DAVID SIMON MD: Almost everyone suffers from some kind of addiction. Although relatively few people inject heroin or smoke crack cocaine, many of us are addicted to cigarettes, alcohol, food, work, the internet or shopping. We might have more subtle addictions to approval, perfectionism, control, emotional drama or just being right.

No matter how self-destructive they may appear, all addictions have a purpose. When we need to shift our emotional state and do not know how to create the change from within, we reach for something outside - trying to alleviate feelings of pain, loss, anxiety, disappointment, boredom, loneliness, alienation, and sadness as quickly as possible.

At the root of addiction is a natural impulse to satisfy our human needs for security, comfort, self-esteem, sensory gratification, and power. But at a deeper level, we know that that our addictions cannot fill the emptiness inside ourselves and will not lead to lasting peace and inner satisfaction.

If you are reading these words and suspect you have a life-harming habit, the first compulsion I'd like you to release is self-distain. My experience treating patients with addictions is that they have a number of false beliefs about themselves and the nature of addiction. In reality, people with addictions are no different than others - they have simply chosen a detrimental or socially unacceptable way to meet their core needs. Rather than wasting time or energy criticizing yourself, begin your journey to healing and transformation by replacing life-damaging beliefs and behaviours with those that are life supporting.

Read the following statements several times. The purpose isn't to turn them into affirmations, but to recognize their inherent truth:

My addiction isn't a desire to hurt anyone, including myself.

Although I am good at rationalizing my addiction, I know at the core of my being that my habit is not serving my body, mind, or soul.

I recognize that at some level, my addiction is a substitute for love.

I would free myself from this life-damaging habit if I could find a life-honouring substitute that fill my needs equally well or better.

Even though I may doubt it, in my heart I know that I am capable of releasing this negative habit and replacing it with positive ones.

My effort to find relief in substances is an expression of my spiritual quest to find peace.]

When you recognize the inherent truth of the above statements, memorize them.

This is the first step in finding freedom from addiction. In my work at the Chopra Center, I've seen that when motivated people cast off their distorted self-perceptions, they gain access to their own immense capacity to make evolutionary choices to catalyze healing and transformation.