Opposites

 Meditation and addictive behavior are opposites.  In meditation you like being with yourself, silent, in stillness, being present to the moment.  In addiction you cannot stand to be "Just" with you.  You feel kind of restless and wanting to escape.  Drugs and alcohol are ways to escape without going anywhere.  You are in the same place physically, but you don't feel so alone be it with others or on your couch.  This self-escape is of course temporary.  When you awaken, you still have the problem of you.  In meditation, you actually awaken to a sense that you are not so alone.  Plus you feel comfortable in your own skin.  Now this is a miracle if you picked up prayer and meditation instead of the drink/drug.  I know something of both and have found the meditation way to be quite better and cheaper.  Plus, I then seem to be more useful to others, such as friends that I gained instead of lost.