The Alchemy Articles
February 3, 2024
Read time: 5 minutes

I absolutely love getting sucked back into my addictions.

Said nobody, ever….

Yet, many end up going back to their unhealthy behaviors. I did it 1 million times and it frustrated me immensely.

Setting a date, pumping myself up and mentally preparing for when I would throw back my last shot and ash my last cigarette.

The more I went back on my word to myself, the more I became an escape artist and the further I would fall into depression.

"Life isn’t fair and It’s all fucked anyway.” I would tell myself. Justifying why I felt powerless in my own life.

What was dragging me back?

Breaking free from addiction isn't only about physically quitting a habit; it's a holistic transformation that requires the other aspects of our being—

EMOTIONS

Adopting a new lifestyle after addiction often involves peeling back emotional layers that have been buried for years.

It’s like rediscovering parts of yourself that have long been overshadowed by the addictive behaviors.

The emotions from childhood traumas, heartbreaks, bully’s, lay-offs, family arguments, deaths in the family….you name it.

If a life experience generated intense emotions, there is a high chance the emotions were locked into the subconscious.

Turns out, addictions are a great way to numb out, keeping us from processing the emotion.

Time doesn’t apply to the emotional body and it’s common for people to be living in the past.

These locked up emotions play themselves out in our external world over and over until they are worked through. Different flavors of experiences…..still the same root emotion.

• I invite you to take a moment, get quiet, and reflect on a specific emotional experience that you may be avoiding or numbing.

• Ask yourself: “What past experience does this emotion remind me of?”

• If an emotionally charged memory is revealed (usually from childhood), it’s a good sign that it still has momentum and influencing your present thought processes.

“Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate.”
- Carl Jung

After delving into the profound emotional layers that often lie dormant beneath the surface, lets shift our focus to the mental landscape awaiting transformation.

Just as emotions are the fuel, our mindset becomes the engine propelling us forward on this journey.

Breaking free from addiction demands not only unraveling the emotional baggage, cultivating a mindset that can weather the storms of change is a necessity for success. Let’s explore the garden of the mind:

MENTAL

Lifestyle change requires an alternate way of thinking.

A different mindset

A different Story

What happens when you release something that doesn’t serve you, and then you get the phone call, argument, something doesn’t go exactly as planned or you stub your toe?

Without a strong foundation….. you could easily throw your hands up and snap back into your old habits and vices.

I really like the analogy of the mind being like a garden.

Consider the mind as a garden where thoughts are seeds. These thoughts can be positive or negative, constructive or destructive. The seeds we plant in our minds, through our thoughts and beliefs, determine the kind of mental landscape that will grow.

Just as a gardener tends to their garden, you cultivate your mind through attention and focus. Weeding out negativity and creating space for positivity to thrive.

Addiction, like invasive weeds, takes root and hinders the growth of positive thoughts and emotions.

Using your attention and intention to laser focus on a new lifestyle is an aspect of breaking the chains of addiction.

If weeds are in the garden, thoughts that drove the old you can manifest.

What does your garden look like?

Take note of what your life looks like, the external is a reflection of your internal world.

What words are you using?

- Go through your days thinking about your thinking. What kind of thoughts show up? What quality of seeds do you have planted in your subconscious?

Words are power.

Words are catalysts for transformation. 

Unraveling the narratives we’ve constructed, both consciously and subconsciously is the first step. These stories, often laden with emotional content, shape our beliefs and actions.

Storywork acts as the gardener's tools, allowing individuals to uproot the unwanted thoughts and plant seeds of positivity. With time and nurturing, a vibrant garden of empowering beliefs blossoms, replacing the once-overrun landscape.

Storywork is the art and science of aligning your mind and your emotions to create the identity that supports your goals.

Our minds are powerful creators, and when coupled with intense emotions, they shape our reality.

I spent an enormous amount of time either drinking or staring at a screen pretending I was in a different world. Numbing myself and distracting my mind, never in my body to feel. When I tried to quit gaming, I would spend more time at the bars. When I stopped drinking, I would spend more time holding a controller. It was a deep unconscious pattern. 

"I've wasted too much time already, I'm a loser..."
"What's the point in trying, I've lost my chance at success"
"Only skill I have is on First Person Shooters"

It took awareness and courage to ask for help, and once I did, everything changed. I worked through my stories and tangibly felt an emotional weight lift from my heart. It was such an enlightening experience, and the sadness I was holding onto was finally freed.
 Once I went through the Storywork process,I was no longer a participant in MY drama, I had become the observer. I am now the writer and the director of MY story. 

Change is possible, I’m proof of it. I’m helping others, like yourself, gain awareness and step back into their power.

Each one of us has the capacity to cultivate a positive mental and emotional landscape.

No matter what experiences in life are challenging right now, the emotional content can be transmuted and the perspective changed to empowerment.

This work is emotional alchemy, and I invite you to take your first step into freedom from addiction with Storywork Alchemy.

If this is something you’d like to chat about, click here to book a call.

Till next Saturday,
Garreth Spencer