Hey I've been lurking around the site for about a year and I've been telling myself that the next time if I fall I'll post and see if it helps. I've been trying to do 90 days but I can only get to 2 weeks at a time( if I'm lucky). So here it goes...
day 3
chaim

Welcome aboard Icandothis. It's gonna be a great ride :-)

Chazak Vematz and keep on posting.
At some stage the GYE site will become addictive and won't leave you time for the rubbish the internet offers. By the way do you have a filter?

Yitzchok

your user name says it all

I also just finished my first post. I made a similar commitment. I said that next time I feel a slip coming, I would distract myself by posting. I'm not sure that the feedback will be helpful but the distraction certainly worked.
Don't get to down. Don't forget that it is not just about the "Current Streak" it is also about the "Cumulative Days" and even "Cumulative Seconds" (though not currently tracked on the profile page). Every second that you push off the Yetzer Hara makes you stronger, him weaker and the Rebono Shel Olam prouder.
(Wow, as my first response I'm not sure if I'll inspire any of you, but I definitely inspired myself. I didn't think that I had that in me.)

NeedToQuit wrote on 08 Nov 2012 05:41:


I personally think you (N2Q) are wrong and I believe most veterans will agree with me. It is not the current streak at all, it is how many cumulative days you have and who is winning more battles. I even saw someone post that he thinks there should be more of a stress on cumulative days than what on 90 day freak streak in the 90 day chart. The only problem with that would be the veterans will always be at the top because they have started earlier and have accumulated more clean days.

Yitzchok

Jewish Jew-

I think thats what N2Q meant. Both of you believe the same thing, just phrased differently. Great advice both of you! Thanks!

Icandothis wrote on 07 Nov 2012 00:48:


Dear Chaim,

You are already ahead by using your real name! May Hashem bring all this to you in a real (not virtual) way - the only way it works. Can you post before you act out your lust, though? That's far more valuable than doing it afterward. Though an hour after is far, far better than a day after, and much better than never....

Either way, y'yasher kochacho chabibi!

- Dov

For me it's never been about cumulative days or consecutive days.
I simply made a full, no-turning-back commitment to truly giving up lusting.
When a challenge comes up, I renew this commitment and respond accordingly.

One day at a time.

I'm up to day 5. The next couple of days friday and Motsei Shabbos are the hard parts. The rest of the week I'm too busy. When it comes to friday and motsei shabbos I have more free time. I've been holding up on these days because I would watch movies online as a pastime, but there are no movies that interest me as much to watch. I'm going to think of ideas to keep me busy. I want to make sure I think up of an idea so I'm going to post exactly what I'm going to do on some/if not all of my free time.

jewish wrote on 08 Nov 2012 16:54:


Thank you, cantdoitmyself, for pointing out that Jewish Jew and I agree.
However, I would still like to point out what I see as one advantage of focusing not just on cumulative days but on consecutive days. I have a Rebbi who once told me (regarding an entirely different subject) that it is always easier to stay clean that get clean. The reason is that one says to himself, "I have 5 days under my belt already! How can I throw that away?" Compare that to: "I'm gonna stay clean starting today." The Yetzer Hara just responds, "You have nothing to lose by starting tomorrow." While we all know how wrong he is, he can sometimes prove to be very convincing.

I can't see how anyone can get sober while watching any kind of movies. They all contain attractive actresses. Same goes for TV. For us they're poison. They are small doses of the lust drug. They feed the addiction. We must starve it.

alexeliezer wrote on 09 Nov 2012 16:09:


Amen
(Maybe for other people it works differently, but for me, the above is my modus operandi)

We all feed the lust, until we are actually serious about abandoning it. Then we keep feeding it until we get the help we need to abandon it successfully. Then we keep feeding it until we are finally convinced beyond any shadow of doubt that we really need to implement this crazy-sounding help. Then we keep feeding it until we actually implement it.

Gevalt, how we all fight ourselves.

But it is a process and it seems there are no shortcuts.

- Dov

Today I B"H was busy with homework for college. Day 6