The urge to use alcohol or drugs and does the addiction ever go away? – Drug Intervention, Detox, Rehab and Aftercare in British Columbia and Alberta – Options Okanagan Treatment Centers in Kelowna, British Columbia treating drug, opiate, fentanyl, heroin and alcohol addiction and recovery.
Opiate Rehab In Alberta And BC
Your decision to get sober is over and done with. You have taken recovery with the seriousness it deserves and have done what is necessary to detoxify your body completely. You share your hope, strength and experiences with others during meetings; and ask for assistance whenever necessary. No matter what, you no longer use drugs or drink alcohol.
However, the urge to use is still there. You will still feel the urge to use, assuming that you are like most of the people recovering from an addiction, every now and then, even though the regularity and severity of the feeling varies. Will the urge ever go away? When?
Understanding Cravings And Compulsions
To you, there’s nothing new about turning to drug or alcohol use. Your daily behavior was mostly dictated by your compulsion to use these substances back when you were actively addicted. Your main priority in life back then was chasing your high.
Once you left rehab, you expected your cravings to disappear. Sadly however, there is no graduation day when it comes to recovery from drug and alcohol addiction. Recognizing what might trigger the urge to use is an important part of the recovery process.
Realizing that you don’t have to actually use when the urge comes on is one of the most important things to learn recovery from addiction. Controlling your cravings, without having to act on them is something you will need to learn.
The Reason Behind Your Urge To Use
Why does the urge to go back to your old habits still exist when you are devoted to recovery completely? Deep in your mind, you know that the worst thing you could possibly do is pick up a drug or drink. You don’t understand why you still experience these cravings, you feel the compulsion to pick one up, when you really don’t want to do so.
Habits are hard to break away from, and drug and alcohol addiction are habits. Your answer to stress, and the only way to escape from all the unpleasant things you didn’t want to confront head on, for a long time, was addiction. Being high turned into the most natural thing to you in the universe, as escapism grew into a habit.
You were able to drown out the pain back when you were abusing alcohol and drugs actively. To you, reaching for mind altering substances became second nature. Once you cross over into addiction, changing that habit and living a sober life is the same as going against your natural impulses. In the early stages of sobriety, this is normally the case.
Cravings Explained
During the early stages of sobriety, the compulsion to use may occur on a regular basis. You are yet to master the coping skill you need to handle life’s everyday struggles. Maintaining your commitment through the discomfort is essential.
When you are facing trials or doubts, this is when cravings arise. This may be when instead of reaching out for assistance you isolate yourself, or when you start missing some meetings. It might not be obvious to you that you are not doing what you are supposed to be doing to maintain your independence and sobriety.
Everyone will experience urges that vary in terms of frequency and severity. The length of your addiction and the nature of the substance you were addicted to both have an influencing role. When it comes to when craving will disappear, and even what to expect, nothing is written in stone.
Options Okanagan Drug Opiate Rehab Center
Aim For Progress And Not Perfection
Your strength will grow as you spend more time sifting through your emotions, confronting your past and attending meetings. As you learn to cope, and establish a support network, the urge to use will diminish in terms of frequency of occurrence and severity.
Periodically, cravings come back, for some people, when least expected. The journey to recover runs continuously. The urge to go back to a time when you didn’t have to feel your feelings may come on whenever you feel overwhelmed or stressed. Even when the compulsion to pick up is strong, you can lean to think things through and not succumb.
Most importantly, avoid punishing yourself simply because you feel the urge to use or drink. You can ensure that they don’t lead you to a relapse by learning how to deal with them.
Options Okanagan Opiate and Alcohol Treatment Centers in Kelowna, Salmon Arm and Vancouver, British Columbia – Men and Women are recovering and healing from Alcohol and Drug Abuse at our treatment center here in the Okanagan right now.
Our unique and distinctive Opiate Drug and Alcohol treatment program allows men and women to come in from Calgary as well as Edmonton as we offer airport pickup.
Numerous clients come to us from Vancouver, Calgary and Edmonton and other locations in Alberta and even other provinces for Opiate addiction treatment, heroin drug treatment, many other drug and alcohol addictions for rehabilitation because of the uniqueness of our treatment center.
Our Opioid Treatment Location:
Options Okanagan Drug and Opiate Treatment Center
551 Sherrydale Crescent, Kelowna, British Columbia, V1V 2E6
Toll Free Phone Number : 1-855-335-0331