As I have worked on myself more and more, I have come to see some very important things. I would like to share with you some of these things in hopes they may help you along your journey as well. Recently, I realized I always had a ‘weakness’ for chocolate chip cookies. I just thought that was how I was. It was ‘my weakness’. But what did that mean? What I have come to realize is that that ‘weakness’ is my substitution addiction. When I was younger, when my world felt chaotic, unstable and lonely, I would go and buy chocolate chip cookie dough. It always calmed me down, made me feel better and gave me a sense of control. As I have done more work on myself, I saw that I no longer always feel ‘weak’ around chocolate chip cookies. I only crave them when my world feels chaotic, unstable or lonely. But now as I have gotten older, I see that that is not the best way to deal with those emotions and feelings. It was not a hunger I was feeding, it was an addiction, and an unhealthy one. As I have brought these unconscious actions in to my awareness more and more, I have slowly regained control over those immediate impulses. I am now taking back control over my reactions to my emotions. I am no longer letting my ego drive on autopilot. This was my way to feel control over my world when I was younger, but now it was controlling me. It is such a beautiful thing when you learn new things about yourself. How liberating and freeing it is to say, “That was then, this is now”. Now I am going to control and navigate my life in a direction that is healthy and helpful. I am no longer driven by my past destructive behaviors. As you look at the things in your life that are not serving your better good, become aware of them and slowly take back your control from them. This is how we start to live in our higher power. This is how we become free of our past and begin to move forward.