“Monsters are real, and ghosts are real too. They live inside us, and sometimes, they win.” Stephen King
Dr. Gabor Mate entitled his book about addiction “In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts” because of the never satiated nature of addictions that are manifestations of pain and inner demons. I have seen people I love be possessed by these evil spirits that they generated and fall into darkness, losing themselves and harming all around them.
We all have a Shadow, a dark side that can be harnessed or can consume us. That darkness is in all of us, and allows us to function without the naivete and vulnerability of a child. Without a touch of evil we cannot defend the good or innocent, so the awareness of the wickedness tempers us and develops us into a weapon.
Unfortunately this weapon is often turned against ourself. We self-harm in an attempt to cut the darkness out of our heart, further slicing and scarring ourselves and feeding those hungry ghosts with our blood. That exquisite moment distracts from the other pains, overwhelms the hunger for a moment but like all addictions the ghosts come back stronger and hungrier next time as we feed the insatiable.
Do not let them win. Fight the monsters within.