Great question. If I had one answer it would be to change in where everyone's lives become greater than they thought was possible.

I have made huge progress following the 12 steps, and staying committed to recovery. There seems to be an argument between those who swear the 12 steps are the only way and the ones who didn't benefit from the 12 step programs, however, I have found that if it is something that helps, it was there for a reason and I can use it as a resource for success.

When I started out I just had a goal to not be a problem for anyone else anymore. I have achieved that goal, and now am a different problem in where I am such a success others are envying who I have become. I get to practice principles over personalities here, because nobody enjoys being around an envious or jealous person, however I also get the benefit of seeing their sickness and being reminded that I am working everyday to avoid that.

I personally am struggling with a disbelief that God can right my financial distress, even though most wouldn't consider it much financial distress at all. My selfishness, my need for material gain, my need for superiority in society, my need to "show up" others, that my illness creates, is the cause for my financial distress. So I have to forgive myself, that is progress, and I have to forgive myself for believing an ego that declares I will only find happiness if I am rich. I know after I do the work the 12 steps provides, that this is only the ego's fear based reasoning that I am not secure in a world watched an controlled by a loving, gentle, and understanding God.

Given that example, I am working on my ego, something popular society or mainstream information dissemination isn't going to provide, i.e. television shows, news, education, business, etc. None of the worldly things I give energy to above recovery or God, are going to provide nullifying the ego's incredible ability to persuade me to act towards my own destruction spiritually. So if I am unbiased and rigid in practicing the steps daily, regardless of the wrongs others are doing, or the ego's persuasion to not do the steps, and to not grow closer to God, my life expands to a new experience addiction cannot match, and in fact addiction looks like what it is, a pathetic soul stealing immature way of conducting and directing a life that God wants to be much better.

Does that make sense?

My goal is to be totally porn free and to avoid strip clubs so that I can focus my energy and financial resources on real relationships. I began my effort to quit last weekend. I am now on my 5th day. Days 1-3 were fairly easy. Yesterday and today have been brutal, and while I have slipped and pulled up porn on my phone and laptop, I have been able to stop myself and avoided committing to it, as it were.

It's not much... but it's huge progress from last week. I hope to keep going and get my brain back to normal

Thanks for sharing. I think it's good to see how different our goals are and to see how we're progressing because we're all in different places. It gets us out of our heads and helps us realize that there are people outside ourselves that have their own experience.

Personally, my goal right now is to more consistently be successful in avoiding porn. I use an internet monitoring/blocking software with an accountability partner which works really well for me but I would like to be able to have the willpower to be successful without that. I have slip ups occasionally when the software isn't working or I have access through other means but I'm trying to not let it get me down.