I am experiencing that if I abandon prayer the temptation becomes so strong that I am almost ready to fall. I'm addressing those who have been sober for many months: have you been violently tempted in these months (or years) of no PM? And then: have you sometimes found yourself having withdrawal symptoms? For example, now after 20 - 22 days of noPM I find myself very restless and irritable. What are you saying? May the Lord bless you.
I am currently rebuilding my sobriety, but I have had years of it at a stretch in the past. I found a lot of temptation flaring up around the 2-month mark and again between 4-6 months. If you can weather those, the power of lust is much broken within you. other than these uncommon flare-ups, the first weeks are always the most difficult. Hang in there. Freedom is worth it!
Thank you! For me, strong temptations begin around the end of the first month and then continue. I have never exceeded 60 days of sobriety.
Take it one day at a time. We'll walk through it together. If you can make it past two months, I think you will be well on your way to lasting sobriety. Do not keep lust alive in your heart.
In the last 2 days strong temptations and only by a miracle I didn't fall. Maybe because I'm getting closer to my record of abstinence achieved in recent months which is around 55 days... It's difficult, especially in a continuous period of stress.
I would like to share this reflection: 2023 was for me a year in which the sum of days of sobriety numerically exceeded the days with PM. I haven't achieved great streak numbers, I've always fallen to the max around 50 days. But adding it all together this is the positive thing. It hasn't happened to me since I was 14 that a calendar year had the majority of days free from PM. For this I rejoice and thank God. I then asked myself, has this achievement of mine improved other areas of life? And maybe the answer is no. Without PM I know that I won't become a superhero but I thought that this would improve large areas of my life: in family relationships, in professional performance, in improving eating and sporting habits, in improving Fede's life. Unfortunately I didn't see much improvement, it certainly would have been worse if I had fallen and relapsed several times like in previous years, but I expected something more... What do you say?
I tried fasting for the first time (from entertainment) two weeks ago. There was one day where it did feel really great like I was finally free despite it only being around a week of quitting. It was followed by a really low low and I ended up stumbling. Whether or not I do get “super powers” once I’m free, God wants us to obey him and follow his commands no matter our circumstances. At the very least I can feel good about living the way God wants me to. I think the “super powers” so many people are hoping for actually comes from God. PM is just one way we’re resisting the Holy Spirit. We give up PM, it’ll help us see more clearly the other ways we’re pushing Him aside. In quitting we’re probably seeking Joy which comes from God. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” Galatians 5:22-23 NIV
Being free from porn doesn't give any superpowers. But being addicted to porn does sap us of our attention, vitality, etc., which becomes stunted, twisted, and misdirected. Being free from porn will open time and attention and energy that can be spent on other things. It will be a win in the self-control department. But you still have to apply that self-control to other areas of your life. Basically, our sin is a slavery. And when we are freed from that slavery, we are given the opportunity to pursue good things. Freedom from porn just opens the door to make what was previously impossible possible. For example, when we train our hearts that women are objects to be used for sexual gratification, it makes it nearly, if not entirely, impossible to truly love the women in our lives. There will always be an undercurrent in our thinking, in our subconscious, in our emotions, that want to turn every woman around us into a mere object to be used. But as you get free from porn, it becomes possible to love again. But you still have to do the work of love.
