Tag Archives: addiction

Jan15

DAY 15 (2014)

Posted on January 15, 2014 by lsgrlr

Nuff said…

There is really only one TV show I watch (maybe two…Elementary) . It’s called Person Of Interest, it’s little humorous why I started watching the show, (because it stars Jim Caviezel, who played Jesus in the Passion of the Christ…yeah, I know). After watching it the first time I was hooked. The show is a word picture of what happens when people play God. What happens you ask? We can’t control our creation and in the end it ends up controlling us. Why? We’re not God. I have been thinking lately about how so much of life is out of control. So much of humanity is controlled and lead by addictive appetites, by things we (as a people) have created that now lead us. The irony is we create them to fill a void, only to find them empty, shallow, and not satisfying in the end. Yet we can’t stop. My heart is feeling a little heavy today as I learned about another person (this one close to home) that has fallen because of a god of his own making. My post today, a warning: Beware there is a very real and present danger one that seeks to destroy us from the inside out. Arm yourself with the REAL God, because the ones of our creation will eventually destroy us.

“Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8).

So what’s my plan of attack? Trust in the REAL God.

Dec20

DAY 354

Posted on December 20, 2013 by lsgrlr

Standard

Addictions no matter are acceptable are bad. Because the take you away from the necessary.

Addictions no matter how acceptable are bad. Because they take us away from the necessary.

I am addicted to a game on my phone, Tetris. I have been playing it nonstop for the last 3 days. I am sure you all know the premise of the game, create lines to clear the board, the more lines you create the more points you get. My Tetris is an upgrade to the original it has BOMBS! Yup. The game is fun to play, but I have been realizing that it is taking up my time and causing me to make unwise decisions with my time. Addictions are like that, they start subtly and before you even realize it, it is all you think about, all you care about. My major has allowed me the opportunity to work and interact with people who have addictions. What I have learned is this, everyone is addicted to something. Some addictions are destructive and therefore easily seen. Others are acceptable to society and therefore treated as something other than what they are. The second thing I have learned all addictions can be bad (even the acceptable ones). Why? It takes our focus off of what’s really important. Today I literally had to make myself put down the game and sit at my computer to write this post (I think I may need a Tetris holiday). Addictions come in softly, slowly, and almost unnoticed. Don’t be blinded. Take stock of your life, is there something taking you away from what is necessary? Be aware it’s the subtle sins that can lead us farthest away from where we are meant to be.

“A little sleep, a little slumber, A little folding of the hands to rest, Then your poverty will come as a robber And your want like an armed man” (Proverbs 24:33-34).

So what am I thankful for today? Tetris holiday 😉 .

May3

DAY 123

Posted on May 3, 2013 by lsgrlr

Standard

This journey will be riddled with mistakes we make along the way…take the time to learn from them.
(Picture by Lisa R.)

I learned an important lesson from today. I have worked in my current facility for five years. During that time many things have changed: policies, procedures, management, etc. The one thing that has never changed, our relationship with our patients. We strive earnestly to make the atmosphere as close to family as we can. I have had patients tell me they’d rather be at our center than at home. That’s saying a lot…because we’re giving them chemotherapy. I have felt many emotions in my five years: anger, irritation, happiness, and sadness. The one emotion I have never felt…fear. Well, it turns out there really is a first time for everything. Today we all sat on pins and needles waiting for one particular patient to come in. Why? The cancer had been resolved. The patient is now cancer free. For most people this would have been AMAZING news! For this particular patient, not so much. Why? Well, because now we can’t supply pain medication. Here’s the problem the medication has gone from something used to control pain; to I can’t function without it…addiction. A mind altered by addiction is unstable. It doesn’t think logically. All an addicted mind knows is that it wants, and anything that stands in the way of that want is BAD. Add to that an already explosive personality and you have a ticking time-bomb waiting to explode. Today did not end up bad , although there were some tense moments (we prepared ourselves for all possible scenarios). After the patient left I realized this truth: just because something is good, that doesn’t make it right. We gave the patient pain killer because we wanted to do something good, we wanted to stop the pain. However, it ended badly because it wasn’t what was needed. Sometimes the best medicine is NO medicine at all. This lesson is true in life as well, we all at some point cover up pain. But in place of medication we use money, power…stuff. Let’s stop covering pain, let’s instead “heal” the need. Today would have been a much different day had this been the prevailing perspective.

So what am I thankful for today? Hard life lessons (not every lesson is easy and some come with casualties).