As a child, I was lonely. I may have felt love-deprived or full of harbored resentment, but I needed some sort of outlet. Then I discovered a strange pet: Lust. This little creature seemed harmless as I studied it with my wide, innocent eyes. The most convenient thing about my pet was that I could keep it a secret from the rest of the world. When no one was looking, I would sneak off into the secret corridors of my mind where my pet lived and feed it.

As all lust-pet owners know, this creature did not stay small for long. The more I fed it, the bigger it got. One day I realized that it had grown into a horrifying, ferocious beast. I decided I did not want this pet anymore. Unfortunately, the beast had no desire to leave and was too powerful for me to evict. Oh, how I tried! The harder I worked to rid myself of this beast, the harder it fought to stay.

Defeated and tired, I finally decided to seek help. This was even scarier than fighting the beast because it required me to reveal my secret. How could I explain to anyone why I had adopted such a terrifying “pet”? The humiliation was painful and frightening. Nevertheless, I did it. I told others of the beast. Much to my surprise, I learned that there were others who had fallen victim to the same trap. They too had let the cute, curious little creature into their minds. Like me, their pets had turned into beasts. For some, their beasts had actually grown to be larger than mine.

However, the best news of all was that some of them had learned of a way to tame the beast. Although it can never be truly exterminated, the old-timers had worked carefully through a series of Twelve Steps and leaned on support from each other to progressively shrink the beast.

The process I learned is surprisingly simple. First, stop feeding the beast. The more the beast is fed, the stronger and hungrier it becomes. Feeding the lust beast with fantasy, images, or acting-out does not quench its hunger.

Second, let in the light. Every time the beast complains of hunger, tell someone. This gives me the strength to avoid feeding it and weakens its power.

Finally and most importantly, do not fight the beast alone. There is One who can and will help us in this struggle, if and when we call on Him. I developed a strong relationship with my Higher Power. With His strength and the support of fellow beast owners, I have learned how to tame the beast.