Je m’appelle Yoshi. J’ai le désir d’arrêter la luxure et de devenir sexuellement sobre. Ma date de sobriété est le 29 juillet 1994. J’ai aujourd’hui 77 ans et j’ai eu de nombreuses “bouées de sauvetage” dans ma vie.

One of the practical tools I have found most helpful in recovery, particularly as a method of working step 11, has been setting aside time to pray outside of my house during the day. I have worked remotely since the start of COVID lockdowns in 2020, so I am often able to get away, doing so to houses of worship nearby my home. I have also done so in parks, airport chapels, or in lobbies or waiting rooms when out and about.

I received some news about my health that I was not quite ready for. It meant multiple trips to the doctor and waiting on test results. Waiting has never been a strong suit of mine. I found myself wrestling with fear, for as a sex addict, fear can be quite triggering. Fear is the spark that, if not surrendered to my Higher Power, can start a forest fire of bad decisions.

A few years ago, I read a book, the theme of which was hiding from love. When I entered SA, I discovered—like many addicts—that I had been hiding from love my whole life. For me that’s seventy years which is no short time. A friend in SA who means a lot to me, shared that he too was hiding from love, but that God was working powerfully in his life to change him from the inside out. Slowly, a new desire for real loving connection with people began replacing his old tendency to keep away from people.

Recently during a noon meeting, we were reading Bill’s story out of the Big Book of AA. The secretary stopped us about half way where Bill wrote, “A tumbler full of gin followed by half a dozen bottles of beer would be required if I were to eat any breakfast. Nevertheless, I still thought I could control the situation, and there were periods of sobriety which renewed my wife’s hope. Gradually things got worse.” We call people like this beyond help.

This letter is for every man I ever had sex with.
I want to write this letter to make my amends to you. I have used you, either once or regularly, to fill an emptiness inside me that was impossible to fill with human “power.”

Being a sexaholic is a life-long condition, and it goes back to my childhood where I felt inadequate, unworthy, unloved, and lonely. I used to drink resentments about how I walk, talk, and my body shape. Thus, I never dismissed an opportunity to make myself feel better, including active lusting!

Traveling was never appealing to me. Why should I spend money to visit places that millions of people already visited and take pictures to bother my relatives with?

There are 19 physical meeting groups that are held regularly in Japan. One of those groups is for women only. Each group has their own schedule and may meet anywhere from weekly to once a month. In addition, there are two online groups that meet on a regular basis.

In July 1990, our oldtimer Yoshi attended AA’s 55th Anniversary World Convention in Seattle, WA, USA. He was in Seattle for a week, but as the convention was for three days, he thought about how to use the remaining days. Since he was a social worker working at a children’s center at the time, he wanted to visit a local children’s home.

Traveling per se is a great gift bestowed by God – some people cannot afford it due to physical or financial issues. Traveling broadens outlook, inspires, acquaints with new places, new people, and new countries. Whether I’m relaxing or working, traveling is a part of my life. I am so grateful to God for this gift. Why is sobriety required for me when traveling?

I’m back here again. I have missed this city. It has been just shy of a decade since I’ve been here. I breathe in the coastal air. The cooling embrace of the sea in front of me, and the towering skylines and mountains behind.

I recently celebrated my fifth sobriety anniversary in SA and I’ve never been grateful enough for that. I remember talking to an oldtimer after a meeting in my country. I was still new to SA. He had been in the program for eight years.

My name is Yoshi. I have a desire to stop lusting and become sexually sober. My sobriety date is July 29, 1994. I am now 77 years old and have had many “lifesavers” in my life.

I started my SA journey on May 25, 2021 when my husband confronted me once more but the difference this time was that my inner voice (Higher Power’s voice) strongly directed me to some God (Good Orderly Directions), so I googled, found sa.org, and got connected to an SA India sister who introduced me to the SA program.

Even after I connected with SA and started taking the steps, there were many things I did not understand. One of them was the “timing of Higher Power.” I was repeatedly told by one of my fellows ahead of me in the steps, that I would “always know” when to make amends, and to whom, and what to say to them, as long as I was properly connected to Higher Power.

Did you, like Moein in the article “Having Fun in Recovery with My Recovery Friends,” go to any length to let go of former playmates and playgrounds? Or do you still have some hidden bottles “to provide you with fun” in case recovery wouldn’t give it to you on your terms?

Most people take vacation during the months of July and August. Some take short city breaks; others go for lazy beach holidays; still others prefer weeks of hiking and trekking. Of course, people travel for a whole variety of reasons and at any time of the year—work, to visit family and friends, for religious or other personal reasons.

Sometimes the most beautiful things happen, even early in recovery. Having two kids, ages 2 and 4, gets me to places I’d rather avoid as a sex and lust addict.

1. Because one day, I could be one of them. From a prisoner’s perspective, it would surely be a comfort to be visited by people who would not condemn me, who would understand me and be willing to help me.