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Addictions and Recovery

By Expert Author: Lou Peters
View Summary | Submitted: 2007-12-10 | Word Count: 760 words | Views: 420 view(s)
Lou Peters
"It'll never happen to me." That's the line you hear everyone say about becoming addicted when it comes to alcohol and substance abuse. To the user, that first drink...that first experience on any given drug is "amazing"...especially if you're in your teens. What's really amazing is the percentage of the people who don't get addicted from the first use. Even more amazing are the reasons for the initial use. Back in the 1980s, the reason was, "It'll make you feel good." Anyone remember that commercial?

Those of us in our 30s, 40s, and 50s can remember it well; the sinister villain that tied strings to our arms and legs and made us do things we normally wouldn't do. It's name is Peer Pressure and it always made us do things that we know we shouldn't. "But everyone else is doing it, so if I want to fit in, I need to also." Think peer pressure is a thing of the past? Guess again. It's much worse now than it was 20 years ago; and so are the substances that are being used.

Sure, there are people that can say, "NO!", and to those I say, "Congratulations! You are far better off not knowing what it's like to become addicted." There are even some that can try something a few times and say, "It's just not for me." But, for those who can't, it's not as easy as flipping a switch. "Oh, you just don't have the will power." Really? Do they sell that on the Internet? Where can people get some "will power"? People have quit smoking cold turkey, but smoking only calms your nerves momentarily. Alcohol and drugs have a completely different affect and are more difficult to break free from than cigarettes.

For those that are social drinkers that look at people who are addicted and say to yourselves, "Why would someone want to be in that kind of condition?" "How can you enjoy being like that?", try this experiment: get a bottle of sipping brandy or a bottle of cheap wine, then ignore the rules of social drinking and drink what you've got as fast as you can. What does this prove? One, that addicts do this all the time because this state of mind they're in is a comfort zone, two, it takes them twice as much to feel half of what you do, and three, as soon as you wake up, you'll be too sick to "feel the need" to have another.

Does this make addicts any less of people? Absolutely not! In fact, those who turn their noses up to addicts are no more important than the addicts themselves. Some addicts can live fairly normal lives and have better jobs than those who are social drinkers. Maybe if they got a pat-on-the-back more often from those around them, they might be in a better mood when they take that next drink. Will that cure them? Probably not, but that is what support is all about.

But, sometimes, all the support in the world isn't a drop-in-the-bucket when it comes to severe addicts like those who are on meth. Alcohol and some of the lesser drugs slowly bring you into a state of disconnection. In this state, you now are someone new; whether you are a "webble-wobble" or a "Whoa...dude..." Meth is more fierce. It makes you feel more alert, as with coffee, it suppresses your hunger, it raises your blood pressure for hours, all of this while it eats away at your brain. Doesn't that sound good?

There are centers for alcohol and substance abuse, it's just a matter of getting the addict to one of these places, then to realize that the recovered addict is like a wild animal. Most people swear that you can have a wild animal as a pet as long as they don't get the taste of blood. If that is true, then it's the same for the addict. Everyone's most well-known recovered addict, Ozzy Osbourne, said it best about the control of alcohol, and it can be said the same way of drug addiction, in his song called "Demon Alcohol" from his "No Rest for the Wicked" album when he said, "Although that one's too much, you know ten's not enough. There'll be no compromise today. I'll watch you lose control, [and] consume your very soul." As long as the addict receives treatment and has an excellent support system, the possibilities for full recovery are great. But remember, it only takes one weak link for an addict to slip back to where they were.

About the Author

My name is Lou Peters. I am not journalist. I am a person with an opinion. My opinions are free-form, never compromised but those who disagree, and are free for rebuttal. If you'd like to view this and other articles, you can view them at Let's Ask Lou.

Article Source: http://www.articlesphere.com/Article/Addictions-and-Recovery/116469

 
Article Tags: disease and illness, addictions, alcoholism, substance abuse, addiction recovery, treatment centers
 
 
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