Call 888-647-0579 to speak with an alcohol or drug abuse counselor.

Who Answers?

Obstacles that Can Lead to Relapse

About Drug and Alcohol Addiction

Millions of Americans suffer from dependency and addiction to drugs and alcohol, and the numbers continue to increase. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, In 2012, approximately 23.9 million people in America, 12 years of age and older, had used an illegal drug or abused a psychotherapeutic medication , such as a pain reliever or stimulant, in the past month. This is an 8.3 percent increase from a decade ago.

With the increase of sales from prescription painkillers and the downfall of the American economy, more people are addicted to drugs. Drug or alcohol addiction is a chronic disease that can cause a person to act in ways that are harmful to themselves and to the people around them. Both drug and alcohol addiction can lead to organ failure and result in fatalities, and both addictions can lead to person pulling away from loved ones, losing their job, losing their money and committing criminal acts.

Due to all of the negative consequences that stem from drug and alcohol addiction, at some point most people realize they need to stop, but stopping can be extremely hard for a person to accomplish. Due to the withdrawal symptoms and the control that addiction has on a person’s brain, many people need help in overcoming their addiction. However, even with help, overcoming an addiction will have obstacles that a person must conquer.

Obstacles that Every Recovering Addict Must Overcome

Emotional problems and cravings are two of the things that may derail recovery. You can overcome!

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, many people do not understand drug or alcohol addiction, and it is often mistakenly assumed that people who abuse drugs lack moral principles or willpower. The reality is that drug addiction is a complex illness, and stopping drug use takes more than strong will and good intentions.

When a person develops an addiction to drugs. Their brain will change in ways that will cause them to feel a compulsive need to use drugs, this makes overcoming a drug addiction extremely difficult.

When a person decides to stop using drugs or alcohol, there are three obstacles that they must overcome:

1. They must get through the physical withdrawals. The physical withdrawals from drug or alcohol addiction can be painful and exhausting. Most people fear going through them, but the physical withdrawal symptoms typically do not exceed a week’s time.

2. They must deal with emotional issues. Along with physical withdrawals there is also psychological withdrawals that a person must learn to manage. In addition, drug and alcohol addiction can alter a person’s brain chemicals, which may take time to heal, and that may cause a person emotional turmoil. A person should discuss their feelings to a therapist and deal with any emotional baggage they are carrying.

3. They must find the strength to stay away from drugs or alcohol once they leave a treatment program, and for the rest of their life. Support groups and therapy commonly help a person to stay strong.

More Treatment & Detox Articles

Higher drinking age reduces binge drinking

A study has revealed that there has been a substantial reduction in binge drinking among people of all ages, except college students, ever since the national drinking age in America was set at 21 about two decades ago. The research from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis also found that the rates of….

Your alcohol recovery and your children

For many parents working to overcome drug and alcohol misuse, the hardest part of recovery can be reclaiming the relationship with their children; learning to parent without using alcohol or drugs can be extremely stressful. Children of all ages suffer when a parent misuses alcohol or drugs. Typically, children experience confusion, fear, worry, sadness, and….

One little glass can't hurt an alcoholic, can it?

Can a recovering alcoholic still have the occasional drink, or is it the road back to oblivion? Claire had been sober for two years when she began a relationship with another recovering alcoholic. One evening at his house he made a suggestion. “How do you think we would react if we had just one drink?”….

Doctors to treat alcoholics with taste of The Good Life

Successfully persuading chronic alcoholics of the virtues of gardening and a good diet may appear like an impossible task, but doctors are to start promoting The Good Life model in a bid to cure Scotland’s drink problem. Teaching problem drinkers how to grow and cook healthy food is to be a key part of a….

English turn to booze on holiday

English holidaymakers are turning to drink on their breaks with the average adult consuming eight alcoholic drinks a day, a survey suggests. That equates to 80 drinks over the course of the average holiday, or well over 200 units of alcohol. More than a quarter said they ended up drinking three times more than normal…..