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A Better Today Recovery Services: Addiction does not discriminate

Posted at 7:41 AM, Feb 12, 2018
and last updated 2018-02-12 13:09:29-05

A Better Today Recovery Services is a paid advertiser of Sonoran Living.

Disease Model vs Moral Deficiency Model - How the Opiate Epidemic Has Shown Us That Addiction Does Not Discriminate

Addiction seems simple enough to understand: someone uses a drug, like Heroin or Crystal Meth, over a period of time, and soon enough they become addicted to the stuff. Usually, this is seen by someone with a less than favorable standing in the world. The thing about this idea, though, is that it is completely wrong.

The thing that is most troubling about addiction is that anyone, no matter their social or moral standing, can fall under its spell.                     . 

One of the things to come out of the current Opioid epidemic is that it has shown the public that addiction does not discriminate. It can come for anyone, but that doesn't mean that that person has failed. Some may see a fallacy in this: the decision to begin using drugs or drinking Alcoholic beverages in excess. 

Another thing the Opioid epidemic has revealed is that illegal drugs aren't the only drugs that can make someone addicted; medical and prescription drugs are just as addictive as those found on every street corner, and people need to use those prescription drugs for things like pain. 

The problem there, is that people can quickly develop a tolerance for the drugs, and will soon be taking more and more, until, when the prescription runs out, that person will go looking for something else.

What addiction does is that it changes a person's mind into thinking that with out it, without a substance like Alcohol or Heroin, then that person cannot be normal. That isn't an analogy either; addiction literally alters the chemicals in the brain to the point that without the substance, that person cannot function on a basic and normal level. 

One thing that can continually contribute to addiction are other mental health issues, commonly referred to as co-occurring disorders. Co-occurring disorders are when a person suffering from addiction also suffers from another mental illness, such as depression or bipolar disorder. This is one of the ways that someone can become addicted to a substance, like alcohol, in that they were attempting to self-medicate. 

All of this is can be easily found online, so one might then wonder as to why an addicted person can't go looking for help. The thing though, is that there is a massive stigma attached to being addicted. People can be fired from jobs and cast aside and seen as an anomaly; the shame that one person can feel is so overwhelming, and the stigma is so intense, that sometimes, it's better to stay hidden away with your shame.

With all that is said and done, recovery seems almost impossible, like a far-off light that you can never reach. But again, that's just a falsehood; recovery is possible, regardless of the time that was spent in addiction. Whether it was a year or a decade, anyone can come back from that brink. 

Perhaps the best way for one to find their way back is by going through treatment. Places like A Better Today can help people find their way back from the shame and dependency that addiction can strangle people with. 
Addiction is not a moral deficiency, not is it someone using drugs and alcohol for a set amount of time - it's a disease that can affect anyone, anywhere. But with the proper support system and a willingness to change, recovery is possible.

A Better Today Recovery Services is a paid advertiser of Sonoran Living.