Battling Addiction

By Dusty Lindemann

Are you suffering from the disease of addiction? Want some advice from people who have successfully entered long term recovery? Follow these tips below:

1. Change your friends – Unfortunately, the very root of our addiction problems sometimes lie within our circle of friends. Are there any particular friends you consistently hang out with that lead you into substance abuse? It’s time to reassess what a friend really means to you and the kind of friends you should hang out with to lead a healthy lifestyle. Sometimes this means changing your phone number and moving to sever negative relationships. This can be hard but in the end, it may save your life.

2. Change your environment – Just as you should review your friendships, you should also think about the places you go to hang out. Maybe it’s a nightclub, or a ballgame where they serve beer. Or perhaps it is a certain part of town you have frequented that makes you feel temptation. If these places cause you to relapse, you should avoid them at all costs. This might mean staying at home or visiting constructive environments instead like a museum.

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By Dusty Lindemann

Home improvement doesn’t just mean improving your house. The analogy relates directly to your own life in recovery. When you are in recovery from addiction, you are making improvements to your mind, body and spirit. If you don’t tune your mind, body and spirit on a daily basis you may jeapordize your recovery journey. Let’s examine this analogy together.

One of the things that a recovering addict may overlook in the course of their recover are small details like methodologies to manage cravings, control triggers and in building a support system. Obviously, if you overlook these details you may relapse. Think about how you might relate this to our analogy.

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By Dusty Lindemann

Anyone who has ever been addicted to a drink, smoke or a drug has a story to tell about someone they’ve hurt in the past. It could be a friend, family member, co-worker, neighbor or someone you don’t even know. At some point in your recovery, you should take responsibility for the pain you may have inflicted on others or for the way you isolated yourself and lost touch with your peers.

Reconnect with people you’ve lost touch with. Often times when we have an addiction it overtakes other areas of our lives. This can lead to lost contact with old friends or relatives. Make a pact with yourself to call someone each week that you’ve lost touch with. If they seem hesitant to hear from you because they were aware of your addiction, explain that you’ve overcome it and you are working on improving your life. This is also a great technique to try when you are alone and feeling tempted. Hearing the joy in someone’s voice when they realize you are trying to make a positive change is a great impetus for staying clean.

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By Dusty Lindemann

Many people in recovery look for a substitute to their addiction to maintain their recovery. If you do this however, you should find a healthy substitute. Here is an example of a healthy way to support your recovery from addiction.

If your addiction was to nicotine, there are many substitutes to take its place. Consider sucking on peppermints or chewing sugar-free gum. If you were addicted to alcohol, having a water bottle nearby or switching to diet soda will help. You need to find something to replace the substance you’ve vowed to remove from your life.

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By Dusty Lindemann

Boredom is one of the great dangers to anyone who is new to recovery. It’s very tempting to pick up a drink, smoke or a drug when you are alone in your head. Here is a great way to tackle boredom and avoid substance abuse.

Start a new hobby. One of the most challenging aspects of recovery is trying not to dwell on how great it would feel to indulge your addiction again. If you take up a new hobby, be it gardening, painting or writing, you’ll devote less time to thinking about your addiction. Choose either a hobby you gave up years ago or something new.

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By Dusty Lindemann

When you are using substances, it’s very easy to get caught up in an unhealthy lifestyle that lacks proper physical maintenance. You may have noticed that days or even weeks pass by before you look in the mirror and see the detrimental impact of addiction on your body. Therefore, don’t forget to exercise! Aerobic and weightlifting activities are great practices to get involved in as you begin your journey on the road to recovery.

Hit the gym after a bad day at work. The stress you are likely to feel after arguing with a co-worker or having to finish a detailed project by a specific deadline can make the idea of a drink very tempting. Replacing that with exercise has so many benefits. Not only will the urge to take a drink pass but you’ll feel calmer and more relaxed once the adrenaline kicks in. In addition you’ll get into better shape.

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By Dusty Lindemann

Have you noticed any patterns in your life that have contributed to your addiction? Are you doing something week after week that almost always leads to trouble? Then here is an example of how you can change your unhealthy patterns.

Go bowling on your “regular drinking night.” If you’ve spent every Friday or Saturday night for the last ten years (before recovery) drinking at a local bar, venture out for a night of bowling instead. Bowling is one of those “sports” that you don’t have to be good at. If you’re a parent, drag your kids along and make it a family night of fun. Chances are you’ll create a new tradition to replace the way you’ve spent your time the last decade. A great bonus is that you will be with your kids and to them it’s going to mean the world.

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By Dusty Lindemann

Have you ever thought about how much money could be saved and productively used if you stopped drinking, smoking or drugging? Here is a great way to refocus your finances so you can open your mind, expand your horizons, and benefit your life.

Take a trip. If you calculate all the money you would have spent on your addiction in a year, had you not entered recovery, you can invest that money in some fun. Take a trip somewhere you’ve always wanted to go. Perhaps it’s a safari in the jungles of Africa or a visit to the ski slopes. Choose a destination and then spend your time there enjoying every minute of it. This is a productive use of your finances and will provide you with positive memories rather than the negative experiences that result from addiction.

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By Dusty Lindemann

When you are overcoming an addiction there are things you can do to help the process along. Although it’s best viewed as a day-to-day journey, the following tips can help make the road to recovery a little easier. Some are serious, others are silly, but they all can be used to help you make each day worth your while by staying away from your addiction. Here’s the first tip:

Surround yourself with positive people. This almost goes without saying, but if you spend time with people who are invested in seeing you continue to stay clean, you’ll have a much better chance of doing so. You may have to exclude certain individuals from your life including those who encourage you to just have “one drink.” If someone isn’t trying to help you stay sober, you don’t need them in your life. Friendships should never be based on negative behavior patterns.

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By Sandra Maria Stammberger

With the fact that Drug Addiction is catching up fast and is as deadly as the Human Immuno Virus spread Acquired Immuno Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS), it is extremely important that we look at ways of treating drug addiction. We all know it is a major issue with a cross section of people affected by drug addiction. Treatment of drug addiction is a combination of traditional, spiritual and the medical way which allows the patient to combat drug addiction.

Treatments for drug addictions are always administered in facilities like clinics, hospitals, drug rehab centers etc. in the presence of trained physicians in administering addiction medicine and doctors who are specialized in treating addiction related cases. It may seem that treatment of drugs is very simple, but in fact treatment centers have to be ultra cautious with their patients who enroll in drug rehab or treatment programs. The first step of any treatment for drug addiction is detoxification. The effect of consuming drugs like Marijuana, Cocaine is that the toxic remnants of these drugs are left behind in the human body.

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