Addiction Treatment Options for Drug, Alcohol and Behavioral Addictions
Addictions are serious issues in the world today. On our site, addictions include drug and alcohol abuse and go well beyond those to include compulsive or behavioral addictions like self injury, eating disorders, compulsive gambling, compulsive shopping, and many others. Finding the right addiction treatment that fits your personality and unique needs is also a challenge. Treatment for drug and alcohol addiction takes a serious commitment in time and money. Perhaps the most important issue is how much success you will have in the treatment program you choose. Many of the most widely used approaches have little or no success beyond simply going it on your own. That's why it's important to find out what you can before signing up for any rehab program. Many times, because of finances and other obligations you don't want to take the risk that you'll fail the first time.
What is addiction?
Each of us simply want to enjoy life, to be free from stress and anxiety, to have fun and feel good. It's that simple. That's one of the primary things that gets people to act. If we have a headache we reach for an aspirin and it works. What happens with alcoholism, drug addiction, substance abuse, eating disorders, compulsive gambling, shopping disorders or a virtually infinite number of other problematic behaviors is that a drug or behavior becomes a magic bullet. The drug or behavior of choice is a quick, sure way to have fun and enjoy life. After a while, though these behaviors and substances become less and less effective, become a way to avoid stress and anxiety rather than resolve it. Our addiction becomes needed rather than wanted. Rather than casual use among friends at a party, the drugs become part of our every day existence. We're unable to function without them. Worse yet, the behaviors themselves alienate us from friends, family and even ourselves. We lose control (to varying degrees) of our life. You're here because you are well aware of the down side to your behavior and you want to stop. You're just not sure how to go about it, what works and what doesn't. You're sick of your current situation, and are afraid you don't have the strength or discipline to get out.
Unique Diseases?
Take a look at common beliefs about addiction. Read through the Diagnostic Statistical Manual (DSM) that doctors use to diagnose patients. There's a disease called, Alcohol Abuse, another called Alcohol Dependence. A few pages away and you'll read about two separate and distinct illnesses, Substance Abuse and Substance Dependence. You'll hear that each one is a separate, unique disease. Most will tell you that these are incurable diseases, and you will need to make a lifelong commitment to treat them. We don't buy it for a moment, alcoholism, self injury, eating disorders, gambling, and the vast list of other similar behaviors are curable. I've seen it first hand, many times, and have lived it personally. For you to be cured of an addiction, you will need to live by two mantras:
- Your Addiction is a symptom, NOT the core problem.
- Your Addiction is not that different from any other substance or behavioral addiction.
- You are not your behavior, simply a human being who is doesn't understand how to live life, a full, fun and satisfying, even exciting life, without your chosen addiction.
Substance and Behavioral Addictions - Problem or Symptom?
Substance and Behavioral Addictions are very real. These behaviors can kill us, drive us broke, alter our perceptions and priorities, damage relationships with friends, family and employers, lead us into legal trouble, and even worse. We act because we're motivated to act. When there's a will there's a way. As long as the motivation exists, we will act to solve the problem.
Most people, when they have a headache will reach for some medication, let's call it an aspirin. They take a couple aspirin and the headache goes away. If it comes back, they can take another aspirin. For some of us that "headache" is severe depression, unbearable anxiety, deep insecurities, painful panic attacks, horrific memories of experiences that nobody should have to live through. An aspirin won't cut it, but to cope, to live and get enjoyment out of life, they seek out their own aspirin, that thing that takes away the pain and brings in the joy.
Still, are these a problems or symptoms? We in TrueRecovery know that our behavior, our drinking, binging and purging, gambling away our future, buying things, cutting ourselves... whatever our aspirin may be is an ineffective, and self damaging way to stop our personal "headache". Take away our aspirin and we're left with the headache. On the other hand, if we're able to get rid of the headache without the aspirin we lose the need, desire, or will to take that aspirin. Better yet, if we can learn how to stop the headaches from happening through healthy behaviors, especially when the new behavior are fun, exciting and fulfilling and we simply have no need or interest to crack open the aspirin bottle.
Let's point out that the primary difference among drug addiction, alcoholism, eating disorders and compulsive gambling is simply the "drug of choice". In fact, many people choose multiple drugs of choice. It's not uncommon for a compulsive gambler, for example, to also be drink too much alcohol. Are these different diseases? Should they be treated differently? Just a few years ago, I remember speaking with a friend who was addicted to narcotics and alcohol. He switched from a narcotics support group to one that focused on alcoholism. Why did he switch? Because he'd slipped and binged on narcotics. He didn't want to face the group and admit it openly, but since he hadn't had a drink in two years he felt it easier to switch groups.
Full Recovery from Addiction and Compulsive Behaviors
The cure, then, is to learn how to build a happy, healthy, fulfilling life without the need for the quick fix. That means learning the skills to take control of life. I like to use the bed wetting analogy. We don't walk around calling ourselves "recovering bed wetters", even though virtually all of us wore diapers at one point in our lives. What happened? We learned how to read our bodies. We learned how it feels when we have to go to the bathroom. We learned that if we wait until the very last moment, we might not make it in time. We learned the tools, practiced them, and at some point we forgot that we ever had the problem. Drug abuse, alcoholism, eating disorders, gambling problems, compulsive shopping and any other behavior that we're stuck in can be the same. It's hard work at first, ask any toddler who's recently stopped using diapers. But after a while, it'll be ancient history. That is, of course, if we're focused on a solution instead of the symptom.
It's not 100%, and it's not right for everyone. Still, the success rates for Cognitive Behavior Therapy and it's close cousin Dialectical Behavior Therapy are widely used and considered the most effective treatment for these sort of issues. There's strong research behind it, and it's gaining popularity among in-patient and out-patient drug addiction treatment centers and psychologists. Our learning center will give you a wealth of information about this approach, and others. We recommend that you start treatment with a professional and get off on the right foot. In our learning center, you can learn how this approach works and get a reminder if you're brushing up on your skills. Our support community provides a non-judgmental place on-line to get help and support from your peers.
For most, the most effective approach to treating drug and alcohol addiction is Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT). Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), a combination of Cognitive Behavior and Mindfulness (the practice of being fully aware and present in each moment) has proven effective for patients who have been unsuccessful with CBT alone. We offer an online tutorial in the DBT Skills, where we recommend getting started.
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