My recovery did not happen in one clean attempt. I got sober, I slipped, I started again. Some nights the only victory I had was getting to bed without giving in.

What helped me most on those nights was not a big promise. It was a small one: not never, just not yet.

When a craving hits, I tell myself I can have the thought, but I will wait ten minutes before I do anything about it. Then I set a timer and use those ten minutes on purpose. I stand up. I drink a full glass of water. I walk outside or wash my hands and face. And I say a short prayer: "God, help me through this hour."

When the timer ends, I ask again, honestly: how strong is it now? Often it has shrunk. Sometimes it has not, and then I set the timer for ten more. That is allowed. One day at a time becomes one hour at a time, and one hour becomes ten minutes.

If ten minutes is too much to do alone, call someone you trust. There is no shame in going to a meeting today. You can find AA meetings at aa.org and NA meetings at na.org.

You are not alone in this, and recovery is possible.

I wrote Powerful Christian Prayers for Addiction Recovery and Freedom to show my way. Find more tools like this in the book: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0H85JV42R