False Narratives in Recovery

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False Narratives in Recovery

08 January, 2021Articles, News

A central goal of self-disclosure within recovery circles is to challenge myths and misconceptions about addiction through the elements of our personal stories. Advocates of recovery must avoid contributing to false narratives by having selective parts of our stories appropriated while ignoring the central message of recovery.

Social stigmas relating to addiction, treatment and recovery, rest on old and new misconceptions regarding the sources and solutions to alcoholism and other problems with addiction. Such false narratives about the nature of addiction; treatment for addiction; recovery from addiction- add fuel to stigmas surrounding addiction and addicts.

Some of the stigmas which addicts encounter include :

Addiction is a product of moral turpitude (badness) that is best prevented and discouraged by public shaming and other forms of punishment. The moral turpitude fallacy continues to feed social shunning, serves as grounds for divorce, and provides a rationale for political disenfranchisement and discrimination in housing, employment, education, and medical benefits. Overemphasizing or exaggerating the bad people we were in the addiction portion of our stories inadvertently feeds this view.

Addicts pass on their degeneracy (bad seed) to their children. This narrative has resulted in the inclusion of addicts in mandatory sterilization laws as well as the loss of parental custody and related legal rights. It also feeds false narratives which tar the children of addicted parents with the same brush.

Addiction is untreatable (Once a junkie, always a junkie) This false narrative feeds personal, public, and professional pessimism about addiction and provides the rationale for prolonged institutionalization or incarceration. Many people who engage in substance use do not develop a problem with addiction. Many people who do engage in recreational use to a problematic extent, (for example young people during their high school or college years), tend to reduce their use once they take on more adult responsibilities. This is not to say that people with a substance use problem do not have a severe, chronic disorder. For them, addiction is a progressive disease that requires intensive treatment, continuing aftercare and family or peer support to manage their recovery. Addiction is a treatable condition, but recovery outcomes often depend upon numerous personal, clinical, and environmental factors.

Recovery is not possible until an addict hits rock bottom. Actually, most people recover from addiction long before hitting bottom (losing everything). Addiction-related loss and pain in the absence of hope is an invitation for continued self-destruction. The “hit rock bottom” premise suggests that recovery rests solely with the individual and therefore there is little family or community can do until this point of individual awakening occurs. This constitutes an invitation for family and community to abandon those suffering from addiction. This premise is untrue and is not applied to other medical conditions, and should be forever discarded within the arena of addiction. We must not let our stories be twisted to support this supposition even if we were one of those who did hit bottom and lost everything.

Recovery from addiction is the exception to the rule. This is yet again, one of many false narratives related to addiction and recovery. Recovery is the norm; individuals who do not achieve sustainable recovery are the exceptions. Those who struggle with recovery often have co-occurring problems that make achieving recovery more difficult. They also frequently have less support from within the community. Even people with the most severe addiction problems can and do recover when community and family resources are intensified. We must repel any effort to cast our recovery as the heroic exception to the rule and convey the consistent message that no one need die of addiction. Recovery is far more than possible; it is the probable long-term outcome for those who experience alcohol and other drug-related problems.

Media channels frequently tell the story of recovering from addiction as a personal story, focusing on the individual, rather than a larger story of the role of the family and community in addiction and recovery. The prevalence and severity of addiction are profoundly influenced by social, economic, and political contexts. The recovery tipping point has as much to do with family and community resources and the capacity to mobilise resources, as it does with what is going on within the addict. We serve best when we present our journey from addiction to recovery within these larger contexts and extoll the role of family and community in the recovery process.

The road to recovery from addiction is not always an easy one but getting yourself or your loved one the best care from the team at Crossroads Recovery Centre provides you with a map to sober, healthy living. No matter how bad things seem, there is hope and it’s just a phone call away. If you or anyone close to you needs help with an addiction to sex, gambling, substances, alcohol or food, please contact us for a free assessment.

www.crossroadsrecovery.co.za

074 89 51043 JHB

012 450 5033 PTA

References

Banning, A., & Karl, P. (1910). A preliminary study of extreme alcoholism in adults. Eugenics Laboratory Memoirs, XIV. London: Dulau and Co. Ltd.

http://www.williamwhitepapers.com/blog/2017/12/family-recovery-101.html

http://www.williamwhitepapers.com/blog/2020/12/pillars-of-stigma-and-recovery-storytelling-bill-white-bill-stauffer-and-danielle-tarino.htm

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Stories of Recovery

  • The encouragement, love and support from the team at Crossroads allowed me to eventually see that I was worth something - that my life could be turned around and that I could accomplish the things that had long been a forgotten dream.
    Oliver VG
    Read more
  • On the last day of my stint at Crossroads I could only express gratitude towards all who works there. A wise councillor once commented on my question when one is ready for rehab by explaining that when one is ready for rehab, rehab is ready for you.
    Johan B
    Read more
  • I was lost and my soul was broken until I ended up at Crossroads and was introduced to the Twelve Steps. With the help of their excellent staff and amazing support I have recently been clean for 18 months, I could not have done it without them!
    Carla S
    Read more
  • "Just for today I am more than three years in recovery. I have Cross Roads to thank for this wonderful gift. Cross Roads helped me to set a firm foundation in my recovery on which I can continue to build."
    Angelique J
    Read more
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Choosing A Rehabilitation Centre in Pretoria.

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Home / Posts tagged "12 Steps" (Page 12)

Choosing A Rehabilitation Centre in Pretoria.

06 January, 2021Articles, News

Crossroads Recovery Centre is a rehabilitation centre in Pretoria offering high quality, specialized treatment for those suffering from alcoholism, drug addiction, gambling, sex, food and other addictions. Addiction is defined by the relentless pursuit of a drink, drug or other addiction, no matter the consequences to yourself, your family and friends, work commitments and other people associated with you. An addict in active addiction will do whatever is necessary to fulfil their compulsion to use or get to the substance of their choice or to indulge in their particular form of addictive behaviour (such as gambling or food or sex).

Crossroads Recovery, is a well respected rehabilitation centre in Pretoria and as such, understands that addiction is the loss of control over the use of a chemical substance or physical action. Willpower and self control are no longer available to an addict, once addicted an addict/alcoholic no longer has any ability to exert long term control over their substance of choice. Without a radical change of personality and outlook on life they will undoubtedly fall prey once again to the nature of their addictive disease. Simply expecting an addict/alcoholic to be able to stop on their own is not realistic; an addict needs time in a rehabilitation centre to come to terms with their addiction and the treatment of their disease.

Everyone struggling with addiction pays a very high price. Addicts/alcoholics have lost the ability to control the use of their drug of choice and are now controlled by their addiction. Addicts/alcoholics have one thought running through their minds like a mantra ‘Just one more, and then I will stop’ over and over this goes ‘just one more time, I will use and then I will stop tomorrow and everything will be different, just one more time and then I will pull myself together and I will fix my life, just one more time, just one more, just one more’. Tomorrow, tomorrow, tomorrow but tomorrow never comes. Lost in the illusion, they can never break free on their own.

The sad truth is that on his own, an addict or alcoholic will rarely be able to stop using for any length of time. Yes, they might be able to when things get bad enough, or when some crisis forces them to, like an impending divorce, a final warning at work or running out of money, but lifelong abstinence is always elusive. It is staying sober that is the problem. Once the crisis has passed or has been resolved, they invariably return to their previous habits. These periods of abstinence or controlled using are absolutely devastating to the addict and heartbreaking to family and friends who love and care for them. It is in these seemingly normal periods; going to work, spending time with family and living a seemingly normal and responsible life that alcoholics/addicts create the illusion of control over their drug of choice. In these periods, the addicted person begins to believe they can control their using; families begin to have some hope, addicts begin to have some hope for themselves, the future opens up with possibilities, and then it happens again. The cycle begins once more, before they realize it, they have torn down the hopes their families had for them, they have torn down the hopes and dreams they had for themselves.

This is the heartbreak and gut wrenching anguish of this disease. Periods of hope and possibility are normally followed by periods of using, a return to the nightmare of active addiction, where the compulsion to lie, steal, manipulate and hurt other people in order to satisfy the selfish compulsion to use, is overriding. The periods of seeming recovery and active addiction get closer and closer together until filled with guilt, shame, fear and anger, an addict will continue to use until the bitter end. As a leading rehabilitation centre in Pretoria for addiction – Crossroads Recovery Centre understands this and will help you and your loved ones on the journey towards recovery.

If the disease of addiction is not treated at some point, jail, institutions and death may be a consequence.

What is addiction?

  1. Addiction is defined by NIDA (National Institute on Drug Abuse US.) as a chronic, relapsing brain disease that is characterized by compulsive drug seeking and use, despite harmful consequences. It is considered a brain disease because drugs change the brain—they change its structure and how it works. These brain changes can be long lasting and can lead to the harmful behaviours seen in people who abuse drugs.
  2. Addiction is similar to other diseases like heart disease, in the sense that both disrupt the normal, healthy functioning of the underlying organ, have serious harmful consequences, are preventable, treatable, and if left untreated, can have lasting consequences.
  3. Individuals who suffer from addiction often have one or more accompanying medical issues, including lung and cardiovascular disease, stroke, cancer, and mental disorders. Imaging scans, chest X-rays, and blood tests show the damaging effects of drug abuse throughout the body.
  4. Simply expecting an addict/alcoholic to be able to stop using on his/her own is not realistic; an addict needs time in a rehabilitation centre to come to terms with their addiction and the treatment of their disease.
  5. Addiction, although a complex disease, is seen to be characterized by three main elements, namely physical craving, mental obsession and compulsive behaviour.
  6. Addiction is a progressive disease with periods of abstinence or controlled using followed by periods of loss of control or binges, these binges increase in severity and length as the addict progresses in their addiction.
  7. An addict in active addiction will do whatever is necessary in order to continue their addiction. Manipulation, dishonesty, stealing, theft, violence, prostitution, etc. are common secondary characteristics.
  8. Addiction is the avoidance of normal social responsibilities like work, family, relationships, etc.
  9. Addiction is loss of self-esteem and respect; using a substance in order to feel good about yourself.
  10. Addiction is the use of a substance to escape from emotional pain and feelings.
  11. Addiction is using despite negative consequences, loss of work, loss of family, criminal charges, etc.

Although the initial decision to take drugs is voluntary for most people, the brain changes that occur over time challenges a person’s self control and ability to resist intense impulses urging them to take drugs.

The road to recovery from substance abuse is not always an easy one but getting yourself or your loved one the best care from the team at Crossroads Recovery, a rehabilitation centre in Pretoria, provides you with a map to sober, healthy living. No matter how bad things seem, there is hope and it’s just a phone call away. If you or anyone close to you needs help with an addiction to sex, gambling, substances, alcohol or food, please contact us for a free assessment.

www.crossroadsrecovery.co.za

074 89 51043 JHB

012 450 5033 PTA

No Obligation Addiction Assessment

Book a No Obligation Confidential Assessment at your nearest Treatment Centre Today.

Johannesburg Admissions: +27 74 895 1043
Pretoria Admissions: +27 82 653 3311
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Stories of Recovery

  • The encouragement, love and support from the team at Crossroads allowed me to eventually see that I was worth something - that my life could be turned around and that I could accomplish the things that had long been a forgotten dream.
    Oliver VG
    Read more
  • On the last day of my stint at Crossroads I could only express gratitude towards all who works there. A wise councillor once commented on my question when one is ready for rehab by explaining that when one is ready for rehab, rehab is ready for you.
    Johan B
    Read more
  • I was lost and my soul was broken until I ended up at Crossroads and was introduced to the Twelve Steps. With the help of their excellent staff and amazing support I have recently been clean for 18 months, I could not have done it without them!
    Carla S
    Read more
  • "Just for today I am more than three years in recovery. I have Cross Roads to thank for this wonderful gift. Cross Roads helped me to set a firm foundation in my recovery on which I can continue to build."
    Angelique J
    Read more
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How do we know we are enabling?

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Home / Posts tagged "12 Steps" (Page 12)

How do we know we are enabling?

04 December, 2020Articles, News

If you have a loved one who is an alcoholic or addict, you’ve probably already heard that you may be an enabler. Al-Anon is an excellent organization which helps loved ones of alcoholics, not only cope with a loved one’s alcoholism, but addresses the role played by loved ones in enabling that behaviour. But how do you know if you are being an enabler or if what you are doing is normal helping? If you find that you have been an enabler, how can you stop?

Let’s talk about the difference between enabling and helping and then we will give you some practical tips and examples on how to stop enabling your alcoholic.

What Is Enabling?

Enabling is defined as doing things for the alcoholic that they normally could and would do for themselves if they were sober. In contrast, helping is doing something that the alcoholic could not or would not do for themselves if sober. Helping does not protect an alcoholic from the consequences of his or her actions. Anything that you do that does protect the alcoholic or addict from the consequences of his or her actions, could be enabling them to delay a decision to get help for their problem. Therefore, it’s in the best interest of the alcoholic, in the long run, if you stop whatever you are doing to enable them. Enabling is not helping.

How to Stop Enabling an Alcoholic or Drug Addict

You may realize at this point that you have been enabling your loved one with alcoholism (though you probably thought you were helping) and wonder how to change. In a way, learning to stop enabling an alcoholic or drug addict is very empowering. We can’t change other people, but we can change our behaviours and reactions towards those people. Here are several practical ways in which you can stop being an enabler today.

Do :

Support recovery efforts

Set boundaries

Let the alcoholic deal with consequences

Don’t :

Make excuses for the alcoholic

Take over personal responsibilities

Save them from legal consequences

Cease Doing Anything That Allows the Alcoholic to Continue Their Current Lifestyle `

Are you working and paying some of the bills that the alcoholic would be paying if he hadn’t lost his job or missed time from work due to drinking? Or are you providing the alcoholic food and shelter? If so, you could be enabling. You are providing them with a “safety net” that allows them to lose or skip a job with no real consequences for those actions.

Do Nothing to “Help” the Alcoholic That They Could or Would Be Doing If Not Drinking

If the alcoholic has lost his license, giving him a ride to an A.A. meeting or a job interview is helping because that is something he cannot do for himself. However, looking up the schedule of meetings in the area, researching the requirements for getting his license back, or searching the classified ads for employment opportunities are things that the alcoholic should be doing for himself.

Stop Lying, Covering Up or Making Excuses for the Alcoholic

Have you ever had this conversation: “Sorry, he can’t come into work today, he has picked up some kind of bug” when in fact he is too hungover to go to work? That conversation is enabling because it is allowing the alcoholic to avoid the consequences of their actions. You might say, “But, he could lose his job!” Losing his job might just be the thing that needs to happen in order for the alcoholic or addict to decide to seek help.

Do Not Take on Responsibilities or Duties That Rightfully Belong to the Alcoholic

Are you doing some of the chores around the house that the alcoholic used to do? Have you taken on parenting responsibilities with your children that the two of you used to share? If you are doing anything that the alcoholic would be doing if she was sober, you are in a way enabling her to avoid her responsibilities.

Do Not Give or Loan the Alcoholic Money

If you are providing money to the alcoholic for any reason, you might as well be going into the alcohol store and buying their booze for them. Buying alcohol for them is enabling behaviour. That’s what you are ultimately doing if you give an alcoholic money, no matter what they say they plan to do with the cash.

Don’t “Rescue” the Alcoholic by Bailing Him Out of Jail or Paying His Fines

Rushing in to rescue the alcoholic may satisfy some personal desire you have to feel “needed,” but it doesn’t really help the situation. It only enables the alcoholic to avoid the consequences of their actions. In Al-Anon, they call it “putting pillows under them” so that they never feel the pain of their mistakes.

Do Not Scold, Argue, or Plead With the Alcoholic

You may think that when you are scolding or berating the alcoholic for their latest episode, that it is anything but enabling, but it actually could be. If the only consequence that they suffer for their actions is a l “verbal spanking” from someone who cares about them, they can slide by without facing any significant consequences.

Do Not React to His Latest Misadventures by Allowing Them to Respond to Your Reaction Rather Than Their Actions

If you say or do something negative in response to the alcoholic’s latest screw-up, then the alcoholic can react to your reaction. If you remain quiet, or if you go on with your life as if nothing has happened, then the alcoholic is left with nothing to respond to except their own actions. If you react negatively, you are giving them an emotional out.

Do Not Try to Drink With the Alcoholic

Many family members, feeling abandoned by the alcoholic because of their love-affair with alcohol, have tried to become part of their world again by trying to drink with them. It rarely works. The alcoholic’s relationship with alcohol is cunning, baffling and powerful. “Normal drinkers” can rarely keep up.

Set Boundaries and Stick to Them

Saying, “If you don’t quit drinking, I will leave!” is an ultimatum and a threat, but saying, “I will not have drinking in my home” is setting a boundary. You can’t control whether someone quits drinking or not, but you can decide what kind of behaviour you will accept or not accept in your life.

Carefully Explain to the Alcoholic the Boundaries That You Have Set—And Explain That the Boundaries Are for You, Not for Them

One thing that members of Al-Anon learn is that they no longer have to tolerate unacceptable behaviour in their lives. You may not be able to control the behaviour of someone else, but you do have choices when it comes to what you find unacceptable. Setting boundaries is something that you do for your benefit, not to try to control another person’s behaviour. In order to effectively do this, it’s helpful to detach to some degree. Detaching is letting go of another person’s alcohol problem which allows you to look more objectively look at the situation.

When You Stop Being an Enabler

Many times when an alcoholic’s enabling system is removed, the fear will force them to seek help, but there are no guarantees. This can be extremely difficult to accept.

Take some time to learn more about enabling and the family disease of alcoholism, attend an Al-Anon meeting in your area. It may also be helpful to learn more about the resources and information available for families affected by alcoholism.

Attending Al-Anon in person will help you feel more empowered as you stop enabling, and less alone in the process. Unfortunately, none of us can control what another will do. Yet we do have the power to set boundaries and respect our own lives. Consider 10 things to stop doing if you love an alcoholic that can help you take back your own life whether or not your alcoholic gives up drinking.

If you or anyone close to you needs help with an addiction to sex, gambling, substances, alcohol or food, please contact us for a free assessment.

www.crossroadsrecovery.co.za

074 89 51043 JHB

012 450 5033 PTA

RESOURCES

https://www.verywellmind.com/how-to-stop-enabling-an-alcoholic-63083

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Stories of Recovery

  • The encouragement, love and support from the team at Crossroads allowed me to eventually see that I was worth something - that my life could be turned around and that I could accomplish the things that had long been a forgotten dream.
    Oliver VG
    Read more
  • On the last day of my stint at Crossroads I could only express gratitude towards all who works there. A wise councillor once commented on my question when one is ready for rehab by explaining that when one is ready for rehab, rehab is ready for you.
    Johan B
    Read more
  • I was lost and my soul was broken until I ended up at Crossroads and was introduced to the Twelve Steps. With the help of their excellent staff and amazing support I have recently been clean for 18 months, I could not have done it without them!
    Carla S
    Read more
  • "Just for today I am more than three years in recovery. I have Cross Roads to thank for this wonderful gift. Cross Roads helped me to set a firm foundation in my recovery on which I can continue to build."
    Angelique J
    Read more
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What Does A Recovery Treatment Programme Entail?

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Home / Posts tagged "12 Steps" (Page 12)

What Does A Recovery Treatment Programme Entail?

26 November, 2020Articles, News

When an individual is looking for help with their addiction, they usually seek out a recovery centre that offers various treatment programmes suited to an individuals needs. Most recovery treatment programmes start off with a detox programme- clients are given a medical detox programme under the supervision of the consulting physician. This can be anything from 3 to 7 days depending on the history of the patient. They are then declared medically fit to enter the programme once the physical side effects have subsided, they begin a process of understanding the mental side of what has led to their addiction in the first place.

Crossroads Recovery Centre is a 12-step treatment facility that believes in a complete individual treatment programme for each client. Clients are guided through their programmes by an addiction counsellor. Upon exit, clients are assisted with the reintegration into society which is sometimes done with the assistance of secondary care. Whilst in care, clients are introduced to the Narcotics and Alcoholics Anonymous fellowships. Crossroads offers a 30-day treatment programme or a 90-day programme. Our programme is based on the Minnesota Model of addictions treatment. This approach is typically characterized by a thorough and ongoing assessment of all aspects of a client as well as multimodal therapeutic approaches. It does include group and individual therapy, family education and support and other methods. A multidisciplinary team of professionals’ plan and assist in the treatment process for each client, tailoring it to their needs.

Specific treatment programmes include welcome groups, didactic groups, powerlessness and damage, recovery coaching, occupational therapy, AA meetings, NA meetings, topic groups, spirituality, resident house meetings, goal-setting and farewell groups. Individual counselling is part of the process. This includes one-on-one therapy, addiction counselling, spiritual counselling, step-work counselling, trauma therapy, family counselling and co-dependence counselling.

Most treatment programmes make use of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. This is very relevant for addiction treatment because it is behaviourally based, and most substances abusers need a practical approach to dealing with their abuse. The core element of any
personal behaviour change is based on the relationship between the client and either the personal counsellor or the approach of the treatment centre.

Treatment facilities focus on both long-term and short-term clients. Usually, clients will come through the centre with short-term stays in mind, due to finances. Long-term treatment is usually suggested as this will give clients the best possible chance of recovering from their addiction going forward.

Treatment centres may also make use of the Jelinek Curve as an assessment tool to help members of the community understand addiction when they come for an assessment for themselves or their loved ones. The Jelinek Curve is a chart that describes the typical phases of alcoholism and recovery.

If you or anyone close to you needs help with an addiction to sex, gambling, substances, alcohol or food, please contact us for a free assessment.

www.crossroadsrecovery.co.za

074 89 51043 JHB

012 450 5033 PTA

No Obligation Addiction Assessment

Book a No Obligation Confidential Assessment at your nearest Treatment Centre Today.

Johannesburg Admissions: +27 74 895 1043
Pretoria Admissions: +27 82 653 3311
Close

Stories of Recovery

  • The encouragement, love and support from the team at Crossroads allowed me to eventually see that I was worth something - that my life could be turned around and that I could accomplish the things that had long been a forgotten dream.
    Oliver VG
    Read more
  • On the last day of my stint at Crossroads I could only express gratitude towards all who works there. A wise councillor once commented on my question when one is ready for rehab by explaining that when one is ready for rehab, rehab is ready for you.
    Johan B
    Read more
  • I was lost and my soul was broken until I ended up at Crossroads and was introduced to the Twelve Steps. With the help of their excellent staff and amazing support I have recently been clean for 18 months, I could not have done it without them!
    Carla S
    Read more
  • "Just for today I am more than three years in recovery. I have Cross Roads to thank for this wonderful gift. Cross Roads helped me to set a firm foundation in my recovery on which I can continue to build."
    Angelique J
    Read more
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