If it’s not drugs, it’s alcohol.
If it’s not alcohol, it’s TV.
It’s not TV, it’s social media.
If it’s not social media, it’s food.
Here’s a simple truth I learned about human nature…
We’re all addicts.
And you know what?
That’s totally fine.
When I was in 6th grade I had a horrible addiction to online gaming.
I logged nearly 5000+ hours on Counter-Strike Source a competitive FPS shooting game.
At one point it got so bad, my dad took the computer out of my room and placed it in the living room.
when that didn’t work…
he took away the keyboard.
So I secretly bought my own keyboard to play in the middle of the night. 😏
Even though I played a bunch of games, I never once felt bad for spending all my hours on counter-strike.
Until…
I went to college.
When I played games after class it wasn’t for enjoyment.
I played games to avoid doing the essay I know I needed to do.
and when I avoided or procrastinated on work…
I felt guilty, ashamed, and embarrassed.
So guess what happens when a person feels any negative emotion?
They avoid it.
and in my case, instead of dealing with my feelings of guilt, I dove deeper into gaming.
It became my escape.
Addiction is a natural part of being human
Has this ever happened to you?
You decide to have a break…
you jump on social media for a couple of minutes…
and it turns into an hour long trip consuming content.
At the end you feel ashamed that you “wasted” time on social media and didn’t do anything productive.
So you resolve to NOT do it the next time…
aaaand it happens again.
You waste time, you judge yourself as unproductive, and you feel guilt.
Look…
We all have wants, cravings, and a desire to avoid pain.
It’s what makes us human.
and acknowledging that fact is one of the first steps to breaking the loop of judging yourself.
Don’t beat yourself up for being unproductive or for not achieving your goals fast enough.
Remember this: Anytime you experience an emotion it’s a signal from your body to check in with yourself.
negative emotions aren’t bad.
They’re just signals for you to pause and reflect.
So, take this moment to press reset and acknowledge…
you’re just human.
Somehow, it all works out in the end.
Till next week,
Brian “You’re Human” To