Author Topic: Reducing Concupiscence (warning) (Read 10939 times)

Capt McQuigg · « **Reply #15 on:** April 14, 2012, 07:02:48 PM »

Give your mind over to spiritual concepts and ideas when you feel a lustful urge coming upon you.

Iuvenalis · « **Reply #16 on:** April 14, 2012, 07:11:08 PM »

Quote from: Marcelino

Anything cold helps. Cold shower, etc...

Obviously, exercise too.

the cold suggestion is a temporary solution that actually serves to raise hormone levels *later* which will return 'with a vengeance'

i would not recommend using cold for this.

hard work/exhaustion can indeed help though.

TradCatholic39452 · « **Reply #17 on:** April 14, 2012, 08:36:00 PM »

I can only tell you what has helped me overcome these temptations in the past.

Praying the Rosary - Especially as I am trying to fall asleep. Normally I am tempted to impurity more at this time than others. By praying the Rosary as I fall asleep I can focus on the Mysteries of the Faith until I fall asleep.

Daily Mass - Unfortunately this is difficult for me now as I only attend the Latin Mass

Frequent Confession

Memorizing Scripture

Avoiding anything that comes close to an occasion of sin. Mostly this is media and people.

Ascetik · « **Reply #18 on:** April 14, 2012, 09:25:42 PM »

Quote from: Iuvenalis

the cold suggestion is a temporary solution that actually serves to raise hormone levels *later* which will return 'with a vengeance'

i would not recommend using cold for this.

hard work/exhaustion can indeed help though.

This is very interesting because I have been told by at least 3 confessors in the past to take cold showers or to turn the water on cold towards the end of the shower. I can't say I distinctly remember being more tempted later on after taking a cold shower, but I can recall a few times where it seemed like it did get worse after the shower. I found a good penance is to walk around barefoot on gravel or outside in your yard where the ground is rough while praying the rosary or some other prayers.

But the same confessor also told me hard work/exhaustion is very effective and said that we should tire ourselves out everyday to avoid these temptations, so that is definitely solid advice.

Marcelino · « **Reply #19 on:** April 20, 2012, 12:10:05 AM »

Cold works for me. Also, meat gets me going. It's weird though, egg whites don't seem to have the same effect. Exercise definitely blows off steam, but it works both ways. On the one hand, I'm very tempted to over eat if I don't exercise, which automatically tempts me to entertain lustful thoughts. (definite link there!)

On the other hand, if I exercise intensely, on a regular basis. I mean if I really step it up, then I get these "super man" bouts of temptation.

I don't know if that's hormones, pride or just good blood flow, but it is real! Maybe it's just one more of God's ways of keeping us humble.

Vladimir · « **Reply #20 on:** April 20, 2012, 12:26:13 AM »

I took cold showers for a while, but it didn't really seem to help - I'm talking about freezing water, even in the middle of winter.

Also, my health no longer permits me to take cold showers, since it's really easy to catch a cold that way.

Memorizing scriptures and works by the Saints seems like a very good idea that I haven't thought of previous to this. Thank you.

In The Way of a Pilgrim there's a story about an old soldier who had a problem with alchohol and he met a hermit who told him to read chapter of the Gospels everytime he felt the temptation and if it didn't go away, read another chapter, etc until it did. After a while, he was able to quit alchohol, and every day he read one of the Gospels, or if he was unable, he had someone read it for him .

This is a very good idea.