Are we as a society obsessed with celebrities? Perez Hilton’s Hollywood gossip site had a record number of page views the day after Brittany Spears hit the news on January 4th. In the course of 24 hours, the site had over 10 million page views. To quote Perez “That’s insane!”
A large percentage of people with drug and alcohol addicitons, both in recovery and not, are suffering from a dual diagnosis. This means they not only have substance abuse issues, but also issues concerning mental illness. The latest speculation on Britney Spears has been that she is in need of dual diagnosis treatment. I hope and pray that Britney seeks help once again and that any underlying mental issues can be treated as well.
With the proper care and desire, even those with the most severe dual diagnosis can recover.
According to Dr. Diana Kirschner, who has not treated Spears but is an expert on the subject, "people who show patterns of behavior like Britney are suffering from a dual diagnosis. They have both a substance abuse problem and a bipolar disorder or manic disorder."
As the director of Novus Medical Detox, we have many people complete their detox and go on to treatment. Our patients are from all economic levels. While our patients have problems similar to other people in society, they made decisions to use drugs and/or alcohol to deal with these. I think that the dual diagnosis designation is silly and only serves as an excuse to give more drugs not help the person confront life without drugs..
However, the most importatnt thing is for anyone to make the decision that they want to stop using substances.
Then if they select a good medical detox and then a rehab that really gets results they will make it.
Steve Hayes
http://www.novusdetox.com
The United States Department of Health and Human Services estimated that 50-75 percent of patients in substance abuse treatment programs have co-occurring mental illness. Merely detoxing the client and treating the addictive behaviors is simplistic in cases of dual diagnoses because causative factors are being ignored. Many addicts have learned to self-medicate with drugs and alcohol to alleviate symptoms related to other mental health problems. Medication is not required in all cases of co-occurring conditions, but can be a useful adjunct to psychotherapy and a 12 Step approach to addiction. Responsible treatment for substance abuse disorders addresses all facets of the addict’s mental, physical, and spiritual health.
Reference: SAMHSA http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/bv.fcgi?rid=hstat5.chapter.74073
I have just finished my memoirs of two decades of drug abuse and doing crazy things to get drugs. My book “Running Away From Me” should be available in late summer or early fall from Trafford Publishers. Here is the short book description..
“From inside a prison cell, a young man takes an honest look back at his life and tries to figure out how he ended up locked up away from society and labeled a violent criminal. His story is engrossing, gripping and true. Take a dark journey through the author’s real-life nightmare as he battles his self-destructive obsession with drugs, which leads him on a roller coaster ride through hell on earth. Witness the progression of his addiction, which takes him to death’s door as he runs from drug dealers, cops, God and more tellingly, himself. In the face of every negative consequence, he continues using until he reaches the place where all hope is lost, and he still can’t stop. “
Cost/Benefit Analysis of my Addiction
After the completion of my book “Running Away From Me” I was thinking back about the cost and benefits of my drug use. Putting this in context should be enough to keep me from ever using again.
Costs: fear, anxiety, sadness, depression, anger, shame, guilt, disgust, boredom, impulsion, emotional exhaustion, loneliness, instability, pessimism, feelings of worthlessness, feeling half-dead and suicidal, abnormal, out of control, suspiciousness. I didn’t fit in anywhere, never learned any social skills, constant conflict with others, had to deal with thugs, hoodlums, and other shady characters, had no time for the ones I loved, RUINED THE MOST IMPORTANT RELATIONSHIP IN MY LIFE. Costs to my health include low energy level, CONTRACTED HEPATITIS C, poor personal hygiene, headaches, diarrhea, hangovers, vomiting, intense craving, sexual dysfunction, poor sleep habits, GUNSHOT WOUNDS, hallucinations and delusions, and withdrawal symptoms. Mental costs include no creativity, couldn’t think clearly, poor memory, unproductive at work when I actually went to work, no personal interests or hobbies, no interest in anything that did not involve getting high. Financial costs include debt, unpaid bills, ruined credit and all around financial chaos, and lost time spent hunting drugs. Other costs include PRISON, I was dishonest with myself and others, no self-respect, irresponsible and always let down and dissapointing others. I was a hypocrite by acting in conflict with my values.I LOST FREEDOM IN EVERY SENSE OF THE WORD.
Benefits: a fleeting feeling.
Greetings From Hell on Earth – My Prison Cell
I used drugs and alcohol for twenty years. From the time I was fourteen in 1984 until I was thirty-four in 2004. I tried to quit many times. In fact, I did quit many times, but I always eventually started back. I never could seem to accept the fact that pot and beer were harmful to me. They seemed like such innocuous substances. The drugs that always got me in trouble were the ones I knew were dangerous – cocaine, opiates, crack, and pills. But I’m an addict. It wasn’t the highly addictive nature of the drugs I was using that caused problems for me. It was the highly addictive nature of me.
There’s a beast that lives inside me. I don’t know how he got there or where he came from or if I was born with him. I do know he has an insatiable appetite for ANY mood altering chemical. The more he is fed, the more he wants. If I feed this beast with pot or alcohol, he’s going to gain enough strength to get what he really wants.
If also discovered that if I’m craving any high at all, then something is not right anyway. Relapse happens a long time before I actually use. Why to I want, so badly, to escape from feeling normal? What feeling am I trying to escape from or replace with a better feeling? Why do I feel the need to get high in the first place? It’s just for a feeling. Is it that important? What am I willing to sacrifice in order to feel good? Why can’t I feel good without a chemical?
I’ve sacrificed everything for that feeling. I traded everything away. I reached a point where life was not worth living without that feeling. And I’ve suffered the most horrendous consequences for it. I literally gave my life away. Sold my soul to the devil. For a feeling. Read my book “Running Away From Me” when it is released later this summer.
My memoir “Running Away From Me” is finally available to order on Trafford’s web page. Take a journey in one young man’s real-life nightmare as he battles his self-destructive obsession with drugs, which leads him on a roller coaster ride through hell on earth.
The book will be available later on the web site, however you can purchase the first runs of the book here:
http://books.trafford.com/4dcgi/dosearch