Pros and Cons on counting days off PMO

For me it's an mildly OCD thing. Not only do I like to see my counter go up, but I also check off the days on my calendar in my room. Seeing each day checked off looks good and I don't want to have one day missing a checkmark. It's a visual reward system.

Yes you should be done forever but it's not an easy goal and every trick helps. If you ever don't need it, then great. But everyone is different and who knows, I may need to check off my calendar until the day I die. Maybe... maybe not... much too soon to tell.

 

I think it's important to have a sobriety date. It works for all kinds of addicts and when you reach goals it should be reason to celebrate in wholesome ways. 12 step hands out coins every 30 days.
My personal choice is to not have a goal on my counter. I just have a sobriety date. I typically recognize or celebrate every 90 days it's a way to look back at how far I've come and a way to look forward.

 

Hey my brothers I need your help, I just relapsed and now I feel real disappointed and defeated within . I need more help in dealing with this and I feel I can't do it on my own. This addiction is bringing my life down. I need a partner that I can work with. Need your encouragement.

 

Personally I am going month by month where I'm trying to improve my score each time. This way I won't feel like a total failure once I actually do relapse and yet I keep a competitive spirit and mindset toward my reboot/rewiring process.

For example:

My score for December was 28/31. I relapsed 3 days out of a potential 31. Now I'm simply trying to beat that score and "race against myself" if you will. It definitely (at least in my case) helps with the problem of feeling down post relapse/binge.

 

Personally I think the counter has more pros than con's.

I don’t think I will ever be totally free from PMO because it will always be a few clicks away. We all need goals in life, these goals help us focus and give us purpose. For me, I relapse when I’m bored or stressed, and if I don’t have a goal in place I’m more likely to relapse. I think everyone’s goal here is to never relapse again, but if we don’t focus on that goal we are more likely to slip. I think that’s the purpose of the counter, to help keep us aware and accountable.

Just my two cents