The Struggle That Comes After Getting Clean

Becoming sober is only the first step on a lifelong journey. Ask someone who’s been clean of drugs for so many years and they will tell you that they have been recovering instead. The problem is that just because an individual has become sober, it does not mean that the temptation has gone away. Being an addictive personality is no cake walk.

Many individuals turn to drugs and alcohol as a form of self medication. They have suffered emotionally at some point in their life to a grievous extent, with no ready support from other sources. Their pain is an engulfing thing. A potential addict won’t go to a doctor because they’re not taught to, or there is a stigma attached to admitting that they need help. Instead, alcohol or drugs serve to kill the pain.

Some addicts turn to drugs such as heroin or intoxicants like alcohol because they are depressants. Others gravitate towards crystal meth and cocaine for the euphoria. In either case, the facts remain the same: Drugs kill the pain. No having to feel anymore, just ride off on the cloud of bliss. The problem here with illegal drugs is that there is no structured support in their use, just go hide somewhere and get stoned. There is no one to talk to, no one to confide in, just the drugs taking over.

Once the addict starts the journey to get clean, they must begin to face the issues that drove them to the drug use in the first place. That look inside is hell indeed. Breaking the chains to addiction means that all of the issues that they were hiding from comes back into the full light. This is why it is so important to get counseling. Talking to a therapist gives the addict tools to move on with their life and not fall back into destructive patterns.

The temptation will always be there for the addict, even after getting sober. It never really goes away, just lies in the background, waiting. This is why the ex-addict will say that they are still in recovery.

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Why Drug Users do What They Do

Addicts don’t start out thinking that they are going to become full blown abusers. It is usually a simple matter of partying a few too many times and the brain chemistry gets hooked. Some people don’t have an addictive personality, but have a wide chasm of emotional pain that is not being addressed and finds that drugs can take away that pain. Both scenarios demonstrate that drugs have a powerful effect on the human brain, much to our own chagrin.

Not all addictions start out the same way. Someone who partakes in drugs infrequently is not going to experience much in the way of any changes, if any at all. There simply is not enough use to change the brain chemistry. Addiction is insidious. It tends to happen with the user not being aware that anything is going on. Usually a craving for a substance is as easily dismissed as a craving for a favorite fast food. By the time the user realizes they are hooked, it is too late to turn back the clock. The brain chemistry and metabolism has changed to a point that it is convinced the body that it cannot live unless a hit is obtained. This is part and parcel of why it is so hard to kick a habit.

Another way addictions form is from a desire to escape ones own existence. Certainly addicts come from all walks of life. Just look at Charlie Sheen. But those who have had a poor home life in their younger years tend to gravitate towards drugs to relieve the pain of daily life. There are those who never had a solid upbringing, received nothing but abuse from the figures of authority, and feel as if the world has let them down. Drug use takes them away from their internal pain. Someone who has felt the need to self-medicate themselves live sad lives indeed.

Condemning someone for drug use and abuse is not seeing the whole picture. There are those who use as a cry for help, and they should not be ignored.

Filed Under: General Rehab & Addiction Tagged With: , ,

What is the Definition of a Drug User?

Many people assume that those who use drugs are just that, users. What they fail to understand is that it can be so much more than being a user. Our brains have tricky ways to turn on us, creating a dependency instead of just abuse. The underlying problem of the poor perception happens because there are no physical manifestations of a dependency, so it is much easier to write someone off. This is the biggest mistake many people can make when it comes to writing someone off as a lost cause to drugs.

There are two distinct definitions that differentiate between use and dependence. It is not possible for someone to be both a user and dependent at the same time, as they are both completely different diagnosis’s. Understanding how each works can help with dealing with the user. It also helps with deciding what steps to take to convince them that they need to get clean for their own sake and others. Knowing how deep the problem runs is key.

A user is defined by someone who takes reckless actions with a complete and total disregard for the safety of others. They do not care that they have a problem and have no desire to get clean. A user is absolutely aware of their problem, but continues to persist in poor behaviors such as fighting, abusing loved ones, and getting into trouble with the law. And that is the crux of the problem. They know they are addicted, know the toll that drug use is taking on them and others, and they just don’t care. Someone like this needs a full blown intervention. They need to be sat down, have the impact that they have created demonstrated to them with full emotions, with the goal being one of changing the user’s mind about their problem and getting help.

This is the dark side of addiction. Users are self absorbed and don’t feel a need to get sober. It is night and day to someone who is a dependent and wants to get clean, but can’t.

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Defining Someone Who is Dependent on Drugs

There are two definitions of drug addicts: users and dependents. They are two completely separate diagnoses and will not overlap with one another. The irony is that a dependent type will be much more mellow and less likely to strike out at others than a user. The user is a more violent personality and has no desire to fix themselves, whereas the dependent wants to be quit of their habits.

When someone is a dependent, they are much more conscious of their addiction. By the time they realize that they have become an addict, it is usually too late. The individual does not like the whole idea of it, but does not have the tools to overcome. Because they want to be free, they tend to go to more extremes than the user in terms of use. Self-detox will happen frequently with extended periods of time spent returning to their previous level of addiction. For the dependent, drugs are a viscious cycle that is hard to break.

Over the course of a year, a dependent will usually see their tolerance to their drug of choice increase. This means that they need more of the substance to get a fix. To that extent, they will go out and make more of an effort to get satisfied for some time. All the while they are fully conscious of what their brain is after and don’t know how to stop it. In fact, they will shun social gatherings or turn down the opportunity to have some fun with their friends in order to get a fix.

This type of addiction is easier to treat as the user has an ongoing desire to be free of the substance abuse. When they are offered a hand out of the misery, they take it gladly and put more effort into the process. Many times a dependent drug user lack the tools to get away from their problems, not knowing how to find them. Rehabilitation centers offer the keys to the locks to help someone become drug free.

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Casual Drug Use Can Lead to Addiction

So many people say “Nah, not me.  I’ll never get addicted to drugs, I just use them from time to time.” And a majority would be wrong. Becoming addicted takes time and creeps up on the user quietly. All it takes is one extra line of cocaine, or trying heroin one too many times and the unconscious part of the brain takes over, demanding more and more.

There are some individuals who never get hooked on drugs and can use them casually throughout their lives. These people have non-addictive personalities which means their brains don’t take ahold of the drug like an addict does. Many are fooled by the non-addictive, thinking that if someone else can get away with taking drugs and not getting addicted, they can too. And that’s a bad assumption to make.

Addiction of any kind changes the brain chemistry, even something as mild as a cigarette. There is some type of reward for partaking in the substance, which in turn starts to hardwire itself into the brain. The more that is consumed, the more the brain changes, and not for the better. Two parts of the brain, the hippocampus and striatum have been found to be the areas that respond to drugs. The striatum is especially implicated as it is responsible for forming habits. It results in that one day, the user wakes up to realize that they are addicted and have to figure out how to stop it.

The unfortunate issue at stake here is the fact that the brain has been irrevocably changed. Neural pathways have adapted to the consumption of the drug and the eurphoria that comes with it. There is no switch that can be turned off anymore. It is stuck in the on position for the rest of the addict’s life, in turn creating an every day battle with the desire to get a buzz.

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The Ease of Becoming Addicted to Alcohol

Alcohol addiction is the same as drug addiction, but because it is legal, it is much easier to obtain and remain in a state of intoxication. The status of drugs such as heroin and cocaine make it harder to get a hold of, thus jacking up the price. It is much simpler to walk into a liquor store to pick up a bottle of the flavor of the day to get bombed.

Alcohol itself is a central nervous system depressant, or a downer in other words. Many of the negative feelings that one experiences with day to day living can be easily wiped away with a couple of drinks. What is not to like? Well, plenty. The sensation of being able to kill a pain in one fell swoop is addicting in of itself. Just like drugs, alcohol will change the brain’s neural pathways and convince a person that they can’t live without it. Satisfaction is a matter of swinging by the store and picking up a bottle, thus coming full circle on the addiction. The longer this goes on, the worse life becomes for the addict. And they simply don’t care.

There really is no easy answer to the problem. Prohibition doesn’t work, as was proven in the 1920′s. It has to be accepted that it is a legal drug, one that there seems to be no will to educate people about. Instead of making an attempt to say “It’s OK to drink every once in a while but be safe about it,” programs go to the “demon rum” excuse instead. No one wants to be seen condoning a bad habit. So those who are addicted to alcohol will tolerated much more than someone who’s hooked on hard drugs, a sad thing indeed.

Filed Under: General Rehab & Addiction Tagged With: , ,

Find the Right Rehab for You

Realizing that you need to look into rehab centers can be an almost devistating thing for anyone. Realizing that a loved one should be admitted to a rehab facility is almost as crushing. Either way though, when the addiction gets to a point that intervention is needed, the person needing help has hit a low. Finding the perfect facility to help them get to a better point is important.

There are many options all over the country for drug and alcohol rehab programs. Many of these facilities are situated in areas that offer a good climate, an amazing view, or both. There are many reasons for this, but one of the biggest is because these two elements can help those who are healing feel a little more at peace. Alcohol rehab California style allows the patients to not only get the treatment that they need and deserve, but also enjoy the gorgeous weather of the area, and the beautiful scenery of Orange county, California.

Studies have shown that when a patient is comfortable and enjoys the area that they are in, they are more likely to get past their addiction and continue with their lives in a more productive manner. In California, the rehab centers have found the perfect combination of making their patients comfortable and giving them excellent treatment and care. With trained professionals to help through all of the steps of overcoming an addiction, and the calm beauty of the area to that promotes reflection, you will find that California rehab centers can help anyone get their life back on track.

When considering rehab centers across the country, keep in mind the climate that is enjoyed the most. This can help addcits feel more comfortable in their surroundings. Making sure someone is as comfortable as possible is important in the treatment program.

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How Drugs Negatively Impact the Brain

Addicts have a hard time accepting the fact that they have a problem, despite the obvious evidence. Someone looking from the outside in can see the changes and waste their breath trying to convince the addict of them. Why is this? It’s because the brain actually undergoes a physical change when an addiction is active. The changes are subtle, so subtle that the user can’t detect anything and thinks that everything is normal. So what does happen to the brain under the influence of drugs? Repeated use of drugs will change the way that the brain looks on an MRI and how it acts. This is how someone turns from being a happy and pleasant person into a downright pain. The changes are interfering with the addicts ability to use good judgment as well as controlling any kind of behavior. It also becomes nigh on impossible to feel one’s own usual self without drugs because the craving for addiction has overrode everything else. It is much easier to quit using a drug in the early stages as the brain has not gone through much change and hasn’t adapted yet. The pitfalls come when the user realizes that the effects of the drugs make them feel really good and they don’t want to give it up. So they come back time and time again, changing how the brain works. Drugs go straight to the reward pathways of the brain, taking them over. Now these pathways want their reward, no matter what, causing the user to progress into risky behaviors to get a fix. It’s fact like these that prove that one just shouldn’t start trying drugs. Ever.

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How Treatment Facilities Help with Treating Addictions

Taking that step into rehab is a big one for the addict. It means a long road is ahead of them, one that will be difficult to walk on. Temptation is the biggest one to overcome, with wanting to relieve the misery of not having the drug is a close second. It takes individual strength to get clean and a willingness to take the hand that has been offered by the treatment facility.

Treatment begins the moment the individual steps through the doors. Some facilities utilize a voluntary lock down where the patient cannot leave for a period of time, others will not make a person stay against their wishes. The determination of the addict to get clean dictates which way to go. There really is no right or wrong type of treatment. Some addicts feel the need to be locked up to get through the initial detox period. They may have gone through treatment where they were free to come and go, then failed. Although failure is not quite the word to use. Addiction is a powerful thing and detoxing is hard on the body.

Counselors focus on the individual, not the addiction. One of the issues that comes with addiction is an overwhelming sense of shame and embarrassment. The addict wants to be free of the monkey, but cannot overcome the brain’s desire to feed it. Staying away from the actual problem and working on the person instead focuses the individual to fight instead of crawl away in shame. It is of the utmost importance that the addict learns to fight the urges, working instead towards the brass ring of being clean.

In a sense, the overall purpose of the treatment facility is to get the individual to become aware of the power they hold within. Learning that one is stronger than the drug of choice is, indeed, empowering to oneself. Walking out the door free and clear of the drugs and addiction is the first step towards a lifelong journey.

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It May be Time for an Intervention

A drug user affects more than just themselves, they also affect their family and friends. The abuser lies, treats everyone poorly, steals from them if they can, all for getting the next hit. They make everyone around them miserable, sad, upset, and angry. Who wants to sit back and watch while their loved one goes on self-destructing binges? There comes a point that those who care will either take action or walk away, and the user has to learn about this in no uncertain terms.

Coming to the point of needing an intervention is a slow process. It is rare that a full blown drug addict is created overnight. Habits take time to form and can be hidden from others for a very long time. What happens is that the problem goes under the radar until something happens to reveal the issue. Until the time that the problem is in the open, there will be little hiccups here and there, but nothing obvious. Objects will disappear, money gets “lost,” or the occasional “hey, I need a few bucks to hold me over” gets asked.

Problems start escalating when the user starts needing more and more of their drug of choice. After a while, it takes more and more of the drug to get high from as the brain becomes immune to lower doses. Addiction drives the user to desperate measures, ones they wouldn’t have tried if they were sober. A pattern of self-destruction emerges, one where the addict starts getting into trouble. It could be with family and friends, the law, losing a residence, anything that disrupts the basic needs of life.

Everyone involved in the addict’s life need to make up their mind to either come together and form an intervention, or to walk away. Ideally all would chose to do an intervention as it is a big slap in the face to the addict, usually with positive results. All who are involved need to realize that they have a job ahead of them as well, supporting the addict to become a successful ex-user.

Filed Under: Helping Addicts Tagged With: , ,
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