BEYOND OBTAINING DRUG ADDICTION SOBRIETY
I am certified by the American society of Addiction Medicine and worked previously at a methadone maintenance clinic for 10 years. I have treated clients with drug addiction problems for 20 years.
From working with clients over the years, I have learned that people with serious drug addiction problems, either never learned how (the usual case), or have forgotten how, to create healthy pleasure for themselves. All Human Beings share the desire to feel happy and avoid suffering. That’s just human nature and entirely normal. Commonly, using addictive drugs is an ineffective effort to experience pleasure and/or avoid pain. Being out of control of the use of addictive substances or behaviors inevitably causes unavoidable negative consequences. Some experts characterize drug addiction as a "spiritual disease", because so many drug addicts betray their deepest values, thereby destroying their sense of self-worth.
As I said, all human beings want to feel good and avoid feeling bad. Drug addicts just are using a harmful method. Essentially they have limited their options. Frankly, they are being lazy and aren’t being very creative about how they try to entertain themselves. Drugs or addictive behaviors are a lazy way to experience very temporary pleasure and of course, commonly the drug loses the pleasurable effect and must be continually used just to avoid craving and withdrawal symptoms. Usually after the serious drug addict becomes totally sober, they don't realize that they are living "empty lives". By “empty life”, I mean a life with few, if any healthy and enjoyable friendships and few, if any enjoyable activities. The normal, human, emotional response to living an "empty life", is depression and anxiety. It’s obvious to people when I point that out to them, but it amazes me how many people haven’t been aware of that before I mention it to them.
Healthy enjoyment doesn't magically appear without making an effort. We are all responsible to create our own healthy pleasures, regardless of our past or present circumstances. The good news is that anyone can learn how to create healthy pleasure for themselves. The bad news is that you have to take the personal responsibility to do that for yourself. Even though taking the steps to discontinue involvement with harmful addictive substances or behaviors is an essential first step, that alone won't produce healthy enjoyment. Unless and until you become one of those rare, very spiritual, human beings, who is blissed out, grateful, and joyful, merely from being alive, you'll need to create “involvements” for yourself, with enjoyable relationships and/or enjoyable activities, or both, in order to enjoy your life. Each of us is 100% responsible to identify, choose, and create our own enjoyable and healthy involvements. For reasons I don’t totally understand, many people find it quite difficult to create healthy pleasure for themselves.
This also often applies to people without addiction problems. For example, how many men look forward to their retirement, only to discover that they don’t know what to do with themselves after they actually retire. About 50% of men die within two years of retirement. Americans are a society of workaholics compared to many societies. Most European workers would scoff at the idea of having just two weeks of vacation a year. Many Americans believe that their worth as a Human Being is determined exclusively by the work they do. Many people have most of their social contact at work. You can see what a loss (and stress) it would be for a person like that to retire. Another factor is that many adults lose their ability to play…to do things, “just for fun”.If these observations describe you, the good news is that you can learn to think and behave differently, and create pleasure and gratification for yourself. That’s not selfish, and it’s certainly not sinful.