever changed because of it. We have taken our base metal, our base nature, and allowed it to transform us into something very precious. We have transmuted our darkness into golden light. We emerge victorious in complete freedom. We are freedom fighters of the highest order, but we do not resist our enemy. We turn it to the Light and use it against itself. We tune the frequencies of addiction, compulsion and codependency into their opposite spectrums of devotion, sacred ceremony and unconditional love. We see the interplay of shadow and light and we honor our personal paths to freedom. Our mission, quite simply, is to free our spirit and soul to manifest on the physical plane and to evolve into our full human potential to create a life worth living.

Addictions are simply pointing out to us how much freedom we are willing to allow ourselves. Addictions whet our appetite for true freedom and make us hunger for something more. They give us a peak at our capacity for passion, devotion and true love. Addictions will ring our bell. And the bell tolls for each of us, for our connection to our highest self, the part of us that is limitless and free. These are not just any bells, but wedding bells heralding a mystical marriage, the union of our body and spirit. Our soul is knocking at our door, like an ardent lover come calling and asking for our hand. And it won't let up, because this is a divine union that no man can put asunder, not even ourselves.

Addiction is the ringbearer of our soul, cavorting down the aisle, maybe shirt tail askew, but nevertheless, bringing the ring. And in the marriage lies the paradox, for at the moment of joining and commitment something new is born self to Self, like Beauty and the Beast. Something so grand, so magnificent that it remains unnamable until that very moment. And that something is a new version of our former selves that may be barely recognizable to our own earthbound eyes. This is the promise of the union. And in that moment we come to know that there is no other way but to let freedom ring. Resistance is not only futile, it is not necessary. For this is not about being safe, this is about being free. This is not about fear, this is about overflowing, never ending, eternally abundant love. And this love can only be experienced in true freedom.

Once this fight for true freedom, not just sobriety is engaged, the mundane ceases to exist and the exhilaration of the true nature of the heart and soul begins to take root. So when we reach this place, and make our way through hell and back and see what awaits on the other side of addiction and crisis, we are transformed into freedom fighters who come back to run rescue operations on those who still suffer. And we come back not out of duty or obligation, but because we have been re-programmed through the circuitry of our heart and soul to assist others on their journey to the other side, because what we have seen, what we have become, what we carry back with us is this amazing grace which now clings to our body and soul like a new garment.

We know that if nothing more than through a smile, a kind word, a hug, a listening ear we carry within us the unspeakably rare and precious antidote to all addiction: compassion, forgiveness, unconditional love and self love. This is love incarnate. Many of us are invisible warriors, no longer engaged in codepent "fixing". We understand the art of doing without doing. We understand power versus force at its truest essence. For us, a smile is no longer just a smile, but a way to set body chemistry aright, to shine a ray of love out into the world and a sign of affection for its witnesses. It is a beam of love projecting and connecting to sources by most unseen, triggering an avalanche of support and energy. A thesis could be written on the power and beauty of a single smile if we only knew. This knowledge, wisdom such as this, quietly integrated into a life is what makes all the difference. Awareness of simple, quiet, unsung everyday miracles, is the lightworkers way.

As we unveil our power the implications of this at first looms large. For we now know that we are a healer and a lightworker and we know that this is what we have resisted all along. And we know that this is what was being born within us, honed and crafted in the womb of our soul. Finally, we begin to see the power and the glory of the kingdom accessible through our spirit made manifest in the flesh. And we now know without one shadow of doubt that we are divine. Before these words were at best allegory and at worst not applicable, now this concept is self-evident because it has been cross-stiched and interwoven into our experience in a manner as radiant and dependable as the rising sun. And what's more, because we know who and what we are, we now know that human...all humans....even the drunks, the robbers, and the junkies are also, divine. We know that even when WE were at our worst we were still divine.

Our soul starts to tickle us with inklings of the limitlessness and the possibilities. And when we realize that we have tracked our personal mystery down and jumped into an alternate reality, something clicks inside of us and life becomes an amazing adventure. Pain and suffering no longer have the bite they once had, perceptions are clearer, thoughts are purer and love is truer. Life is good, even when weird things are happening. Being human isn't what we thought it once was at all. And we are sobered to realize that there is always going to be more. And the knowledge that we are standing on the shoulders of the way we used to be brings us tears of gratitude. And the knowledge that one day we will stand on the shoulders of the way we are now gives us the three things we cannot be without: Faith in what we cannot now see, Hope that there is an eternal will to good at work in the world, and Love and appreciation of all creation, including and most especially ourselves. And this changes everything, even as it changes nothing.

This is the path, the path of addiction, a sacred pathway to healing, enlightenment, empowerment, wisdom and awareness. We find that this dirty, humble road we've been traveling has been swept clean to reveal just below the surface a street of gold. The wheel comes full turn, the snake is eating its tail and worlds are without end, kingdoms and places in the soul as yet to be discovered beckon us on to adventure. The process of addiction has alchemically changed our soul. Quite simply our addiction has helped us give birth to a new consciousness and opens the door of everything that has been waiting inside of us. It activates our ability to create the reality of heaven on earth. This is the Alchemy of Addiction.