Primum non nocere.

Translated into English: First, do no harm. This sentence is best known from the Hippocratic oath, an oath of ethics doctors take upon graduation.

With or without a doctor helping you to get better, are you willing to stop intentionally doing what harms you? And if you are willing to stop that, will you stop “Cold Turkey”? Instantly, and once and for all?

But more importantly, are you even aware of what is causing you harm?

What is predisposing you to this? In other words, what is making you vulnerable?

What is initiating this harm, and when and how did it start?

What is maintaining this? What have you not changed yet that will help you make a change for the better eventually?

Discomfort, pain, and other complaints should all be a cause for reflection. To analyze what is going on and what contributes to your well-being or ill-being at this moment. Pain without reflection is a recipe to make your suffering last longer.

First: reflect. “Primum reflectunt”

Otherwise, we should not even be thinking about cold turkeys but about “cold ostriches.” Head buried in the sand, ignoring what is there, hoping it will pass.