If you’ve been a listener here for any length of time, you’ve likely heard me talk about the destructive nature of shame everywhere in life, but especially when trying to quit pornography. The shame spiral not only leaves you feeling like there’s something inherently wrong with you, but it can lead to a sense of apathy.
As we grew up, the message we received was always that negative emotions are a problem and must be avoided. If we feel bad, we are taught that we must do whatever it takes to feel better, so it’s no wonder we don’t want to feel our feelings. But what if this is not true? What if we are supposed to feel these emotions?
In my experience of working at addiction recovery programs and the research I’ve done in this realm, the term “addicted” or “addiction” has a long laundry list of definitions. But what I have found, especially in LDS culture, is the use of this label in a way that isn’t helpful and is in fact harmful to us.
