How to know when you need outside help?

[Zion]

I've struggled with addiction to many unhealthy things for most of my life up until the past 3 years, and as I've tried to remedy them, I keep falling short & going back to my old ways. Of course I may be a lot better than I was 3 years ago, but the habits & addictions continue to stay prominent in one way or another. I'm not necessarily trying to rid myself of these addictions, I'm moreover trying to replace them with healthy alternatives & I'm REALLY struggling to do so. Perhaps I'm being very impatient, but I like to think that there are quicker methods to becoming healthier habitually. I should also note it's not in my current nature to accept that much help from others, my ego is still quite prominent in that regard.

How do you know if you need outside help? 

What are some indicators that instigate that you might need help & that you alone can't currently help yourself the way you want? (Of course I'm already against this idea in my head, because my ego doesn't like to think that it's incapable of anything. It's almost like an intuition telling me to ignore the help from others.)

Thanks for any help!

[Tim R]

@Zion You have to honest with yourself, then you'll know.

Say you want to break an addiction and you try, but only halfheartedly. If you're honest with yourself, you will automatically know that this wasn't the best you could do. But if you really give everything you have and it still doesn't work, you can seek help with a clear conscience.

Help only works because it adds to your capacities. Help might give you the remaining 10% you didn't have. But if you don't really try in the first place, help will probably not be enough.

Which is why honesty is so crucial. It will tell you when you need help, because you'll have a clear conscience. That's the function of your conscience, it tells you where to go and what to do, it's what keeps up your integrity.

[Roy]

You answered it yourself friend

5 hours ago, Zion said:

How do you know if you need outside help? 

 

5 hours ago, Zion said:

you alone can't currently help yourself the way you want

 

[Nahm]

If you needed help you wouldn’t have a choice, but you do, and really it’s just like anything else. Getting help is you choosing to help yourself and get where you desire to get to. Take the path of least resistance. 

[Logan]

On 5/11/2021 at 7:02 PM, Nahm said:

Take the path of least resistance. 

I need to learn this one here.

[Gianna]

I think posting this is a great first step for someone who's reluctant to help. The forum, in general, is such a good place for those stuck in this middle ground area.

 

For me, I think a good tell-tale sign that you need outside help is when you start to question your own capabilities. After all, how much help can you give yourself if you are unsure about your own judgment? This is something I am struggling with. I really do not feel like getting outside help at all. I'd rather do it myself. But you do not know what you do not know. What I think to myself is that you'll never truly know the progress you can achieve outside of just your own help unless you test the waters. If you have nothing to contrast your progress with (by using other techniques) you'll never know.

 

Hopefully, others will give their experiences with getting outside help to see how productive it is in comparison to self-help and our beautiful online community. 

[BipolarGrowth]

When you reach a breaking point, you will know it. Your question is about how to know when you need help. I would say that doesn’t matter for you. In your case, you could benefit from help before it becomes a need. This is the wise choice.