Category: Articles

purpose in recovery

Finding and Knowing Your Purpose

Articles, Australia, International, Malaysia, Understanding Addiction, United Kingdom, United States

Purpose In Recovery – Addiction is a thief, but one we often invite into our lives and cannot seem to get rid of in a timely manner. Addiction steals purpose, truth, and many other things, feelings, and emotions. These things are not truly missed until recovery begins and then it may be slightly overwhelming for some. The good news is that even in this desperate time you can find a purpose that will lead to a better life.

Many people are not happy in their lives, this includes addicts. Those who are happy tend to know their purpose and enjoy sharing it with others. The way to find your purpose is to answer a few questions about yourself. Five basic questions can aid you in discovering and moving toward your life purpose in recovery. The first two questions are about you: Who are you and what do you do? The last three questions are about those who will be affected by your purpose. Who do you do it for, what do these people want and need, and how have others changed as a result of what you do? If you do not have a purpose yet then you may have to answer the last few as what you hope to have happen.

Before you answer these questions know that those with a purpose tend to be focused on those they are helping or changing, not on themselves. Your purpose is to make a difference for others. When you find your purpose it will help others even if that is not your initial intention. Those with purpose want to share it and this in turn affects others. When in active addiction a purpose is usually singular, to gain access to your drug of choice. This also effects those around you, but in a negative way. Now that you understand what needs to be answered about a purpose here are some tips on how to find your personal purpose.

Life purpose in recovery is not an in your face thing, it is elusive, but can be found by putting one foot in front of the other until you simply know what your life’s purpose happens to be. Purpose tends to evolve over time. Your purpose may begin small, but can grow exponentially with time and effort. Your purpose tends to emerge from experience. Use what you know to help others in your purpose, but be willing to adjust as needed. Your purpose will become clear at the exact right time for you as you are eminently qualified to your purpose in life. As you search for this purpose enjoy the adventure. You may have bumps along the way, but once your purpose is found you can do great things.

Though purpose in recovery is important do not get too stressed about finding yours, it will become clear in time. Simply be present in the moment and delight in watching it unfold. This is important whether you are in recovery or just trying to find more meaning in your life.

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Honesty in Recovery

Honesty in Recovery

Articles, Australia, International, Malaysia, Understanding Addiction, United Kingdom, United States

Honesty above all else. Honesty is the best policy. These are phrases you have probably heard your entire life. Honesty is very important but we live in a society where lies are prominent. In fact there are times when we are encouraged to tell white lies or half truths in order to keep from offending someone or hurting their feelings. This will not work in recovery. Recovery requires rigorous honesty. So much so that we are often put in uncomfortable situations, but honesty in recovery is still required.

Maintaining and staying in recovery is the ultimate goal. When you are in recovery it seems everyone has some piece of advice that is meant to be well meaning. Some advice may be helpful while other advice could lead to problems. Being honest with the people that offer this advice is key to maintaining balance. This is all part of what is known as rigorous honesty.

Lying is second nature for addicts as it is part of the lifestyle. The goal for an addict is more drugs and this often requires lying and using dishonest techniques. This means that when you enter into recovery you must learn to change this behavior to rigorous honesty. This may mean at times people get angry at you for being totally honest, but it is still necessary. This is not an opportunity to be mean, just honest. This is a lifestyle change that is necessary to overcome the behaviors of addiction. In time being truthful will become habit.

There are reasons behind rigorous honesty in recovery beyond breaking addiction. When someone is always honest about things then trust is built with others. Additionally, when you stop telling lies and half truths you never have to remember what you said as it will have been the truth from the beginning. Truth is also important to addicts as a way to build trust in themselves. It is hard to trust one’s judgment if you are not honest with yourself. This can be difficult because being honest with yourself about your faults and even your positives can be unfamiliar. That being said you will probably not always tell the truth. This is just a fact of life. When you find yourself lying, make it right. Admit what you have done and take the consequences with pride as you have done the honorable thing.

Honesty in Recovery

Recovery is a process. This process takes time and a great deal of learning to be the best person you can be in life. Rigorous honesty is the best way to start this process. You have already made the first major step in admitting you are an addict, keep the motivation going and stick with this type honesty. Are there things in your life that you have been hiding or lying about to others? Admit these things if they will not cause the others undue harm. Are there things you have been lying to yourself about? Being honest must extend to yourself as well. So wait no longer, make a list of things you have lied about and start correcting them as you can. You will feel better and can start your journey with a fresh slate.

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battling an addiction

PTSD and Substance Abuse – Understanding How The Two Go Together

Articles, Australia, International, Malaysia, Treatment, Understanding Addiction, United Kingdom, United States

Battling an Addiction – This is part two in a two-part series about Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.

In part one of this series, we defined PTSD, discussed the situations that can cause the disorder, and listed the symptoms. Now, let’s talk about why people often turn to drugs and alcohol to numb the pain of Pots-Traumatic Stress Disorder.

PTSD Causes Painful Memories That Can Become Overwhelming 

Usually, the symptoms of PTSD show up immediately after someone has experienced trauma. However; someone can repress memories of whatever trauma they experienced. When that happens, those memories can resurface years after the traumatic event has taken place and begin to haunt the person like an old ghost.

In either case, it is usually the memories of the trauma that are the most disturbing aspect for a person who suffers from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. These are experienced as vivid flashbacks of the trauma.

Someone with PTSD will reexperience the event over and over, in spite of the fact that they don’t want to. This usually happens in the form of violent pictures that appear quickly and suddenly in their mind. These disturbing images are very painful and can cause someone to feel as if they are going insane. As much as they try to push these mental photographs out of their head, they are simply unable to do so.

These flashbacks are the mind’s way of working out the event and trying to make sense of it, but this doesn’t matter to the person who is experiencing these painful memories. They just want an escape – and they usually turn to drugs and alcohol to numb the pain.

Battling an Addiction – PTSD And Substance Abuse Often Go Hand-in-Hand

Because PTSD is such a disquieting and uncomfortable experience, it’s no wonder that up to 75 percent of all people with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder turn to drugs and alcohol as a way to cope with their condition. It is not uncommon for people with PTSD to get drunk, abuse prescription medications like Hydrocodone or Oxycodone, shoot heroin, snort meth, or smoke crack – ANYTHING that will numb the pain of the painful experience of having to relive their trauma over and over again.

This is unfortunate. The use of drugs and alcohol will never be a solution for treating PTSD. In fact, studies show that alcohol and drugs only make the symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder worse.

When someone is abusing mood or mind-altering substances and has PTSD, they develop what is called a co-occurring disorder. This means instead of having just one mental health issue, they now have two. By developing a substance abuse problem in conjunction with PTSD, they require help for their Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder AND their addiction to drugs or alcohol, which really complicates matters.

If You Have PTSD, Get Help – Don’t Turn To Drugs Or Alcohol As A Solution

If you have been struggling with PTSD, it can feel like all hope is lost, but it’s not. You can get help for your problem. There are a lot of options available for treating Post Traumatic Stress Disorder; including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Exposure Therapy, Dialectic Behavioral Therapy, Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), and medication treatment. Talk to a doctor and see which one is right for you.

If you are currently battling an addiction to drugs or alcohol, you need to get help for your substance abuse problem before you can address your PTSD. You may want to consider an in-patient treatment program that specializes in co-occurring disorders.

With time, things will get better. Keep fighting the good fight.

CLICK HERE to get a Free Confidential Addiction Rehabilitation Assessment.

PTSD and Substance Abuse

PTSD and Substance Abuse – Understanding How The Two Go Together

Articles, Australia, International, Malaysia, Treatment, Understanding Addiction, United Kingdom, United States

PTSD and Substance Abuse – This is part one in a two-part series about Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder – A Simple Definition 

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is an anxiety disorder that develops as the result of someone witnessing or experiencing a serious trauma or injury. PTSD is considered a serious psychiatric disorder, but it does not necessarily represent a lifelong condition. People who experience PTSD can recover from their diagnosis and go on to live normal and fulfilling lives.

However; those who are in the grips of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder find that the condition is all-consuming and interferes with their daily lives. Many who suffer from PTSD turn to drugs and alcohol a way to cope with the disorder, which not only makes the symptoms worse, it creates a whole other monster to deal with.

What Situations Cause PTSD?

Many people associate PTSD with soldiers who have served in combat, but anyone who has undergone a serious traumatic event can experience the debilitating symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. For example, many of the people who experienced the tragic 2004 tsunami in Thailand suffered with PTSD for many years afterward.

Here are just a few situations that can cause PTSD:

  • A car accident
  • Sexual assault
  • Physical assault
  • Witnessing a crime like a robbery or an assault on someone you care about
  • A severe weather event like an earthquake, tsunami, flood, or hurricane
  • Living in a combat zone
  • Being a soldier who fights in a war
  • Witnessing the death of a loved one
  • Surviving a terrorist attack
  • Being a child who lives through physical, verbal, or emotional abuse

Anyone who witnesses or experiencing an event that results in injury or tragedy is likely to experience at least some degree of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.

PTSD and Substance Abuse – Symptoms of PTSD

When someone experiences trauma, the mind has a difficult time making sense of the event. The trauma is so upsetting, it will cause the person to question everything they think they know about life and reality. Their sense of safety and comfort will be disrupted because life as they once knew it no longer exists. It can cause someone to question their spiritual beliefs, their existence as a human being, and their very place in the world. 

As a result, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder plays tricks on the mind. It will try to make sense of the event or events that have taken place by working them out through a series of uncomfortable symptoms.

Here is how PTSD expresses itself:

  • Depression
  • Suicidal thoughts
  • Anxiety
  • Panic attacks
  • Flashbacks to the event
  • Repeatedly thinking about the trauma
  • Sleep disturbances like insomnia or too much sleeping
  • Nightmares where the event is replayed during sleep time
  • A heightened sense of awareness and distrust of the environment
  • A lack of motivation or inability to perform daily tasks
  • The absence of joy and a loss of interest in daily activities
  • Problems with important relationships
  • Difficulties at work
  • Challenges carrying out basic responsibilities
  • Substance abuse to cope with all the symptoms listed above

PTSD and Substance Abuse – Needless to say, someone who struggles with PTSD can find it difficult to deal with life after a traumatic event because the symptoms can be so overwhelming. 

Be sure to check out the second half in this two-part series about Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.

CLICK HERE to get a Free Confidential Addiction Rehabilitation Assessment.

sex addicts

Sex Addiction

Alternative Treatment, Articles, Australia, Celebrity Rehab, Education, International, LGBTQ, Malaysia, Treatment, Understanding Addiction, United Kingdom, United States

Sex Addicts – While Sex Addiction is not officially recognized as a distinct addiction such as alcoholism or heroin addiction, it is quite real and it can be devastating. Experts and treatment professionals generally agree that there are a cluster of symptoms which constitute sexual addiction. Sex addiction, or hypersexuality, is difficult to diagnose largely because the line between a healthy and active libido and problematic sexual behavior is hard to define. Essentially, if one is so preoccupied with sex and engages in sex to the extent that these thoughts and behaviors negatively impact one’s life or get in the way of normal daily activity, then one is in danger of being addicted to sex. The difficulty is that psychologists have been reluctant to use the term “addiction” for this type of issue. Just a few symptoms may help a person decide if they are wrestling with this problem:

If one experiences continual and prolonged sexual fantasies to the exclusion of other thoughts.

Time spent engaging in sexual thoughts and fantasies interferes with regular activities.

If sexual thoughts and urges come as the result of other problematic feelings (anxiety, depression, etc.)

Engaging in sexual behavior without regard for social and legal consequences.

Sex addicts are generally vexed with a constant and unrelenting preoccupation with sex. Their thoughts about sex and engaging in sex persist to the exclusion of nearly every other aspect of their lives. It is normal to have sexual fantasies, but for the sex addict, engaging in sexual fantasies is on the order of an obsession. Their thoughts about sex interfere with other activities.

Another important feature of sex addiction is the problem of engaging in sexual activities without regard for social and legal consequences. Sex addicts, as opposed to those who engage in normal sexual activities, will engage in sex in the work place, in public, and other places and times in which there can be severe social and legal consequences.

Psychological experts generally agree that sex addiction arises from other issues and problems. Depression and severe anxiety issues are just two of the conditions which professionals have linked to what we now call sex addiction. Essentially, sex addicts are driven by deep psychological problems which are by and large untreated and they seek to escape from these difficulties by engaging in sex and endlessly obsessing about sex. Doctors have met with some success in treating sex addiction with antidepressants as these medication alleviate the underlying cause of sex addiction.

An unfortunate consequence of sex addiction is the prevalence of STDs and HIV/AIDS if people who have been diagnose as sex addicts. One of the stand out feature of sex addiction is indiscriminate sexual encounters. Many of these people do not use protection. The result is an tremendous increased risk for STDs and even HIV/AIDS. People who demonstrate the signs of sex addiction should find help as soon as they can. There is Sex Addicts Anonymous, as 12 step recovery program much like AA, which can help people recover for sex addiction. There are also an increasing number of treatment programs which specialize in sex addiction.  

CLICK HERE to get a Free Confidential Addiction Rehabilitation Assessment.