Drug Relapse, How to Stop Playing the Game

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Drug Relapse, How to Stop Playing the Game

Do you, or does someone close to you keep falling back to the same addictive Drug to find that the Addiction is even worse than before?

Part of drug addiction is this on again, off again pattern of binging and abstaining, binging and abstaining. It can go on for quite a while, but it only seems to staying the same.

Periods of Abstinence can be a blessing or a curse, depending on the outcome.

Getting away from the drug for a while can give you a chance to see the problem more clearly and to make choices for the future that seemed impossible while you were getting high with regularity. These choices can lead your life into the light again and away from the grip of your drug addiction.

It is amazing how normally intelligent people can make the most bone-headed decisions while they’re high or hung over. Why would this happen, again and again? After a few days or a week of abstinence, regardless of how difficult or easy it was to stay clean, the world seems to make more sense and most of the choices made during the ‘dark days’ appear as they really are, self-destructive and leading further into the abyss of addiction.

This is a very delicate and important time for the addict. He or she might make the mistake of thinking, “That was not so hard, I can quit anytime I want to!” and go right out to get high again, BECAUSE THE REAL CAUSES OF THE ADDICTION WERE NEVER ADDRESSED!

Taking a short “break” from Addictive Drugs can cause even greater problems. With some drugs, the Tolerance built up by the addict’s body to that substance can subside and on the next Relapse, the danger of over-dose is much higher. Now, the former usual dosage might be deadly.

Beyond the problems of Overdose, there are psychological troubles that result from the relapse. Every relapse tends to convince the user that they are in a hopeless situation and that there is no use in trying to stop. As a result, it is usually harder to quit the second time and even harder the third, etc. Eventually, even suggesting to the addict they give it another try brings out intense anger followed by depression and a feeling of hopelessness.

The solution to addiction is to do it right, this time. Addiction does have specific causes and they must be addressed for recovery to be permanent.

Do it right. This time. The Narconon Drug rehabilitation program has been helping people to permanently over come addiction for 43 years.

Definitions of Terms Used

Term	Description
Abstinence	The conscious choice not to use drugs. The term usually refers to the decision to end the use of a drug as part of the process of recovery from addiction.
Addiction	Strong physiological, emotional and/or psychological dependence on a substance such as alcohol or drugs that has progressed beyond voluntary control. For more on addiction see the section Addiction Information in this website.
Addictive Drugs	Drugs that change the brain, change behavior, and lead to the loss of control of drug-taking behavior.
Drug	Any substance, other than food, that changes the function or structure of the body or mind when ingested. Drugs essentially are poisons. The degree they are taken determines the effect. A small amount acts as a stimulant. A greater amount acts as a sedative. A larger amount acts as a poison and can kill one dead. This is true of any drug. Each has a different amount at which it gives those results.
Narconon	A non-religious, non-profit drug rehabilitation program using technology developed by author L. Ron Hubbard. The Narconon program was originally organized in Arizona State Prison in 1966 by William Benitez, an inmate who was himself a drug addict. He applyed basic principles regarding self awareness and self assurance contained in books by L. Ron Hubbard and, by doing so, completely cured his own addiction to heroin. Mr Benitez then went on to help twenty other inmates do the same. Today there are Narconon centers in 45 countries.
Overdose	The condition that results when too much of a drug is taken, making a person sick or unconscious and sometimes resulting in death.
Relapse	In drug abuse, relapse is the resumption of drug use after trying to stop taking drugs. Relapse is a common occurrence in many chronic disorders, including addiction, that require behavioral adjustments to treat effectively.
Tolerance	A condition in which higher doses of a drug are required to produce the same effect as during initial use; often leads to physical dependence.