Recover from Drug Addiction: Process vs Event Essay

Picking up the broken pieces of a life filled with insanity and drug abuse, is no overnight task. I’m not just talking of the heroin addict in the 1960s. Recovery from addiction takes constant specialized care. Through intensive work, the addiction can be arrested. The process starts with the person admitting they have a problem. This is the first step to begin to recover. Most importantly, continued involvement with self- help groups is essential. These actions are only a beginning of a life- long journey. Pain medications prescribed by doctors is adding to a problem that already exists. Cares, Council on Addiction Recovery and Educational Services , is aware of the ongoing problem. Potent opiate based pills, derived from the poppy plant, are highly addicting. Hydrocodone, Oxycodone and Lora Tab all contain opiates. The three mentioned are more addicting, readily available than other street drugs (heroin, cocaine, marijuana, methafedimine or hallucigens. ) After listening to many of these addicts in the rooms of NA (Narcotics Anonymous) I’ve gained a better understanding of the extensive problem that exists. My drug of choices were Alcohol, marijuana, ocaine and hallucigens. The society we live in today has more of a variety of mood changing and mind altering chemicals. ( ecstasy, crack cocaine, angel dust, formaldehyde, etc. ) Our youth and our elderly are at risk of being controlled by the stereotypes of taking these highly toxic chemicals as treatment. There is a false sense of security being influenced so the pharmaceutical companies and their stock holders can get rich. Preservation of life has fallen short for greed, personal status and the attitude of irrational beliefs. The damage being done will take years for those so reliant on a pill to overcome. The average recovering addict is not only the old school heroin junkies but school teachers; teenagers, elderly, professionals, businessman and pillars of our communities. Most importantly this epidemic has affected religious sectors of our cities, towns and villages throughout the world. I don’t know how many times I’ve browsed through the newspaper or watched television and seen skits on priests, pastors and ministers caught in active addiction. Recovery is an ongoing process, we don’t graduate from treatment. The best known treatment for chemical dependency has been proven to work in the rooms of NA; through the 12 steps, the fellowship and service work. Some of us who have been guided by a greater consciousness by our groups are fortunate. Many addicts never find NA or shrug off the help when presented, as a result end up in jails, institutions, dereliction and death. NA is recovery in action, focusing on treating the disease of addiction. Those affiliated with NA; that have recovered from a hopeless state of mind nd body, have a singleness of purpose, to carry the message to addict who still suffers. Throughout all continents; many families, friends, relatives are uneducated, misinformed on how insidious this disease is and how true recovery works. Recovery is a journey not a 30 day rehab and you’re cured. Rehabs only give the addict time to dry out in a drug-free safe environment, keep drugs out of reach and some basic information on what action to take upon leaving. The real treatment begins with continued participation in a support group such as NA. The saying in NA is â€Å"you never have to be lone again†. The work within the 12 steps of NA is what treats the disease of addiction. Honesty, Acceptance, forgiveness, humility, and responsibility are the stepping stones to designing a new life. The new lifestyle you developed while working through the 12 steps and applying them in your life brings freedom from active addiction. Addicts will always have the disease of addiction, they say in NA â€Å"you can’t change a pickle back into a cucumber†. The action taken in the 12 steps creates new Attitudes. Whereas the addict obtains the skills and knowledge to become a productive member of ociety. All these facts can be found in the Basic Text of NA, and are the basis of recovery. The statements in the preceding paragraphs are facts based on experience. There is nothing more powerful than the experience of the predecessors in NA, other than god himself. As one addict helping another is without parallel, we do recover. NA as a whole is guided by a god consciousness . Unity between groups holds the program together. With the 12 Steps, the 12 Traditions at the center. The Traditions are the ties that bind us together, it is only through understanding and application they work. They are the principles that keep our fellowship alive and free. The guidelines written within the Traditions help the members of NA grow spiritually. Addiction is such a cunning enemy of life that we alone have lost the power to do anything about it, without help from each other it would be too much for us. Narcotics Anonymous has websites with information about meetings established in every country worldwide. Getting involved with service within the fellowship will give the addict tools to help stay clean as well as people skills to be productive in society. For many addicts addiction leads into isolation, so as not to be discovered or arrested. Service offers more than just a life without using drugs, it offers a new path to freedom and a sense of belonging. The positions that NA offers doesn’t stop at the group level, service continues into Area, Regional and World Service (Chairperson, Vice Chair, RCM, Literature, Treasurer, NA Hotline-Phone, Delegates and Alternates. ) The World Service board controls the printing of books, literature, key tags and many other services needed to keep NA functioning in a Productive anonymous manner. I know a few people in the area I live in who have been all over the world speaking at conventions which was paid for by World Services. They have experienced the unlimited growth that NA has to offer. They told me it was the most invigorating chance to carry the message of hope into another addict’s life. There are members I know that have 30 plus years in recovery that say there is always something new to learn. The journey in NA has no boundaries and is open to any man or woman who seeks it. Recovery from active addiction is a process not an event.