The addict’s definition of insanity: Doing the same thing over and over but expecting different results.
One issue that many recovering sex and porn addicts have with Step 2 centers on the step’s last four words, restore us to sanity, mostly because this phrase implies rather strongly that we are insane, and most of us think that we are not. For those of us who struggle with the ‘restore us to sanity’ portion of Step 2, it is helpful to ask, “If another person was engaging in the same behaviors as me, would I think that he or she had gone off the deep end?” Usually, if we answer this question honestly, we realize that if someone else was engaging in behaviors similar to our own, we would think that person was at least a little bit crazy. Then, based on that, we can start to view ourselves in the same light.
Task for Today
Make a list of sexual behaviors you’ve engaged in that others might view as less than sane.