To paraphrase Marc Lewis, the eminent neuroscientist, overindulgence is a house with many doors.
There are many ways to find yourself overdoing it a bit. It could be enjoying the finer things in life, it could be fitting into a new group or situation, it could just be because you were having fun. Of course, it can come from a deeper place too: anxiety about fitting in, the fear of rejection, the shame of feeling inadequate.
Overindulgence has many doors. There are almost as many ways to get into it as there are people trapped in it. You could spend a lot of time looking back over the causes and reasons that lead to your overindulgence. But don’t.
Honestly, the door you walked through, is not that important. Identifying it won’t help you, it is not what you have done that matters. What counts, is what you do now.
There’s good news, a house with many doors is easy to exit. That’s the point – you can go out through the doors. There are lots of ways out of overindulgence. There are almost as many ways as there are people who have got free.
Sure, I have opinions on the best way to break out. In fact, I suspect that some people get free despite the method they use, not because of it. But I am convinced that there is not one single way to do it.
In essence you need to change the way you feel, the way you think and the way you act, usually in that order. There are of course many ways to do that, and I am not precious about it, it’s not my way or the highway.
So, find a door and go through it. If that’s AA, great. Easyway, wonderful. Weightwatchers, fantastic. Just find a door.
Often the most important thing to do is take the door that’s right in front of you.