Dear community of GYE,
Hello,
Thankfully, the last five months have been incredibly successful for me. I am just three days away from being 150 days clean (!!!). This is the second to longest clean streak that I had since I exposed to shmutz for the first time. I look forward to making this clean streak my longest streak ever, when I will – with the help of Hashem – reach 225 clean days.
My success can largely be attributed to my full schedule and the general consistency and stability of the winter season, both of which left little room for any anxiety and depression.
But sadly, over the last few days, I find myself losing grip. No; I did not fall, and I barely slipped. I just feel that I am losing grip. My anxiety is heavily kicking in, and my Yetzer Hora is doing exactly what it does every single time I have an anxiety episode; it is telling me that the world is gloomy, the future is dark, I am both helpless and can do nothing to avert the darkness, and I might as well just throw in the towel on frumkeit in general, and abstinence in particular.
My Yetzer Hora is assuring me that if I just drop frumkeit, move away to a far-flung, small and cheap non-frum town, live in an apartment alone, and have a basic job, I can live peacefully and calmly, and commit every sin in the world (rachmana litzlan) while undisturbed from the endless anxieties of living a frum lifestyle and raising a frum family.
There are numerous elements that are presently contributing to my heightened anxiety (Purim, Pesach, travel, family members etc.). Among the various elements is the coronavirus. In my mind, there are so many potential scenarios that can unfold, including, death and job loss (rachmana litzlan), amongst myself, my friends, my family and my community.
Dear fellow Yidden,
I am certain that if this phase of anxiety results in a fall (rachmana litzlan), the damage would be unbearably excruciating. Getting back to normal would be beyond difficult.
In light of that recognition, I beg those who genuinely relate to my struggles, to please inspire me and motivate me to navigate my way through this phase, so that I can leave this challenging phase unharmed…
Hashem should shower each and every member on GYE with guidance and clarity, so that everyone can leave their own challenges behind them for once and for all.