Copyright 2006 Cole's Poetic License
"What you resist persists; what you accept disappears."
I don't know where I found this Buddhist concept because I
memorized the thought instead of the source. I doubt that Buddha
would mind.
I memorized it because I had to. You see, all addictions are
responses to unresolved emotions, feelings long buried in the
subconscious mind.
When we bring those feelings into conscious awareness, we can
let go of them. Then the need for whatever we are addicted
simply floats away.
The hard part is accessing the source of the need.
I used to be addicted to cigarettes. I started smoking when I
was a sophomore in college, one cigarette a night so I could
sleep. The feelings that kept me awake were fear that I couldn't
keep up, "cut the mustard," plus the ever-present need for
approval. I was not aware of them at the time.
After three months of smoking one cigarette a day I was hooked.
I wanted to breathe deeply more often than that. Inhaling the
nicotine deeply gave me freedom from anxiety. I believed that it
cleared my head and enhanced by ability to comprehend and to
write.
When I finally accepted the fact that smoking was harmful to my
health, I tried several ways to quit, unsuccessfully. "What you
resist persists; what you accept disappears."
I didn't know at the time what to accept, but I did go to a
hypnotist for help. He asked me if I really wanted to quit
smoking. I answered, "Yes."
He said, "Then give me your cigarettes."
I'll never forget that moment. He had me lie on a table hooked
up to a bio-feedback machine that would ring a bell when I
relaxed. Do you think I could ring that bell? No way!
Nevertheless, he put me in a light trance and made a tape of the
session.
He taught me how to breathe deeply and had me say, "Smoking is
harmful to my body. I need my body to live. I want to live."
He gave me the tape and told me to listen to it every night for
21 days.
I was amazed to discover that quitting was not horrible.
Instead, I felt truly free. I've since learned that my freedom
came from releasing my anxiety through deep breathing. Every
time I felt the need for a cigarette, I inhaled and exhaled air.
In doing so I accepted my anxiety, and pretended I'd just
finished a cigarette.
There are other addictions I have fought, other needs that took
years to discover that I could satisfy much more simply than by
eating peanuts. Had I not resisted those needs, I would not have
gone to doctors who happily prescribed medication to cut my
appetite.
I did not tell the doctors what my appetite was for. They didn't
ask. My appetite for approval could not be satisfied by peanuts
or anything else until I approved of myself.
"What resists persists; what I accept disappears." I accepted my
childish need and no longer crave peanuts. The funniest novel I
wrote is about a woman addicted to catalog shopping. (Called
"Gambling for Good Mail" it comes out early 2006)
If you feel addicted to anything and want to release it, write
about it fast.
Write about it with your non-dominant hand, too. You may be
surprised at what your subconscious mind delivers through that
hand.
Here's to a free life!
Evelyn Cole, The Whole-mind Writer
P.S. If you find yourself resisting to uncovering those old
feelings, accept your resistance and then let it go.
About the author:
© Evelyn Cole, MA, MFA, The Whole-mind Writer,
http://www.write-for-wealth.com evycole@direcway.com Cole's
chief aim in life is to convince everyone to understand the
power of the subconscious mind and synchronize it with goals of
the conscious mind. Along with "Mind Nudges" and "Brainsweep",
she has published three novels and several poems that dramatize
subconscious power.
