There are many reasons for seeking treatment for addiction. Here, we will discuss some of the reasons you may have finally accepted the fact that you indeed do need professional help to recover from your drug or alcohol dependence.
One of your reasons for seeking treatment for addiction could be:
- The fear of losing your life has become too great to ignore.
- You’ve become the kind of person you wouldn’t normally want to be around.
- Nothing else has worked; rehabilitation is probably your only choice.
- The exhausting cycle of quitting alone only to relapse again.
- You miss the things that give life meanings.
- You miss the healthy life you see other people living.
- The economics of addiction has cost you dearly.
- Treatment might be your only hope for rebuilding relationships broken by addiction.
- You desire a greater spiritual connection.
- You’re too exhausted to continue running from the fear of consequences.
Some people called it “The breaking point.” In the world of addiction, it’s referred to as “reaching the bottom.” At this point, you or your loved one feel as if you’ve sunk about as low as you possibly can in life. The emotional, and sometimes physical, pain associated with reaching the bottom is so unbearable that it pushes many addicts to do what they’ve avoided all along…admitting there’s a problem and seeking treatment for addiction. The circumstances that cause you or a loved one to feel as if the bottom has been reached are likely to be very different from what causes another addict to feel the same way. Just like no two people suffer the exact same consequences of addiction, there are often different reasons for reaching the point of feeling completely beaten down by it.
Hitting bottom is a heart-wrenching, scary situation that’s likely to be remembered as one of the all-time low points in your life or the life of your loved ones. But, when you take advantage of this situation and use it to its full potential, reaching the bottom can become the turning point that saves your life. Many people who reach this low point in their lives and eventually come to realize that the only way to get back on their feet is through seeking treatment for addiction. This is a moment most families, friends, and loved ones of addicts wait for. If you or a loved one have reached a point of feeling broken by addiction, reaching out for help can be the best move you make on your own behalf or the behalf of someone you care about.
Circumstances for Seeking Treatment for Addiction
These top ten circumstances which are leading people to seeking treatment for addiction are just a handful among many. But if you see yourself or a loved one in one or more of these situations, reach out for help so you can return to a life of hope and happiness through sobriety. Let the discovery of yourself or someone you love in these circumstances be the nudge you need for seeking treatment for addiction.
At one point or another, many drug and alcohol addicts experience a close call. The knowledge that you’ve teetered on the edge and ultimately cheated death may provide a temporary sense of invincibility, but as the experience repeats itself, it eventually creates a profound fear of losing your life. Seeking treatment for addiction at a professional rehab center has saved many lives and can save yours or your loved one’s life, as well.
Addiction Side Effects Continue to Worsen
Addiction leads to severe consequences in the user’s life, and death is certainly one of them. Although the side effects of addiction often go unnoticed early on, as substance abuse continues these side effects become more pronounced. You or your loved one may experience health symptoms that range from mild and irritating, such as sleeplessness, irritability and dry mouth. As the addiction continues, more serious health symptoms will develop, such as accelerated heartbeat, hallucinations, and an increased risk of heart attack, stroke, or organ failure.
But health problems aren’t the only things that cause death for substance abusers. People who are high on drugs or alcohol often place themselves in high-risk situations where they can easily sustain harm from another person.
Risky behavior and carelessness can cause you or someone you love to accidentally overdose or sustain fatal injuries at the hands of someone else who frequents the area or group of people where your drugs are obtained.
Hopes and Dreams Fall by the Wayside
We all have aspirations, hopes, and dreams we wish to fulfill in our lifetimes. When substance abuse and addiction become the focus of life, most of these dreams and hopes fall by the wayside. As this occurs, it’s only natural for someone’s outlook on life to change. The side effects of substance abuse lead to definite changes in personality, and these alterations can be compounded by the changes that occur due to the hopelessness and desperation of addiction.
When there’s little to nothing that’s positive in your life or your loved one’s life, it’s understandable that hopelessness can eventually turn into bitterness and negativity. Then, one day, a glance in the mirror or some other type of awakening puts you face to face with the realization that you or someone you love has become the person that would normally be avoided at all costs.
Losing Self-Respect
Becoming the type of person you can’t stand can be the catalyst for many addicts to seek treatment. As much as you wish it to be true, love, begging, bargaining, and threatening are not enough to instantly bring back the person that addiction stole from you, but professional treatment and rehabilitation can help you or a loved one find your way back to being the kind of person you know you can be.
Staying sober for more than a day, or even several hours is a struggle for many addicts. In an effort to become sober alone, you or someone you love may have begged and pleaded or made bargains and threats you’d never have otherwise considered or resorted to. Engaging in these types of behaviors often compounds the difficulties and side effects of substance abuse because there’s simply no way to reason with addiction. A threat or bargain is made, but the addict can’t or won’t do their part to maintain it. In the end, this is a setup for failure that leaves you and your loved ones feeling frustrated and defeated.
The vicious cycle that results from these tactics can make sobriety seem unattainable. Many addicts who’ve tried to quit on their own and failed believe that if they can’t do it alone, no one else can help them. But this couldn’t be further from the truth. The reason quitting alone, begging, bargaining, and threatening doesn’t work is that these tactics are all void of the support and care that’s a necessary part of recovering from addiction.
Are You Stronger Than Your Addiction?
No matter how much you love the person who’s suffering from addiction, they still need the supervision and care of a professional trained to deal with the different facets of addiction and even with seeking treatment for addiction. The care and treatment they provide throughout detoxification and recovery provide the components that are missing in those other ineffective tactics. All hope for recovery and a life of sobriety aren’t lost; they’re just not obtained through pleading, bargaining, and threatening.
There’s nothing worse than the feeling of failure, and addiction is riddled with one failure after another. It’s likely that you or your loved one have attempted to quit drugs or alcohol at one time or another. You may have even been acting under the assumption that doing so would be easy. But then an attempt is made to quit alone and the withdrawal symptoms that quickly develop show you or your loved one that addiction is stronger than the desire to quit.
Those who try to stop abusing drugs or alcohol without the benefits of professional help face a much higher risk of relapse than those who obtain it. This has nothing to do with weakness, personality defects, or character flaws. Addiction is a disease that alters the brain, causing the body to rely on the substance of choice in order to feel as if it can function normally. When you or a loved one attempts to quit cold turkey, the brain sends signals to the body, alerting it that something has gone wrong and a fix is needed to feel better again. These feelings can lead to repeated relapse and the belief that it will never again be possible to live a sober life.
Finding Meaning in Your Life Again
When you or a loved one are stuck in addiction, anything that isn’t directly related to using drugs or drinking alcohol begins to sound and feel like a chore. The activities you used to engage in with enthusiasm become boring and dis-interesting.
The people who brought meaning to your life are now obstacles standing in the way between you and your next fix. The little things that once meant a lot have long since been forgotten.
Somewhere along the way, you or someone you love might catch a glimpse of another person’s life and see the things you’re missing out on. Addiction will tell you that you no longer need these things and people, you only need your substance of choice. But, as you draw nearer to hitting rock bottom, the realization that important things and people are no longer part of your life can create a sadness and emptiness that’s overwhelming.
Reaching this point gives you or someone you love the chance to work your way back to the kind of life you used to find meaningful. As you break free from addiction through the effective and compassionate program of a professional treatment center, you will slowly become reacquainted with the things that gave your life meaning. In fact, through treatment and sobriety, you will gain insight into greater meaning in life, as well as joy and fulfillment. Seeking treatment for addiction is your first step.
Restoring Your Health by Seeking Treatment for Addiction
Health is something we take for granted until it’s compromised. No matter what your substance of choice is, with prolonged use, you will experience side effects that compromise your physical and emotional health. It’s possible you or your loved one may not even realize the toll addiction has taken until other people are observed living a healthy life and enjoying a lifestyle that promotes good health.
Although the side effects are different for various substances, there are similarities in the risks addicts face. Drug and alcohol abuse increases the risk of developing potentially fatal diseases, such as heart disease, lung disease, stroke, organ failure, or contracting a contagious disease like HIV/AIDS or hepatitis C. Developing symptoms of poor health makes it hard to handle day-to-day tasks, and can even impact the ability to get the next fix.
Health can be restored and physical and mental illnesses caused by substance abuse can be treated once you or someone you love gets appropriate help. Upon entering a professional addiction treatment center, you or your loved one will undergo health assessments that provide the healthcare staff with important information that allows them to treat the health issues caused by or exacerbating addiction. Working towards restoring the best possible physical and emotional health is an instrumental part of recovering from addiction and beginning a life of sobriety.
Money is No Excuse
Most anything can be used as an excuse to continue abusing drugs or alcohol, including the cost of treatment. “That rehab center is too expensive!” is merely a convenient response that allows you or someone you love to continue abusing drugs or alcohol. In reality, addiction is more costly than any form of professional treatment that might be pursued.
Some addicts spend hundreds or thousands of dollars weekly to feed their addiction. Even those who abuse less expensive drugs can rack up large expenditures over the course of a year. When weighed against the expense of professional addictions treatment, the cost of continuing to abuse drugs or alcohol doesn’t stand a chance.
In addition to money that’s thrown away purchasing drugs or alcohol, there are other ways you or someone you love can feel the pressures of financial problems due to addiction.
One of the common social side effects of continued addiction is the loss of employment. Many addicts don’t show up for work, or they arrive high on drugs and unable to safely perform their jobs. Poor performance, lack of attendance, and aggressive, erratic behavior can lead to being fired. Under these circumstances, if the addict continues to use financial resources to buy drugs or alcohol, they put themselves and their families at risk of losing their car and home. The financial cost of addiction can be tremendous, and it often leads to another high price you or someone you love might pay for continuing to feed your addiction.
Addiction is a “Family Disease”
Even the strongest of relationships will eventually crumble under the tremendous weight of addiction. Initially, you or your loved one may not care if friends and family members begin to distance themselves from you. You might find it irritating, but substance abuse will prevent it from becoming an issue by convincing you that you don’t need those people anyway. The fact is, we all need loving, caring, positive people in our lives.
Addiction is referred to as a family disease because it affects more than just the addict. Partners, spouses, parents, and children also suffer the effects of substance abuse, exhibiting the strains and pressures in different ways. Countless families have been torn apart by addiction, leaving members feeling as if the damage is irreparable. In some cases, you or your loved one might even become emotionally or physically abusive toward those around you.
Although it’s impossible to see it through the eyes of addiction, from the outside, it’s easy to understand why the loved ones of addicts become fed up, exhausted, and too stressed out to stick around. The longer the addiction progresses, the more victims it pulls into its downward spiral. Often the only way to have any hope of repairing these broken relationships is through seeking treatment for addiction. During treatment, the counseling you participate in individually and with family members can help rebuild the trust that’s needed as a foundation for any long-lasting relationship.
Reconnecting with Your Spirituality
Some addicts report having a spiritual awakening when they reach a low point in their life. This experience may or may not pertain to a specific religion or belief, and that’s not important. Hitting rock bottom can lead you or a loved one to the point in which you desire a greater spiritual connection. As this desire manifests and grows, it can become the one single circumstance that causes seeking treatment for addiction, even when nothing else worked.
The peace of mind and connection many people feel with the world around them is taken away by the power of addiction. Stress and anxiety over getting the next fix take the place of peace, making it impossible to relax and calm down. The disconnect you or your loved one may feel from those around you results in hopelessness and a sense of being alone in the world.
The desire to form a greater spiritual connection helps restore peace of mind and the feeling that you have a place in the world around you. Effective addiction treatment helps your mind reach a state where you can begin to focus on spiritual beliefs and participate in activities that encourage a spiritual journey.
Is Fear Your Constant Companion?
Fear is a constant companion to those who’ve succumbed to drug or alcohol addiction. There is the fear that the next drug or alcohol fix won’t be obtained. Finding yourself at serious risk of harm can make you fear for your life. As your family falls apart and your health begins to suffer, you face the fears of multiple consequences too great for any one person to bear. Eventually, substance abuse becomes a way to run from these fears, resulting in a vicious cycle that repeats over and over again.
If you or your loved one are exhausted from running from the consequences of addiction, seeking treatment for addiction can provide the relief and rest that’s needed. Becoming free from drugs or alcohol and healing emotionally and physically can help you or someone you love regain the strength and confidence needed to face down these fears. Initially, the thought of entering a rehabilitation center can be scary, too. But you or your loved one will be met with the compassion, care, and understanding of professionals who understand what you’ve been dealing with and what you need to overcome.
At the bottom of addiction, it is often hard to remember life before drugs or alcohol, or even get a glimpse of who you or your loved one used to be. But, one moment in time or a series of events that leads you to make a painful realization can be enough to jar you or a loved one awake long enough to know that seeking help is the only hope. When the fear of giving up the substance of choice is overshadowed by the fear of what will happen with continued use, it’s time to listen to that small voice inside.
Gain Health, Happiness, and Hope Once Again Through Recovery
Where there are defeat and hopelessness from addiction, seeking treatment for addiction for yourself or a loved one can provide new hope. Where there are pain and sickness caused by the consequences of addiction, professional treatment can lead you to heal and health. It is possible to get back the life you lost and have the chance to build new dreams for the future. Reach out to someone for help on behalf of a loved one or for yourself. The life you or your loved one deserve to live is within reach with the support, personalized care, and the compassionate guidance of a professional rehabilitation team.
Don’t allow the moment to pass; if you’ve read this far, you’re seeking the health, happiness, and hope that can be attained through sobriety. You or your loved one can take the first step on the path toward sober living if you reach out today. Someone is waiting to help you or the one you love to find your way back after hitting bottom. Seeking treatment for addiction is the absolute best option.
Article Source: bestdrugrehabilitation.com
