Evidence-based Way to Manage Urges and Cravings

Most people, when they have a craving to use or an intrusive thought to use, they try to suppress or fight it…

Suppressing and fighting cravings, thoughts and urges, actually strengthens them. This is because it comes from a part of the brain that is subconscious and very powerful…

And when people experience these cravings, they think that they are a bad person or that they are weak-willed… 

This isn’t true at all, and this type of thinking makes matters worse. What you can’t control, is not you and you can separate yourself from it…

The non-reactivity principle, teaches us to just observe these cravings as you have them. Just acknowledge them…

And if you do it properly, what you will find is that they will leave quickly…

They will lessen in intensity and you will find that you have greater cognitive control…

In a sense, using certain cognitive techniques that are also backed by science, can give you a third person perspective, where you can just observe and not act…

Instead of reacting aggressively to these cravings, or trying to suppress them, or fight them, or get them out of your head, you allow them to pass by simply acknowledging them, observe them naturally increase and diminish in intensity, and then refocusing your attention…

Separating yourself from them, and being okay with existing with them, makes them leave quickly, and soon, they don’t bother you…

These and similar methods have not only helped thousands of people world-wide, but also heavily supported by research…

And what’s better, is that the effects of using these techniques are long-term…

Once you start using these techniques, the easier it becomes because your brain starts to gain greater cognitive control over unhealthy thoughts and urges…

Keeping unhealthy thoughts, cravings and urges  out of your mind becomes easier and easier to do because your brain is changing…

You see, scientists refer to the brain as a team of rivals, because the brain is a multiple structured system in which different structures fight against each other for dominance…

In order for the brain to operate properly, it must be at balance.

To put this into perspective, there are essentially two parts of the brain, the Prefrontal Cortex and the Limbic System…

The prefrontal cortex is a higher functioning part of the brain which is rational and logical and it understands consequences...

But the limbic system, is a primitive brain. It has no ability to delay gratification. It is pleasure-oriented and selfish. It is concerned with seeking pleasure and avoiding pain…

This limbic system is also called the reward system because it is responsible for making us feel better by releasing “feel good” chemicals in the brain…

 Drugs, alcohol, sex, pornography and even eating, activate this ancient reward system in the brain…

And from an evolutionary standpoint, researchers have found that this reward system goes back to the simplest of life forms, nearly 600 million years before rational thought was upon this earth...

The reward system was found in anthropoids, invertebrate phyla and mollusks.

This is because this limbic system is very necessary for survival…

Our ancient ancestors were able to survive because they were rewarded through engaging in behaviors, such as eating and sex.

But today, our brains aren’t designed to deal with such ready to access rewards…

Drugs, pornography and other addictions over-simulate the brain’s reward system…

Addiction, whatever it may be, becomes hard-wired in a survival process…

It has become a part of life just as eating or sleeping…

But using researched backed techniques have been shown to change the brain, and in the same sense, rewire the brain…