i'm still processing everything i went through with my ex, who is recently in recovery.
wondering if anyone can shed light on this addiction question.
when we were together he went through 2 outpatient detox programs and 2 inpatient detox/rehabs. he stopped drinking, at least for some time.
but these places NEVER made him get off stimulants??? really?
he says he didn't get off them until he entered residential treatment program and that Drs allow them for treatment of ADD.
but... stimulants have wreaked havoc on his life before and they are no doubt a big part of his addiction problem.
maybe someone can help me understand.
is it that everything is so individual and for some they are helpful/ needed? but shouldn't people be taken off first before addressing whether Rxs are needed?
i'm really disturbed by some of what i've seen in treatment programs.
i'll leave it there. any insight and experience will be appreciated. thanks.
-- Edited by Junenine on Monday 13th of November 2017 10:18:04 AM
Iamhere said
Nov 13, 2017
Junenine - it's complicated....but yes, each case is individual and the treatment center personnel and experts tend to cater to the patient based on their input. We discuss often in AA rigorous honesty to get/stay sober. A treatment center can only tailor a program to one in recovery based on their degree on honesty.
Having said this, denial is huge on both sides of the program so what one believes to be true may very well be in their own mind. What you see as a problem in another may/may not ever align with what they see as a problem.
HTH!
serenity47 said
Nov 13, 2017
In my professional and personal experience, people will get the answers and outcomes that they are seeking. It is often not what I think is best. Not every treatment centre nor physician etc has all the answers nor are a good fit. I have found people can justify and rationalize just about anything that they are not ready to change. I have to go back again and again to step one of being powerless. I can only speak my truth one time and let it go. What others do with their life is not my concern. This is a very hard thing to accept. By putting the focus back on myself, I can reclaim what power I do have which is in my own life and way of being in the world.
Junenine said
Nov 13, 2017
Hi, Iamhere. Exactly... rigorous honesty and denial. I know it's his business, it's just so difficult to know that while under the influence of that Rx, he would be unable to say it was a problem. He fully believed he needed it. Now he can acknowledge everything. And now at least I'm able to look back and make some sense out of what I was observing and dealing with daily. So sad and frustrating. Thank you. (What's HTH? Inquiring mind... nothing coming to mind... I'm very tired!)
Junenine said
Nov 13, 2017
Hi, Serenity - Yes, yes, YES. I had the same thoughts. It was hard to make sense of when I thought he was being treated and sober but... no, that really wasn't exactly happening. It was all so brutal. Powerless, indeed. Thank you.
Maresie said
Nov 13, 2017
There usex to be this thought in aa that any medication.is.a.problem.
Now a.lot of people in.specialty programs take a kot of medicatiion.
When the ex A was in.a program I had a lot of feelings about it. I was very critical of the program. I felt feally left out because I was of.xkurse the expert.
For me of courze the issue was the ex A never intended to get sober. He put on a real good show of it.
There was never one moment he meant to stay sober once he.got out of the program. I knew that. I wanted to put that knowing all over his program. Then it wouldnt be do.to do with me.
There are really no.experts on.addiction. Some people get sober. There are lots of good endings in aa.
I could be a total expert on.addiction and still the ex A would drink.
Maresie
Iamhere said
Nov 13, 2017
Oh....sorry I used an abbreviation - HTH - Hope that Helps and can also mean Happy to Help! I meant the first one in this case!
I can tell you from my own personal AA recovery that very much like in Al-Anon, there are layers and layers to be found, dealt with and to heal from. It took me years to realize my addictive tendencies went way beyond mind altering substances. I have to be aware/on watch for just about everything from gambling to food to shopping to ...
It's not a conscious decision for me to overdo any of this - there is a part of me that gets a rush and then keeps trying to attain that rush over and over again. Very hard to explain yet very real for an addictive person. I am constantly learning what makes me tick and then look at 'me' to decide what is/is not healthy.
(((Hugs)))
Junenine said
Nov 14, 2017
I hear you and I can relate, Maresie. Thank you.
Junenine said
Nov 14, 2017
(((Iamhere))) Thanks and yes, it did help! And I'm sure it's hard to explain, but you explain it really well and I so, really, truly appreciate you sharing your experience.
Sorcha said
Nov 14, 2017
Hi Juneine, I'm just wondering, are the stimulants prescribed for his ADD? I am also in recovery for my own addiction, and I think there are kind of mixed feelings in the recovery movement about certain (mind altering) medications, personally I think medication or not is an issue between doctor and patient and in recovery we must take only as prescribed and not abuse medication othrwise we are acting out of our addiction again. We have to be vigilant, as a previous poster said, unless we are working hard at our program, our disease is always looking for some way to manifest itself.
Junenine said
Nov 14, 2017
Hi, Sorcha. Yes, it was prescribed for ADD. So far as I know he was not on medication for ADD for many years, and was OK, but there's no doubt that the traditional fast-acting or immediate-release meds (Adderall and Ritalin) are potentially highly addictive. There are slower-release ones believed to be less so.
Dion said
Nov 15, 2017
Hi Junenine, in which way did the Ritalin cause havoc in his life? I read that in true ADD people, Ritalin can help the recovery process because it helps the A to focus?
Junenine said
Nov 15, 2017
Hi, Dion - yes... because he was abusing them and can't take them responsibly. whether it's an accurate Dx, i can't know.
i'm still processing everything i went through with my ex, who is recently in recovery.
wondering if anyone can shed light on this addiction question.
when we were together he went through 2 outpatient detox programs and 2 inpatient detox/rehabs. he stopped drinking, at least for some time.
but these places NEVER made him get off stimulants??? really?
he says he didn't get off them until he entered residential treatment program and that Drs allow them for treatment of ADD.
but... stimulants have wreaked havoc on his life before and they are no doubt a big part of his addiction problem.
maybe someone can help me understand.
is it that everything is so individual and for some they are helpful/ needed? but shouldn't people be taken off first before addressing whether Rxs are needed?
i'm really disturbed by some of what i've seen in treatment programs.
i'll leave it there. any insight and experience will be appreciated. thanks.
-- Edited by Junenine on Monday 13th of November 2017 10:18:04 AM
Having said this, denial is huge on both sides of the program so what one believes to be true may very well be in their own mind. What you see as a problem in another may/may not ever align with what they see as a problem.
HTH!
Hi, Iamhere. Exactly... rigorous honesty and denial. I know it's his business, it's just so difficult to know that while under the influence of that Rx, he would be unable to say it was a problem. He fully believed he needed it. Now he can acknowledge everything. And now at least I'm able to look back and make some sense out of what I was observing and dealing with daily. So sad and frustrating. Thank you. (What's HTH? Inquiring mind... nothing coming to mind... I'm very tired!)
Hi, Serenity - Yes, yes, YES. I had the same thoughts. It was hard to make sense of when I thought he was being treated and sober but... no, that really wasn't exactly happening. It was all so brutal. Powerless, indeed. Thank you.
There usex to be this thought in aa that any medication.is.a.problem.
Now a.lot of people in.specialty programs take a kot of medicatiion.
When the ex A was in.a program I had a lot of feelings about it. I was very critical of the program. I felt feally left out because I was of.xkurse the expert.
For me of courze the issue was the ex A never intended to get sober. He put on a real good show of it.
There was never one moment he meant to stay sober once he.got out of the program. I knew that. I wanted to put that knowing all over his program. Then it wouldnt be do.to do with me.
There are really no.experts on.addiction. Some people get sober. There are lots of good endings in aa.
I could be a total expert on.addiction and still the ex A would drink.
Maresie
I can tell you from my own personal AA recovery that very much like in Al-Anon, there are layers and layers to be found, dealt with and to heal from. It took me years to realize my addictive tendencies went way beyond mind altering substances. I have to be aware/on watch for just about everything from gambling to food to shopping to ...
It's not a conscious decision for me to overdo any of this - there is a part of me that gets a rush and then keeps trying to attain that rush over and over again. Very hard to explain yet very real for an addictive person. I am constantly learning what makes me tick and then look at 'me' to decide what is/is not healthy.
(((Hugs)))
I hear you and I can relate, Maresie. Thank you.
(((Iamhere))) Thanks and yes, it did help! And I'm sure it's hard to explain, but you explain it really well and I so, really, truly appreciate you sharing your experience.
Hi, Sorcha. Yes, it was prescribed for ADD. So far as I know he was not on medication for ADD for many years, and was OK, but there's no doubt that the traditional fast-acting or immediate-release meds (Adderall and Ritalin) are potentially highly addictive. There are slower-release ones believed to be less so.
Hi, Dion - yes... because he was abusing them and can't take them responsibly. whether it's an accurate Dx, i can't know.