May 4th marks the 4 month anniversary of my freedom from Phillip Morris and I would have to say that the road has been long and hard, but man was it worth it. Phillip Morris ruled over my life for a good 8 or 9 years until I had to decide for me and myself alone that my health and my future was more important than whatever instant gratification this product gave me.
I actually picked a good time to quit. Right before the big tax hike and right before the shit hit the fan with the whole economic crisis. Although I had friends who tried a variety of different methods (prescriptions, the patch, gums) I chose the tried and true method of cold turkey. Why cold turkey, well for me, I had to look at Phillip Morris as a corporate entity that was vying for control of my life. And not just control, but the decisive outcome of my life if I chose to stay on the caboose and drink the Kool-aide. But then again, before my awakening, you couldn't really tell me nothing. For I had convinced myself that Phillip Morris played a beneficial role in my life in the key department of stress relief. What would I do to keep from poppin off on folks? What would I do after breakfast, lunch, and dinner without my trusted friends? What would I do on the car ride to and from work and on breaks? What would I do in social setting? As you can see, the net was cast wide and hard and I eventually reached a point where I had had enough of my life and activities being dictated to me by my addiction.
Even now, I see people relying on Phillip Morris to get them through the hard times, but I must say that this is an absolute trick. The prestige, is really that it's the product istelf that is causing the pyschological angst rather than the preceived forces around it. I thought that when I went out on breaks, that I was alleviating the problem, but upon analysis, what I unearthed is that all I was doing was setting myself up for the hard fall.
So what is the hard fall. The LIE. The lie I told myeslf to justify my actions...the lie I engaged in whe I had to run to the bathroom or pop a mint every five secons to cover up the addiciton. Truthfully, I spent a great deal of time and effort in minimizing the offensiveness of my addiction until I realized that its time and energy that could be best spend on enjoying my life.
You could really insert whatever your addiction in for Phillip Morris and the rules will still be the same. It will still be a force that dictates your actions until you understand the network and the system you have trapped yourself in and understand that the only way out is to say "No". I learned that it wasn't really about denying myself one thing so much as granting myself the will and ability to obtain the other. And I had to understand that the results wouldn't happen overnight. Many of our basis addictions are pychological and the only way to break the chain is to understand the pychology behind it. To think outside of ourselves and our desires and see and evaluate, from the outside perspective, exactly how many areas of your life are affected by your addiction.
To say "No" is to be born again and awake from the slumber. The problem is that so many folks have no idea that they are sleeping. That is, until they hit the end of the road and their choices have led them to no end but the inevitably one. Every day and every minute is about choice and its time to stand proud with your picket sign in boycott of the forces designed to take over your mind. For if your mind is gone and you eliminate freedom and choice, then your slumber will be eternal, your awakening in vain and Phillip Morris will be right there to give your family its patriotic flag, statistic sheet, and offer for a free pack with purchase of a box of Kleenix to get them through the tough times.
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