Addiction: It's Born Out of Loss & Trauma But Only Creates More Pain by Roxane Goss

Did you know that most addiction is born out of loss and trauma? Without healthy ways to cope, we use a substance to numb or run from the pain. Escape from it.

"Not all addictions are rooted in abuse or trauma, but I do believe they can all be traced to painful experience," says addiction expert Dr. Gabor Maté. "A hurt is at the center of all addictive behaviors.”

For two years after my husband died, I used alcohol to escape from the pain. I just didn’t want to feel anything. I couldn’t face it. The problem is when we attempt to escape from pain, we only create more pain.

Unless we face our pain – our grief – we won’t heal. We’ll remain in that dark place. Grief wins. It’s when we leave behind all that doesn’t allow us to feel and express our grief that we heal. We win!

Over the seven years I’ve been in recovery from alcohol use, I’ve built a toolbox full of tools that help me heal and remain in recovery. Exactly where I’m supposed to be.

Please know, there’s no shame, guilt or judgment for where you are at this moment. However, remember that using a substance only masks the pain. Feeling and expressing eases the pain and leads you out of the darkness.

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