Addicted to Pain?

Some people get addicted to pain relievers like Rush Limbaugh. Some people get addicted to the pain. They want you to spank them, drip hot wax on them, pinch them, bite them, and break their hearts. They want it, they ask for it, they create it, one way or another. Perhaps they get lots of surgeries, or one disease after another. They may even be the kind of person who ends up in jail every few months for tickets, speeding, drunk driving or simply for saying the wrong thing to the wrong person, intentionally. These are the people who like to play the victim. They will cry to you all about their ex-wives or husbands and they will dredge up all the sadness and pitiful events of their childhoods. They may be involved in dangerous sports where bones are sometimes broken and skin is often scraped off of their arms, legs and heads. They are addicted to the pain.


Linda Ronstadt sang a song once....I think it was Linda, maybe it was Carly Simon. Something along the lines of..."I don't need to feel the pain to know I'm alive."

Are you addicted to pain? Are you addicted to sorrow? Are you addicted to drama? Are you addicted to Global Warming and world catasrophies? Do you like to watch the disasters and car accidents? Do you get a thrill when you walk into a hospital? Do you perk up when you hear the neighbors fighting or is your attention always drawn to the dark side of situations? The "what if's?".

I had a client who always asked, "But what if something bad happens?" I always answered with, "What if something good happens?" She'd say, "What if I lose?" I'd say, "What if you win?" She'd say, "What if I don't?"

What if. Yeah but. If only. I'll try. I can't. blah blah blah. Pain can be addictive. It releases endorphines. The worry, the sadness, the 'what ifs' are the cause of a chemical reaction that makes them feel better.... only not. It's an energetic release that has them confused.

There is hope for these people. They have forgotten who they are. In search of the 'high' they get from worry and concern and pain they got off on the wrong path.

When emotional energy builds up and there is no place for a release, we find a behavior, habit or addiction to cure the build up of energy. We are looking for a way to release it because we don't know how to contain it and focus it on something positive. Nobody taught us.

Sex can be that addiction and it is for many people. The anxiety buids, they go find someone to release it on and all is better, for the moment. As with all addictions, the release is temporary.

...more on this later....