Mastering Temptation and Triggers

🚨 Struggling with Temptation? Discover the 10 Commandments of Relapse Prevention! 🚨

In this episode, we delve deep into understanding the battle between our rational and emotional brains when faced with temptation. We explore how the prefrontal cortex and limbic system influence our decisions, especially in moments of vulnerability.

Key Takeaways:
- The BLAST acronym: Bored, Lonely, Angry, Stressed, or Tired as common triggers.
- Importance of keeping the rational brain active to combat impulsive actions.
- The 10 Commandment Questions for relapse prevention to help you stay on track.

Tune in now to equip yourself with essential tools for overcoming temptations and fostering self-mastery. 🎧✨

This podcast is meant to be a go to place if you're dealing in the moment with a trigger or a temptation to act out in a way that is against your moral values. Going back briefly to the 2 part brain models, there's 2 parts to our brain that is critical to have an understanding how they function. The prefrontal cortex is the rational logical part of our brain, and that's where our morals, values are. That's where we care about things. We try to make sense of things.

The limbic regions of the brain is more the emotional, impulsive functions on the premise of survive by avoiding anything that's uncomfortable or painful, and the way to do that is by seeking something that's pleasurable. So when we find in our ourselves in the state, one of the acronyms we use in addiction recovery is BLAST, blast, stands for being bored, lonely, angry, stressed, or tired, which is a normal state to be in. But have an understanding when we get in these states. It's common for the emotional brain to try to get us out of one of those states, and so at the subconscious level, it will search for something based on past experience. Remember, the hippocampus mainly involved in memory is in the limbic regions of the brain, so we're not even aware of it.

And our brain is searching for a way to get us out of our uncomfortable feeling, and so it will give you a a an impulse to pick up the drink, to pick up the drug, to pick up whatever it might be, to go view an image that might create a dopamine rush to get you out of the state that you're in. But history shows and the experience of those who struggle with addiction, it doesn't last if you act out on the temptation. It just creates more problems. So something to ask yourself if you're dealing in the moment, and this is why one of the one of the key strategies that I talk about in the language of recovery, key strategy number 1, which is awareness, learning to pay attention to your thoughts. What is going on inside of you?

And I had a client I was working with this past week where he was in this state. He amid he struggles, with an addiction to online material, stuff on his phone. He picked up his phone, and he started to push start to scroll on the button and then it then it then it hit him. It says, wait. What are those 10 commandment questions of relapse prevention that Gordon talks about?

And I'm gonna give those to you right here. So this is what you can ask yourself if you're finding yourself in a difficult moment where you're feeling triggered. And these questions, when you ask a question, it gets you out of the emotional brain because the rational, logical part of the brain is the one that you have to keep online. This is the part we are trying to strengthen in the language of recovery is becoming more aware, keeping the conscious part of the brain online to deal and to manage and to gentle the emotional brain. So these these are the questions that helped this individual, and he said and he and he pulled out of it.

And then the next morning when he woke up, he goes, man, I made it through that day because I know how I feel after I act out because I've done it a 1000 times, and I feel so much better today as he was reporting that to me. Here are the questions. So again, picture whatever the drug of choice is that you're going to, and then you ask yourself, will acting on this temptation bring me long term satisfaction or instant gratification? That's question number 1. Question 2, what will be the end result if I act on this temptation?

Number 3, if I choose to act on this temptation, will it make my life better or worse? 4, do I take 100% responsibility for my own actions, or do I blame others or make excuses? 5, can I trust and reach out for help so I don't have to do this alone? 6, is there a part of me that wants to walk away from this? 7, can I choose to follow that part that wants to walk away?

8, is there a feeling of peace that will come to me if I walk away? 9, would I feel better about myself tomorrow if I didn't act out today? And 10, will I honor the rational part of my brain that is encouraging me to walk away from this temptation. And as the individual who, I'm talking about used these questions, the very that last question, he said, yes. I'm gonna honor that part.

Because he was able to keep his prefrontal online in control. It's kinda like the analogy of the rider and the horse. He was still directing the horse. The horse didn't buck him off. He was still choosing what I'm gonna do with this, and as he did so, the horse gentled itself.

It was able to calm down or the rider gentled the horse. I mean, the horse just does what it does. And another thing that's so critical is when the temptation comes or the trigger comes for any acting out behavior that is contrary to your morals or values, just acknowledge it. There it is. There it is.

My limbic system is simply doing what it does by nature. I don't need to be frustrated by it. I don't need to be angry by it, but I need to school myself and understand that if I allow my life to be driven by this part of my brain, I will suffer. I will suffer emotionally, and and and I'm tired of doing that. And so learning from experience every time you go through this process and it's like and if you have a slip without totally beating yourself up because that doesn't do good, but seriously and honestly, look yourself in the mirror and say, am I better off for having done what I just did?

This is is this helping me in the long run? And you know what I'm talking about. As I have asked this question to clients throughout the years, I I have never had the experience of someone saying to me, I'm glad that I acted out and binged on pornography or went out and binged on alcohol or used drugs or whatever it might be. They always there's a part of them that is just frustrated by it. There is a better way.

This is the process of of self mastery, discipline, and learning to reach a higher level and honoring that rational part of your brain that says there is something better. There is something higher. It's pleasure in life is wonderful. I mean, we're not talking about being a a a monk where you're constantly denying all forms of pleasure in your life. There's no there's no that's that would make life miserable, but you gotta be wise and learn learn to use, such things in an appropriate way based on your morals or values, therein lies wisdom.

So, anyway, just wrapping up this podcast, can refer to these 10 commandment questions. Anytime you're having a trigger, just come back to this podcast, just kind of fast forward to where the 10 questions are, and just keep going over them. Ask yourself those questions and just see if they can make a difference the next time you're dealing with a trigger or temptation.