In the spirit of Treatment4Addiction, it is time to share my experience with treatment!

Treatment was, plain and simple, the best thing that ever happened to me. I never could be where I am at today- happy, useful and peaceful, had it not been for my experience in treatment. It was more than just not using drugs and alcohol that led me to this new happiness. It was about getting the tools that I needed to live a happy, sober life (I didn’t know it was possible!)

Before entering treatment I had gotten myself into a rut that I could not get myself out of. My opiate use had reached what seemed like the point of no return. I went through multiple detoxes, each time vowing that this time I was done for good. Again and again I found myself in the same position: I knew I would screw my life up if I took that first drug and I would take it anyways. I knew the right path but I still kept taking the wrong one.

I found myself unable to stop on my own. I was a paranoid, ... Read More »

You might think I’m a really sick guy, but I love hearing people tell the story of their bottom. "…and that’s when I really hit my bottom.”--This line punctuates all kinds of hilarious stories of depravity, horror and disgust.

Important disclaimer here: I approach life and recovery with a much-needed sense of humor. I’m not here to weep and moan about the terrible life of an addict/alcoholic. Fun and lightheartedness are a part of my spiritual wellbeing. That being said- I don’t love hearing about bottoms because I get sadistic pleasure out of the worst of other peoples’ suffering. I love hearing about them because they serve as such wonderful little tools for my sobriety- they remind me of the power of the disease- and the kind of places that addicts inevitably end up if they drink or use.

I would like to share some of these stories with you, but I don’t feel like it would be right to repeat peoples'' stories, and I’m also pr ... Read More »

‘Oh, those were the good old days’  

…but what about the bad old days? Let’s reminisce over the despair and hopelessness of the bad old days! Yes, I know, that doesn’t sound very enjoyable. That’s because it is contrary to a dark, destructive little attitude that is deeply ingrained into many addicts: ‘My problems are best kept to myself.’  

Am I proposing that you become an endless torrent of rants and whines? No. I am proposing that there is an essential therapeutic value in being able to be honest with yourself and others about the events of the past (5^th step, anybody?). There is the immediate relief of getting the weight off of your shoulders and there is the ongoing, progressive relief of learning how to cope. By writing and talking about their feelings, a person becomes versed in a therapeutic kind of language. They gain an understanding of their emotional life, how it plays into their day-to-da ... Read More »