Enthusiasm for recovery and a newfound willingness to be honest without careful consideration before sharing can lead to an awkward situation. 

In early recovery, I was so thrilled about having found a solution for my problem that I wanted to share it with everyone. My wife already knew about my addiction because she caught me many times. I told a friend who is a coach and a psychologist. It was in addition to things we had already spoken about. A couple of weeks later, my wife and I met at her place, and she had a visitor who was also a coach and psychologist. That friend and I went to buy something by car. We spoke a bit, and I decided to tell her about my lust addiction and the solution of Sexaholics Anonymous. When we got back, I told our friend and my wife about my disclosure. Strangely enough, I saw some frowning faces. On the way home, my wife said, “Are you insane? You are disclosing to someone who is actually a complete stranger to you?” In my enthusiasm, I forgot that this kind of confession also affected her. This was another one of my problems: lack of boundaries.

I made amends to my wife and spoke about it with my sponsor. I decided to be cautious and not reveal my sex addiction until I got a good amount of recovery. 

I had to be really careful about whom I told about my addiction. I told only a handful of good friends after my wife completely agreed. None of them judged me; they just accepted me. It feels good to be able to trust and share something so intimate. In a way, it deepened my relationship with those people. 

Now I don’t feel the need to tell people about my addiction anymore. I guess most of the people who really matter to me know about it. I think working the Steps helps restore me to sanity and to trust a power greater than myself. The Steps help me to know what actions to take and to know when no action at all is needed.