This week, before I sent my son, Rabbi Yisochar Dov Taub, shlit”a, on a Chizzuk mission to your country, several of your community activists informed us that a recently enacted law effectively prevents educators in Jewish schools from speaking about maintaining the bounds of moral sanctity and shunning acts of abomination. Therefore, it is important that people from outside the schools share words of chizzuk with the students regarding this subject.

Meetings are free. Sponsors are free. G-d is free. Acting out is very expensive. Hatzlocha weighing what to do. In any case, whatever progress you have made should not be ignored. You are probably more open than ever now. Use that and build on it. If you want to work the 12 steps, then do not try to work them alone - get help and work them with a helper who uses them in his life. Ask Hashem to lead you on the right path every time you daven and bentch and talk to Hashem often. Look for ways to be more normal, more useful, and more part of the society in which you live, be it shul, family, yeshiva, kosher friends, whatever.

Hatzlocha, and remember that you have many friends, and a G-d is in the world and He will never abandon you.

This is a common question, but the answer is simple. Whether you are an addict or not is really not relevant, it's just semantics.

Let me ask you this, if you aren't addicted, why don't you just STOP?

If you feel OUT OF CONTROL (even sometimes).

If you set BOUNDARIES that you cross.

If you say YES when you want to say NO.

If you act in a way that goes against your principles.

Then you are dealing with some level of addiction.

Even if you manage to stay stopped for long periods of time, the fact you keep falling back to it means that there is likely something going on here beyond just a regular "struggle with the Yetzer Hara".

The video on the homepage of www.guardyoureyes.com can help you decide what LEVEL of addiction you are dealing with and which tools would be best for you to try (blue, orange and red).

Ok, so let's assume you have an addiction. So does that mean you are helpless? Of course not! Although we may be powerless over the addiction, that does not absolve us from responsibility to deal with it AT ALL. For example, if someone has diabetes, they may be powerless over the disease but they are fully responsible to take their insulin! The tools available on our website (such as the TaPHSiC method and the 12-Step program) give us a simple set of steps to take, which, if done properly, return us to sanity and sobriety. Like a farmer with his crops; he will till, plant, water and pull the weeds, but ultimately the growth of the crops is in G-d's hands. The farmer may be powerless over the fruition of his plants, but he needs do whatever it takes from his side and leave the rest to G-d. That is how it works with addiction. On GYE you will learn how to plant, nurture and pull out the bad so that G-d can do for us what we could not do for ourselves.

Do you have a problem with obsessive and compulsive porn use? Have you seriously tried the tools on GYE and feel that you are not getting better? Maybe it’s time to consider joining a 12-Step program.

Porn Anonymous (PA)
If you’re compulsively acting-out with pornography and masturbation we suggest you explore joining Porn Anonymous (PA). If you need help deciding whether to join PA, call Michael at 347-699-2368, or email help@pornanonymous.org to schedule a time to talk. For more information visit pornanonymous.org (Hebrew: p-a.org.il / Yiddish: pa-yid.org).

Sexaholics Anonymous (SA)
If your compulsive acting-out has progressed beyond the screen (with other people, paid sexual services, etc.) we suggest you explore joining Sexaholics Anonymous (SA). To figure out if SA is for you, call Dov at 917-414-8205, or email Dov at dov@guardyoureyes.org to schedule a time to talk. For more information visit www.sa.org.