The iconic American author and philosopher Joseph Campbell famously said, “Opportunities to find deeper powers within ourselves come when life seems most challenging.” This is especially true when it comes to recovering from stimulant addiction. The good news is that moving beyond stimulant addiction at the cellular level is possible. There is a solution. The key is to connect with a recovery center and treatment plan that meet your individual needs.
Moving Beyond Stimulant Addiction at the Cellular Level
Many people feel like they cannot recover. There are many reasons for this, such as physical cravings, comorbidities of mental illness, and feelings of guilt and shame. Many people have also experienced a relapse once and feel like there is no hope. This is simply untrue. Relapse is more common than many people may think. This includes chronic relapsing.
According to the peer-reviewed thesis Addiction Relapse Prevention, by Doctors Guenzel and McChargue, “One primary concern in addiction treatment is the high rate of relapses within a short period after even the most intensive treatment. Many studies have shown relapse rates of approximately 50% within the first 12 weeks after completion of intensive inpatient programs that often last 4 to 12 weeks or more and can cost tens of thousands of dollars.” Yet, millions of people get sober, even after relapsing multiple times. There is always hope.
Better Understanding Addiction
Millions of people struggle with addiction every day. This is true both in the U.S. and around the world. Addiction is one of the most deadly diseases that humankind faces. This is also because it is such a “cunning, baffling, and powerful” disease. It is actually a disease that tells the individual that they don’t have a disease. This can be hard to combat. Millions of people also struggle with the stigma, guilt, and shame that are associated with addiction (including stimulant addiction). Many people end up in what is known as a “shame addiction cycle.”
According to the peer-reviewed journal PLoS ONE, “’shame addiction cycle‘ refers to a pattern of substance use to escape or avoid negative self-conscious emotions that paradoxically leads to increased shame related to the stigma of being a person who uses substances. The experience of self-conscious emotions indicates social evaluative threat from negative appraisals by others, which may not only perpetuate substance use but also elicit physiological stress, including triggering the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis stress responses, such as initiating inflammation. Notably, pro-social aspects of negative self-conscious emotions have been conceptualized from an evolutionary perspective, including theorization that shame and guilt function to restrain human behavior or maintain cultural standards.” This shame can keep one “sick and suffering” in their addiction.
This shame also tends to affect the entire family. This is why addiction is often referred to as “a family disease.” It does not just affect the individual who is struggling. Addiction can be like a tornado that destroys everyone and everything in its path. This is certainly true of stimulant addiction.
Better Understanding Stimulant Addiction
It is important to understand that stimulant addiction is not a monolith. There are many different types of stimulant addiction. There are prescription stimulant addictions and illicit stimulant addictions (often these are combined as well). There are even over-the-counter stimulant addictions.
One of the most common stimulant addictions is cocaine addiction. Cocaine addiction can be highly disruptive and damaging. Cocaine addiction has even been shown to cause gene disruption. According to the peer-reviewed journal Science & Practice Perspectives, “Cocaine causes many types of intermediate-term alterations in brain cell functioning. For example, exposure to the drug can alter the amounts of dopamine transporters or dopamine receptors present on the surface of nerve cells. The changes involving genes, however, are particularly intriguing. They occur in the limbic system, the primary site for cocaine effects, and are sufficiently fundamental and long-lasting to contribute significantly to the transition from drug abuse to addiction.” Another common stimulant addiction is addiction to Adderall.
This is especially true among younger people. According to the peer-reviewed journal Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology, “Despite the potential health and judicial consequences, misuse of prescription stimulants has become a serious problem, particularly on college campuses in the United States and abroad. Misuse of prescription stimulant medication also occurs in the general population, although perhaps to a somewhat lesser extent…. An important distinction is that misuse, typically defined as taking stimulants without a valid prescription, or use of stimulants other than as prescribed, is an illegal activity and differs from substance abuse disorders….” Of course, many additional issues go beyond illegal activity when it comes to stimulant addiction.
Signs and Symptoms of Stimulant Addiction
The signs and symptoms of stimulant addiction are always going to vary based on the individual. However, one can look out for many universal signs and symptoms of stimulant addiction. The following are just a few of those signs and symptoms:
- Not being able to stop once using stimulants
- Loss of appetite and a lack of care regarding physical appearance and well-being
- Exhibiting excessive mood swings
- Having trouble with sleep cycles, including sleeping too much and not sleeping enough (hypersomnia and insomnia)
- Losing interest in activities once enjoyed
- Experiencing physical ailments such as headaches, body aches, and gastrointestinal problems
- Feeling anxious, nervous, or overly “stressed out”
- Having feelings of worthlessness, hopelessness, and helplessness
- Isolating away from family and close friends
- Experiencing trouble at work or school
- Causing harm to oneself or others
- Having suicidal ideations
Now, many people can minimize stimulant addiction or falsely categorize it as a “choice.” It is not – it is widely agreed upon that it is a disease. However, as one can see, these signs and symptoms are significant and can be deadly. This is why reaching out for professional help as soon as possible is vital. Doing so could mean the difference between short-term side effects and long-term consequences. The good news is that many effective means, methods, and modalities can help one recover at the cellular level from stimulant addiction.
Recovering From Stimulant Addiction
There are a few critical keys to recovering from stimulant addiction at the cellular level. One is getting the right type of care. There are many recovery centers and treatment facilities that do not focus on individualized care. This rarely works. It is critical to avoid broad, overarching recovery plans. “One-note” plans can only take you so far.
Another key is ensuring that you connect with a recovery center that utilizes a multi-angled approach. This means utilizing as many means, methods, and modalities as possible for recovery. This type of well-rounded recovery plan ensures that all of your needs are met. An example may be a plan that utilizes psychotherapy, experiential therapy, and holistic healing methods. This will ensure that all of your physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual needs are met.
It is also important to treat the underlying issues of stimulant addiction. Often, these underlying issues are related to past trauma or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Many people don’t realize just how common PTSD can be. According to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and the National Center for PTSD, “About 6 out of every 100 people (or 6% of the U.S. population) will have PTSD at some point in their lives.” Also, “About 5 out of every 100 adults (or 5%) in the U.S. have PTSD in any given year. In 2020, about 13 million Americans had PTSD.” One way to treat this underlying PTSD is with eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) therapy and neuroimaging.
Recovering From Stimulant Addiction: Utilizing EMDR and Neuroimaging
EMDR is being used more and more due to its efficacy at treating issues of both addiction and mental illness. According to the peer-reveiwed journal Innovations in Clinical Neuroscience, “While EMDR is relatively new type of psychotherapy, existing literature has demonstrated positive results using this form of therapy when treating patients with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) by utilizing eye movements to detract from negative conceptualizations as a response to a specific trigger, while reaffirming positive self-assessments. Research indicates that EMDR could be a promising treatment for mental health issues other than PTSD, including bipolar disorder, substance use disorders, and depressive disorders.”
EMDR and neuroimaging have also been shown to greatly reduce the issues of stress associated with addiction and mental illness. According to the Archives of Medical Science (AMS), “Focal brain simulation may be a promising method for treating PTSD symptoms. Studies do not provide a clear answer as to the full efficacy of this method, but downregulation of fear learning, salience, and threat detection circuits (i.e., areas for which structures such as the insula, amygdala, and anterior cingulate cortex are responsible) and concurrent upregulation of emotion and executive functions and contextual processing (structures of the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex) may be indirectly useful in responding to the treatment of patients’ stressful symptoms.”
Other types of psychotherapies have also been shown to be highly beneficial in treating stimulant addiction. One of the most popular is cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT).
Recovering From Stimulant Addiction: Utilizing CBT
CBT is particularly beneficial because it can get to those previously mentioned underlying issues that need to be addressed. This includes the negative way in which one views oneself and the world around them. When these cognitions are changed, then the negative addictive behaviors can soon follow.
CBT can be particularly effective for helping in relapse prevention. According to The Psychiatric Clinics of North America, “Another well-researched cognitive-behavioral approach to drug abuse has emphasized a functional analysis of cues for drug use and the systematic training of alternative responses to these cues. This approach, termed Relapse Prevention (RP), focuses on the identification and prevention of high-risk situations (e.g., favorite bars, friends who also use) in which a patient may be more likely to engage in substance use. Techniques of RP include challenging the patient’s expectation of perceived positive effects of use and providing psychoeducation to help the patient make a more informed choice in the threatening situation.
Recovering From Stimulant Addiction: Utilizing DBT
DBT can also be particularly helpful for individuals who experience chronic relapse. According to the peer-reveiwed journal Addiction Science & Clinical Practice, “In the quest for abstinence, the DBT dialectic takes the form of pushing for immediate and permanent cessation of drug abuse (i.e., change), while also inculcating the fact that a relapse, should it occur, does not mean that the patient or the therapy cannot achieve the desired result (i.e., acceptance). The dialectical approach, therefore, joins unrelenting insistence on total abstinence with nonjudgmental, problem-solving responses to relapse that include techniques to reduce the dangers of overdose, infection, and other adverse consequences.”
DBT can also help with the critical “acceptance factor” that is needed for an honest and healthy recovery. Often, people struggling with addiction are in denial. This denial only ends up keeping them from getting the help that they both deserve and desire. When we accept that we have a problem, then we can begin to fix the problem. It is like taking the first step. Many experiential therapies can help with this crucial acceptance and willingness.
Recovering From Stimulant Addiction: Utilizing Art Therapy
Experiential therapies utilize either natural surroundings, athletic outings, or creative outputs. Art therapy focuses on the latter.
Art therapy has been shown to be highly effective at helping people recover at the cellular level. According to the Journal of Addictions Nursing, “Main assumptions underlying art therapy are that the patient will be able to express him/herself through a non-verbal, imaginative, and creative exercise. Art therapy includes an array of activities, including incident drawings (i.e., a drawing of an incident that occurred while using substances), drawing/painting emotions, stress painting (i.e., painting during times of anxiety and/or stress in order to relieve feelings of stress), creating an art journal, and creating sculptures…. Extant research on the benefits of art therapy is widely documented, although the research designs limit conclusive generalization.”
Other forms of experiential therapy that have been shown to be effective are surf therapy, nature immersion therapy, music therapy, horticulture therapy, and equine therapy. These therapies often overlap with other effective methods known as holistic healing methods. This includes mindfulness meditation and yoga therapy.
Recovering From Stimulant Addiction: Utilizing Yoga Therapy
Holistic healing methods have been practiced for thousands of years. Originally, they were just used as religious or spiritual practices, but they have since moved into the realm of recovery. This includes utilizing yoga therapy for treating stimulant addiction.
Yoga therapy has been shown to have a myriad of benefits for treating addiction and mental illness. According to the International Journal of Yoga (IJOY), “Therapeutic yoga is defined as the application of yoga postures and practice to the treatment of health conditions. Yoga therapy involves instruction in yogic practices and teachings to prevent, reduce, or alleviate structural, physiological, emotional, and spiritual pain, suffering, or limitations. Yogic practices enhance muscular strength and body flexibility, promote and improve respiratory and cardiovascular function, promote recovery from and treatment of addiction, reduce stress, anxiety, depression, and chronic pain, improve sleep patterns, and enhance overall well-being and quality of life.”
Recovering From Stimulant Addiction With Community and Recovery Meetings
It is also commonly said that recovery is a “We” program, not a “Me” program. It takes a village. That is why 12-Step recovery and community recovery meetings can be so effective.
Working with others has also been shown to reduce the chances of a relapse. According to the primary text of 12-Step recovery (commonly referred to as The Big Book), “Practical experience shows that nothing will so much insure immunity from drinking [and using] as intensive work with other [people in recovery]. It works when other activities fail…. You can help when no one else can.” The key is to connect with the right people in recovery and stick with them through thick and thin.
Healing at the Cellular Level With Exclusive Hawaii Rehab™
Here at Exclusive Hawaii Rehab™, we believe in long-term success over short-term “fixes.” This is why all of our recovery plans are individualized and comprehensive, with a focus on the future. Now, that is what healing at the cellular level is all about.
If you are sick and tired of being sick and tired, then the time to recover is now, and there may be no better place to do so than on the Hamakua Coast of Hawaii’s Big Island. You can do this! We can help.
Stimulants are some of the most commonly consumed substances in the world (both illicit and prescription). It is important to understand the negative effects of stimulant addiction and how one can recover at the cellular level for the long term. The good news is that there are many effective means, methods, and modalities for a healthy recovery. 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 right away. You don’t have to go through this process alone. For more information, please reach out to Exclusive Hawaii Rehab™ today at (808) 775-0200.
