Can I Overcome Addiction on My Own?
The renowned English philosopher Bernard Williams famously said, “Life is supposed to be a series of peaks and valleys. The secret is to keep the valleys from becoming Grand Canyons.” Addiction is truly one of life’s biggest “Grand Canyons.” However, it is not a chasm that cannot be overcome. Yet, one should not try to overcome addiction on their own. Is it possible? Certainly. But, is it the most probable? Evidence shows that it is not.
What Does It Mean to Heal at the Cellular Level?
Many people think that simply putting down the drink or the drug is all recovery is about. While this act is critical, it is not what it means to be fully recovered. To be fully recovered means to regain a sense of sound body and mind, which can only happen when one heals at the cellular level.
Healing at the cellular level is all about healing the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual self. This happens when one focuses on all parts in tandem. For example, when one focuses on their mental health with psychotherapy like cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), they should also be focusing on their physical health with something like yoga or surf therapy. To supplement those modalities, one may also take care of their emotional self with mindfulness meditation and expanding their spiritual life by connecting to a recovery community (such as a 12-Step community).
Better Understanding Addiction
Addiction affects millions of individuals and their families around the world. Addiction also ranges from the individual who struggles with exercise addiction to the person who goes into withdrawals if they do not have access to opioids. The point is that addiction is not a monolith.
Addiction is also often physically, mentally, emotionally, socially, and spiritually devastating. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), “People with addiction often have one or more associated health issues, which could include lung or heart disease, stroke, cancer, or mental health conditions. Imaging scans, chest X-rays, and blood tests can show the damaging effects of long-term drug use throughout the body.” There are also many other signs and symptoms that an individual is struggling with addiction.
The Signs and Symptoms of Addiction
Many people think that they would know right away if a loved one was struggling with addiction. This is not always the case. Many people who struggle with addiction isolate away from loved ones in order to purposefully hide the signs of their addiction. This is why being vigilant and knowing what to look for is so important. The following are just a few of the signs and symptoms of addiction:
- Losing interest in activities once enjoyed
- Having otherwise unexplained physical ailments such as headaches, body aches, and gastrointestinal problems
- Feeling like there is no hope
- Expressing that there is no way to stop drinking or using once started
- Feeling overly anxious or nervous about not having alcohol or substances
- Exhibiting mood swings and harmful, risky behaviors
- Experiencing issues at work and/or school
- Expressing feelings of depression
- Beginning to have co-occurring mental health issues
- Wanting to harm oneself
- Having suicidal ideations
Clearly, these are not signs or symptoms to be minimized. This is why if any, many, or all of these symptoms are present, it is important to seek professional help as soon as possible. Doing so could mean the difference between short-term side effects and long-term consequences.
Can I Overcome Addiction on My Own?
Many people ask, “Can I overcome addiction on my own?” The answer is more complex than one might think. Yes, many people have stopped using and/or drinking on their own. However, this does not necessarily mean that they have overcome their addiction.
To overcome addiction, one should feel as though they have rocketed into a new dimension of living. At least this is what overcoming addiction at the cellular level is like.
Many people who simply put down the drink or the drug end up in a state known as “soDRYety” This simply means that one is sober, but they are not physically, emotionally, mentally, or spiritually well.
Of course, recovery is not a monolith, and if an individual is happy with strict abstinence and nothing else then they have reached a state of recovery that works for them. However, many people yearn for more. This “more” is what we offer here at Exclusive Hawaii Rehab.
How to Overcome Addiction With Others
Working with recovery professionals and recovery peers is one of the best ways to get sober, as well as one of the ways to stay sober. Working with others in recovery builds a sense of trust and reliance that is unlike any other relationship that may be had.
These are lifesaving relationships, and they come in handy when times are triggering and one needs another person who has been there before to lean on. Recovery professionals like psychologists, therapists, recovery coaches, and counselors are also crucial to the healing process and they are the ones who can ensure that one’s recovery is individualized, comprehensive, and successful.
How to Overcome Addiction With Individualized and Comprehensive Treatment
One of the best ways to overcome addiction is by taking the multi-angled approach. This includes using psychotherapies, experiential therapies, nutritional therapies, and holistic healing methods.
Nutritional therapy is an ideal way to get well. Here at Exclusive Hawaii Rehab, we believe in the maxim, “Food is medicine.” That is why we have multiple nutritionists and licensed dieticians on staff. We also have a licensed naturopath doctor who can oversee any nutritional plan.
It is important to remember that nutrition is also about what is left out of one’s diet as much as it is about what one puts in. For example, one should focus on eating local organic foods that are high in antioxidants and nutrients, but one should also focus on leaving out fatty and sugary “chemical cuisine” as well.
When it comes to nutrition, we here at Exclusive Hawaii Rehab also believe in promoting gut health, which is why our world-class chefs incorporate their knowledge of the gut microbiome into their meals.
A focus on the gut for addiction is crucial. According to the peer-reviewed journal Frontiers in Neuroscience, “Addiction and substance use research has seen renewed enthusiasm with a focus on the innate gut microbiota. Numerous studies have proposed a connection between the gut microbiota and the CNS via the gut-brain axis, providing a mechanism by which these microbes influence the host. Often drug use is associated with dysbiosis of the gut microbiome, and these changes may be critical to the establishment and maintenance of addiction by altering signals between the gut and the brain.” Besides the physical, there are also more emotional underlying issues that need to be addressed in recovery.
Getting to the Underlying Issues of Addiction
Healing at the cellular level also means getting at the underlying issues that cause addiction. After all, as is often said in 12-Step recovery, “It is about the thinking as much as it is about the drinking.
Many of these underlying issues have to do with trauma and other buried emotions that must be brought to the surface. These are often the root/core causes of one’s addiction. The good news is there are many means methods and modalities that can help one recover from these underlying issues. Two of them are the psychotherapies CBT and DBT.
How to Overcome Addiction With Psychotherapy
CBT can create one of the most well-rounded recoveries. According to the peer-reviewed journal Cognitive Therapy and Research, “Consistent with the medical model of psychiatry, the overall goal of treatment is symptom reduction, improvement in functioning, and remission of the disorder. In order to achieve this goal, the patient becomes an active participant in a collaborative problem-solving process to test and challenge the validity of maladaptive cognitions and to modify maladaptive behavioral patterns…. Although these strategies greatly emphasize cognitive factors, physiological, emotional, and behavioral components are also recognized for the role that they play in the maintenance of the disorder.”
When someone utilizes this psychotherapy, they can begin to see all of the underlying issues that were causing their pain. This is the pain that they would ultimately drink or use substances over. Of course, just addressing the pain is not going to help someone heal at the cellular level, they must also learn to manage and manipulate it in a positive manner. Essentially one can change the way they feel and think so they can ultimately change the way in which they act. One’s thoughts always precede one’s actions.
One must also learn some healthy activities to fill the void that is often left when alcohol and/or substances go away. These activities can be learned during experiential therapies.
How to Overcome Addiction With Experiential Therapy
Experiential therapy is much as its moniker would suggest. It is more about having experiences than it is about talk therapy (though that can be a part of it). These experiences may be nature-based with such therapies as nature immersion therapy, or they may be creation-based with something like art therapy.
When it comes to nature-based therapies, there may be no better place to participate in and commune with nature than on the Hamakua Coast of Hawaii’s Big Island. Here one can explore majestic waterfalls, climb breathtaking overlooks, walk sandy beaches, and even take in a live volcano. There are also many other benefits that can be gained from nature immersion therapy.
According to the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, “Besides improvements to physical and psychological well-being, exposure to natural environments has been shown to bring about positive impacts on cognitive functioning…. While cognitive restoration and physiological well-being are the prominent and renowned benefits of nature exposure, there is one important construct that is often overlooked in environmental psychology research studies – that is, the human-nature relationship; also known as connectedness to nature (CN).” There are also other types of nature immersion that are ideal on Hawaii’s Big Island. This includes surf therapy.
A mere 15-minute journey from our 30-acre luxury property at Exclusive Hawaii Rehab sits one of the best surf breaks in all of Hawaii. Here our clients can catch some of the best waves in the world while also taking breaks to meditate between the surf. Some even take a swim with the green sea turtles that are local to the area. Many of them have likened this to having a spiritual experience. There are also many other ways to have spiritual experiences at Exclusive Hawaii Rehab, including the use of meditation and yoga therapy.
How to Overcome Addiction With Holistic Healing Methods
The great yogi and spiritual leader B.K.S. Iyengar said, “Yoga is like music: the rhythm of the body, the melody of the mind, and the harmony of the soul create the symphony of life.” Yoga has been practiced for thousands of years.
Originally yoga was solely used as a spiritual practice, but it has since moved into many other realms. Yes, this includes fitness and fashion. But, it also includes the world of recovery.
Yoga offers a myriad of benefits. It can help individuals center their minds and find balance. It can offer an opportunity to create physical strength and flexibility. Yoga can help one breathe and create calm (which is crucial when feeling triggered). Yoga can also introduce one to the critical practice of meditation.
Meditation offers many benefits for those in recovery. It can bring an individual to a new plane of existence and wholly change the way they think. Of course, this is what meditation can do in the extreme. Meditation can simply be used to quiet the “monkey mind” and help individuals find essential serenity.
There are also many other types of holistic healing methods that can be very helpful. This includes music therapy, massage, aroma therapy, and acupuncture. The beauty of many of these modalities is that they can be found in many places and they tend to be relatively affordable. The key is to stick with them in the long term.
A Focus on Overcoming Addiction in the Long Term
Many people are under the misconception that recovery is over once an individual leaves treatment. This is simply not the case (again, noting that everyone’s experience is different). Recovery is a lifelong process that requires vigilance and attention.
Sadly, many people rest on their laurels after they leave the recovery center. This leaves an individual highly susceptible to a relapse.
The key is to maintain the same recovery plan outside of treatment that was used in treatment. This means:
- Maintaining regular psychotherapy sessions
- Continuing to get out of one’s comfort zone and experience new things
- Maintaining holistic practices to ensure that one stays centered and spiritually healthy
Ultimately, the key is to find a recovery plan that works for the individual (and their family). Remember no two people have the same experience in active addiction and thus no two people should have the same recovery plan. When one takes their recovery seriously and stays on the right path, their chances for healing at the cellular level go up exponentially.
Overcoming Addiction With Exclusive Hawaii Rehab
Bernard Williams also famously said, “There was never a night or a problem that could defeat sunrise or hope.” That hope is what we believe in and offer here at Exclusive Hawaii Rehab – the hope to recover, and the hope to live a life beyond your wildest dreams.
Here on Hawaii’s Big Island, recovery is just over the big Blue Pacific Ocean’s horizon line. The key is to go out there and grab it. We’ll take your hand and show you just how to do it. A new life is waiting. Welcome it with open arms.
Trying to get sober on one’s own is often temporary, and it can easily lead to relapse. It is important to understand all of the benefits of going to treatment for a healthy long-term recovery at the cellular level. This includes fostering a well-rounded recovery that can weather any storm that may arise post-treatment. The key is to reach out for help as soon as possible. If you feel like you or a loved one is struggling with issues of addiction, mental illness, or both, we can help get you on the positive path toward recovery. For more information about getting sober with the help of recovery professionals, please reach out to Exclusive Hawaii Rehab today at (808) 775-0200.