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How to Overcome Addiction to Drugs and Alcohol?
Over 19.7 people in the United States struggle with addiction every day. They all do not enjoy the quality of life that normal people have. Yes, addiction and substance abuse are significant issues that create many other problems, such as crime, theft, violence, and immorality. However, every person having a substance abuse problem can recover and lead a healthy lifestyle. It only requires a firm decision, social support, and the right medical and psychiatric assistance.
If you struggle with addiction and substance-related problems, you don’t have to worry. Here, you’ll know the time-tested method to overcome your addiction. So, keep reading further. It’ll help you recover and decide the best course of your life.
Let’s begin!
Why Is It So Hard to Overcome Addiction?
Recovering from addiction is challenging, and most people fail to do so because of several factors. Some include brain chemistry, social environment, prolonged dependency, and weak willpower. When using a drug or alcohol, you change your brain chemistry. Your brain gets satisfaction when you use a substance. And you crave the experience again and again. Eventually, neurotransmitters in your brain are imbalanced, and you can no longer function like a normal human being. Thus, thinking patterns always compel you to choose the substance over every other thing. Your thoughts can no longer remain rational or logical. Also, if you decide to quit the substance, the internal cravings become so hard that you become powerless against them. For that reason, addiction treatment is a long process that cannot take its full course without outside help.
Knowing addiction can help you do better against addiction as a recovering person. You’ll know everything that is happening with you due to your drug of choice. An addiction guide comes in handy to prepare your mind to battle addiction most of the time.
How to Overcome Addiction to Drugs and Alcohol?
Addiction is a severe medical condition that is treatable. But the steps to cure addiction and never go back to the addiction again are hard to execute. However, if you want a healthy and normal life, you have to follow them strictly. Here’s how you can do it.
- Decide to Change
First, acknowledge that you have a fatal problem. Next, you must make a firm decision to change your life. If you don’t decide on a time, your life will never improve. The first step is the decision to change, and you have to take it.
Indeed, the decision to change will never be an easy one. But you can take it in every situation. So, rewind your life and think about how you were doing before getting into addiction. You’ll find that addiction has taken too much from your life and created a mess out of you. Think about the money, relationship, career options, and everything you have lost due to addiction. Such reflection will make things easy for you. So, set a goal to change your life no matter how hard you suffer from countering addiction.
- Prepare
The next step is to prepare yourself to counter addiction. Quit attending places where addictive substances are found, and stop hanging out with people who force you to use drugs or alcohol. For example, suppose you are struggling with alcohol. In that case, you must never go near the places where you see alcohol and leave the company of all people who consume alcohol. The right preparation and a will to execute your recovery plan will get the best results.
- Get Social Support
Having social support to counter addiction is a great help for you, and it’ll make things easy. So, ask your friends and family to support you. You can also join a support group near your residence. When you see other people trying to change their life, you’ll have the strength to overcome addiction. Research has shown that people having proper social support have better chances of recovery.
- Contact Healthcare Providers
You can contact addiction treatment facilities to help you overcome your addiction. Rehab centers and specialists guide you the best, and you’ll have the right procedures and medications to detox your body and manage withdrawals. Also, you’ll get planned treatment that’ll help you recover in the least amount of time.
- Get Treatment
Certainly, you have to get treatment to counter addiction, and it’ll include medications and therapy. Medications will help you balance neurotransmitters in your brain and reduce the urges to use substances. Also, medications will help you clean your body from substances. In fact, after using medications for a week, your body will be free from addictive substances. Next, you’ll not have an intense craving to use drugs or alcohol.
Yes, you also have to go through therapy sessions, and it’ll help muster willpower. After therapy sessions, thinking patterns will change, and you’ll start thinking rationally and logically.
- Manage Withdrawals
You’ll have a hard time managing withdrawal at the start of your recovery. Your mind will play tricks on you and compel you to use the substance for at least one time. But don’t fall into that trap. Withdrawal symptoms will only last for a week. After that, you’ll not have difficulty staying sober. So, no matter what happens, don’t use any substance. It’s helpful to lock yourself in a room and never go out because you’ll find emotional triggers everywhere when you go out.
- Avoid Relapse
Most people relapse after recovering from addiction because they are swayed away due to emotional triggers. So, you have to be vigilant and never break your decision to stay sober. You should leave friends, places, people, and habits that remind you of drugs or alcohol. Avoid relapse with all your effort. Otherwise, you’ll waste the effort that you put into becoming sober.
Conclusion
Follow all of the above steps to overcome the addiction to drugs and alcohol. Initially, it’ll be hard for you, and your life will become boring. But these will be the best steps that you’ll take for your life. Once you become sober, you must distance yourself from all emotional triggers and people who remind you of your past life. If you do that, you’ll lead a normal and healthy life.
Umar Nisar was born and raised in the busy city of Abbottabad. As a journalist, Umar Nisar has contributed to many online publications including PAK Today and the Huffing Post. In regards to academics, Umar Nisar earned a degree in business from the Abbottabad UST, Havelian. Umar Nisar follows the money and covers all aspects of emerging tech here at The Hear Up.
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