Every bad habit features things we do to fall before a fall. A drinker might put on a movie that glorifies partying. A gambler may call a buddy who is obsessed with talking about gambling. A person struggling with drugs might just not fight against constant thoughts of how much they need to find some drugs. A person struggling with food may allow constant thoughts of how great certain foods are. A porn addict may watch certain things that lead them to their habit forcefully.
Falling before a fall stages:
Emotional – You begin trying less. Less meetings, less studying quitting sites. Consider yelling at yourself when you enter this stage.
Mental falling – You want to fall more than anything, but you don’t want the destruction. Give yourself a wake up talk when you enter this stage. You need massive action to turn things around now.
Consider writing down 3 things that cause you to fall before a fall. Next, write down what you should be doing when you get into those things. This may take some research. Consider jotting down 7 alternatives of what you should do instead of these things.
The #1 key to avoid falling before a fall is to take action early in the process.
The #2 key is to continue to fight fiercely when you are no longer excited about quitting.
The #3 key is to work daily on “New habits.” I have formed the new habit of turning from thoughts of ______. When temptation starts I now have the habit of thinking new thoughts. I plan to write more about how to do this, this week. What new habits will you work on daily?
Finally, fighting against falling before a fall starts to increase your joy. Use this as motivation to always keep fighting. Believe that someday you will have joy. It does not always happen fast, but over time you will see it beginning to happen.
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