Danger lurks when we try to divide ourselves with phrases such as ‘my private life.’
Sex and porn addicts share certain characteristics. One of the common traits is that sex is compartmentalized in our lives rather than integrated as a healthy element. For most of us, addictive sex is one thing, the rest of our lives are another thing, and never the twain shall meet. This is part of our denial. We keep our addictive sexual behaviors (and the shame we feel about those behaviors) locked away in a hidden part of our mind so we don’t have to think about what we’re doing and the impact it might have on ourselves and the people around us. We live a double life: our addiction, and everything else. And because we do such a good job of locking the truth of our addiction in a dark corner where even we can’t see it, we’re often a little bit shocked when our world finally and inevitably comes crashing down around us.
Task for Today
Find the compartment in your mind where you store your addiction and open it. Expose your addiction to the light of day.