Editor’s note: The claims, facts, and information in this sponsored article have not been verified by LDS Living, and LDS Living does not endorse any claim or product herein.
Hey, my name is Charlie, and pornography recovery has been a very important part of my life. I wanted to share a few things I wish my parents knew about the struggle with pornography, hoping that I can help someone reading this.
Pornography entered my life while I was still in middle school. Curiosity and secrecy made me want to hide it from my parents. I didn’t know what it was; I just knew the feelings that it brought were stronger than anything I had experienced before. This started an internal conflict, and I wasn’t sure what to do with it.
After a while, my parents found out and confronted me. I knew that I wanted their help, and I told them I wanted to stop. We set boundaries, rules, and strengthened our relationship. I started seeking guidance from daily prayer, scripture studies, and spiritual leaders. During this time, my parents did three important things to help me combat these temptations in my life:
Encouraged me to find a physical outlet
- I joined the middle/high school cross country team, where through the support of my parents and peers, I started to find greater meaning and purpose. This allowed me to literally have a place to run to when I started having those temptations.
- This may not be the case for everyone, but having a physical activity is very important when trying to learn how to deal with temptations
Researched and shared resources
- Another thing my parents did to help with my struggle was actively look for resources to share and discuss with me.
- They did not force anything on me, but rather showed their support for me in a loving and caring manner. We read scriptures, talks, and even listened to podcasts from therapists.
- They encouraged me to join a pornography recovery program that helped me to find recovery support groups in the Relay app, which made a huge difference in my recovery and even led to my current job
Tried to just be there for me, without shaming or judging
- It can be hard at times to know they are struggling and may not want your help. It can be even harder seeing their life start to spiral and not being able to help.
- But by creating a relationship of love and trust, letting them know that you are someone they can share anything with, you can be there for them when they realize that it is time to change.
I was in a difficult place for a long time, but with my parents’ help, I was able to change my habits. Now I’m working to give back to others who struggle; as a Community Manager at Relay, I help mentor pornography recovery support groups in our app. I’m definitely biased, but if you or someone you love is struggling, you should try it out! You can click here to join my group and try the app for free, or look at our website joinrelay.app, and feel free to email me at charlie@joinrelay.app if there’s anything I can do to help you or someone you love.
Editor’s note: The claims, facts, and information in this sponsored article have not been verified by LDS Living, and LDS Living does not endorse any claim or product herein.