The Pendulum
of Addiction
A guided workbook for what the reach was really for, and what could nourish you instead.
- ✓ Instant PDF download
- ✓ Fillable on any device
- ✓ Printable
- ✓ Lifetime access
- ✓ Written by a licensed psychotherapist
Where do you lean?
Most people don't live at one extreme all the time - gritting it out, or reaching for relief. Notice which pattern you reach for more often.
| Willpower Alone | Unearned Pleasure |
|---|---|
| You try to control a habit through willpower alone. | You automatically turn to a substance or compulsive behavior for relief. |
| You fight the habit without addressing what you're trying to escape or soothe. | You need more over time to get the same relief. |
| Your willpower breaks down when you're stressed, disconnected, or unsupported. | You get caught in a cycle of shame, use, and more shame. |
What's inside
Each section pairs a short reflection with a worksheet - no clinical background needed, no right pace to keep. Fill it out digitally or print it and work by hand.
- Two Ways to Lose the MiddleTwo ends of the same pendulum
- Why the Pain, Not Why the AddictionThe reach
- Tolerance, and the Shrinking WorldHow the reach rewires
- The Pendulum’s Deficiency EndWillpower vs. conditions
- Safety First, AlwaysHarm reduction & safety
- Connection, Meaning, and the BodyWhat nourishes instead
- ResensitizationLetting it go
Plus a reusable Weekly Pendulum Check-In tracker - print it as many times as you need, long after you've finished the workbook itself.
Pages from the book
What changes when you actually do the work
Working through this workbook means:
- ✓Seeing the swing - the reach, the shame, the resolve, the depletion - before you're already in the middle of it.
- ✓Understanding what the reach was for, the real thing it was medicating.
- ✓Knowing why white-knuckling runs out under stress or disconnection, and what to build in its place.
- ✓Understanding where the pattern came from, so it stops feeling like a personal failing and starts feeling like something you can retrain - neither pole is a fixed trait.
- ✓Defining what could nourish you instead: healthy fun, meaning, and connection.
- ✓Feeling less shame, which loosens the grip of the shame-and-use cycle.
- ✓Knowing that new pathways can form and strengthen with practice, until healthier habits become the default.
Alexander Gino
LCSW · Licensed PsychotherapistAlexander Gino is a licensed psychotherapist with more than a decade of clinical practice. He has worked across crisis, dual diagnosis, residential, medical, and outpatient settings, mostly with adults navigating grief, mood disorders, addiction, questions of meaning, and trauma. He completed certifications in addictions counseling and nutrition that have informed his clinical work and holds a master’s degree in social work (behavioral health concentration).
Compare your options
Working through more than one pattern? The complete set covers all ten.
The Pendulum of Addiction
- ✓21 pages, including 7 guided sections & exercises
- ✓The Willpower Alone/Unearned Pleasure recognition framework, explained in plain language
- ✓A reusable Weekly Pendulum Check-In tracker
- ✓Written by a licensed psychotherapist
- ✓Lifetime access
The Pendulum Complete Collection
- ✓All ten workbooks in the series: 208 pages with 68 guided sections & exercises
- ✓Covers Risk, Control, Hunger, Emotion, Trauma, Grief, Connection, Esteem, and Adaptation
- ✓10 reusable Weekly Pendulum Check-In trackers, one inside each workbook
- ✓Less than the cost of buying six workbooks individually
- ✓Written by a licensed psychotherapist
- ✓Lifetime access
Not sure where to start?
Take the free Pendulum Questionnaire to find out where you actually land - and which workbook fits you best.
- ✓See which of your patterns are swinging, across all ten areas
- ✓Find out if you lean toward one extreme, or both
- ✓Get personalized results, so you know where to start
Questions
Is this a replacement for therapy?
No. It's educational and reflective - a companion for work you might do in therapy, or a place to start before you're able to access it. It isn't a diagnostic or treatment tool.
Do I need to be in therapy to use this?
Not at all. Many people use it entirely on their own; others bring it into sessions with their own therapist.
How is this different from a journal?
A journal is a blank page. This gives you structure: short reflections paired with guided worksheets, built around a specific clinical framework, plus a reusable weekly tracker so the practice continues after the workbook itself is finished.
What format is it, and how do I use it?
A fillable 21-page PDF. Fill it out on your phone, tablet, or computer, or print it and work by hand - whichever you'll actually use.
Can I get all ten workbooks?
Yes. The complete 10-workbook set is available as a bundle, at less than the cost of buying six individually.
Mind&Gut
The Pendulum of Addiction Workbook
The Pendulum of Addiction Workbook
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