“We are people who normally would not mix…”

“We are people who normally would not mix. But there exists among us a fellowship, a friendliness, and an understanding which is indescribably wonderful.”  … “The feeling of having shared in a common peril is one element in the powerful cement which binds us.” – The Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous, pg. 17

Throughout the time of drinking and using, the relationships with others in life suffer; be it with loved ones; employers and coworkers; even those we encounter during the course of routine, day-to-day activities.  The inability to maintaining anything like healthy communication with those close to our lives is near-impossible.  Many times, while under the skeletal umbrella of addiction, we seek out those who are like us, unhealthy, hurting, and hiding or, conversely, we shun all, favoring isolation.

In recovery, we encounter people with whom, at first glance, we may seem to have nothing in common.  Slowly there is the realization that the connection between alcoholics and addicts goes far deeper than race, religion, socio-economic status, sexual preference, et al.  There exists an understanding that while there is separation on the outside, the same disease resides within and forms a bond which can rival those to whom we are closest.  One of the first places this is realized is in rehab, among others who are adrift in the same boat.  There we find the shared life preserver which contributes to keeping drowning at bay.

It is with others’ experiences, strength and hope, in whose footsteps we follow.  As they guide with a lit torch, which earned its fire from those who went before them, they help find the way through what seems like a path buried beneath the earth, where no light is thought to live.  The beacon of sobriety shines and as it burns brighter the further we travel along the path, its illumination shows the way toward a compassion for our fellows coupled with peace and serenity.

Drug Addiction Rehab Treatment is Imperative for a Successful Recovery

Getting the addict you love the help they need at a drug addiction rehab treatment center is not just for their recovery, but yours as well. Having an addict in your family is not only stressful, time consuming, and even budget breaking, but you are very obviously trying to help them work through their demons and provide what they need in order to not hit their bottom and possibly lose everything they have including their lives.

As someone who loves a substance abuser, you want to make sure they are as happy and healthy as possible, and are willing to sacrifice part of your life in order to ensure they don’t delve further in to their addictions. Getting them to a drug addiction rehab treatment facility will allow them the respite they need in order to avoid the same mistakes that brought them to the place they are in today. In a rehab facility, they can be treated by licensed and professionally trained recovery specialists and learn how to get their lives back on track.

Along with the substance abuser getting the drug addiction rehab treatment they need to move on with their lives in a sober and healthy manner, you should also be seeking treatment to learn how to handle their new way of life and not revert to the enabling that was once such a strong part of the relationship between you and the addict. If they change their lives for the better but come back to the same behaviors and actions, they could quite possibly digress back to their former selves as well. Starting fresh for everyone involved in the addict’s life is going to give them the best possible chance at success, and you the highest rate for maintaining a happy and healthy relationship with them.

The addict accepting treatment may not want to be as removed from their former lives as they need, but by explaining why the best place to be is in one of the many drug rehab centers in California, the addict may begin to understand. Being away from the temptations and connections they have as a substance abuser is going to not only help them avoid falling back on old habits, but also allow them to quietly move on with their lives without questions and judgment from the people they used drugs and alcohol with before their recovery.

They say misery loves company and that is the mantra of many addicts. They feed off of the habits of each other and feel that only they can understand what they are going through. They are also who keeps the flow of drugs and alcohol when the friends and family might cut it off. When you need a drug rehab California might be the best place to turn to get them out of the lifestyle they were leading and that they don’t need to go back to. A successful recovery might be made or broken depending upon the distance they have between their new lives and their former habits.

Fresh Starts and New Surroundings in a California Rehab

“We were having trouble with our personal relationships, we couldn’t control our emotional natures, we were a prey to misery and depression, we couldn’t make a living, we had a feeling of uselessness, we were full of fear, we were unhappy, we couldn’t seem to be of real help to other…”  Alcoholics Anonymous pg. 52

When suffering from these things, exacerbated by abusing drugs and alcohol, the addict seems unable to cope with life and continues that damning cycle, forever increasing the feeling of no way out.

When the person can go on no longer, desperately ready to make a major life change, where do they go?  Treatment is sought but where?  The need to be separated from drugs and alcohol, both physically and psychologically, is imperative but how?  Checking into a drug rehab in California can give a person the chance to break free from those shackles of endless despair.  While under the watchful eye of understanding medical professionals, they detox and then the possibility of embarking on treatment for the addiction can really begin.  Many times that also includes treatment for depression and anxiety.  These two seemingly separated problems are found to actually be inextricably linked.

Where better to dig into the truth about these problems than in a place where serenity is the natural order of the day.  A chance to learn to take a step back, breathe in fresh mountain air all the while cradled by beautiful surroundings, leads one toward a sense of peace.  A California drug rehab center can be the opportunity to get away from life’s usual distractions which lend themselves to keeping that person in the same place, all the while suffering that ceaselessly painful existence causing a perpetual repeat from which they wish to escape.

Creating space from wherever one may have been to seek treatment at a drug rehab in California can be the stepping stone from which to build that better life.

Lives are Saved Daily in California Drug Rehabilitation Centers

A California drug rehabilitation center knows that being an addict is one of the hardest things a person can go through during their entire lifetime. But, seeking treatment to come out of it sober and healthy can seem even harder to someone who has lived this life for as long as some addicts have. Even though substance abuse has taken away part of a person’s life that they can’t get back, they can build a new one that can be better because it will be free of drugs and alcohol.

If you are thinking it is time to make the step to becoming a clean and sober person who takes control of their life, looking in to a California drug rehabilitation facility is going to give you the confidence you need to finally make the right choice. Being able to be amongst the trees, scenic mountains, far removed from the preconceived notions you might have of California and relaxing while learning how to recover from the addiction is going to help you maintain the clear and level head that you need while still reveling in the beauty you might have missed while on drugs or abusing alcohol.

When you are looking in to a California drug rehabilitation treatment center to possibly bring someone you love, the objective you have is saving their life. You have watched them spiral downward and out of control for who knows how long, and all you want is for them to get better. Having medically trained professionals on staff who have the expertise and knowledge to not only take care of your loved one physically by helping them to get off of drugs and alcohol, but also treat them mentally to prepare them for becoming productive members of your family, friends, and the society in which they want live soberly should be make a great case for why this person should check themselves in.

No matter what substances you or your loved one may have been abusing, the one universal truth about all of them is that you cannot quit alone; you need help to become healthy again. Admitting that is the first step and getting therapy in a California drug rehabilitation clinic is the second. The third and final step is to take the teachings that you have learned from everyone you encounter inside of the treatment facility and putting them in to practice in the real world.

A California rehab is the best of all worlds: a beautiful location, amazing physicians, remarkable therapists, and people just like you or your loved one who are seeking to live a life free from the chains of addiction. California rehab centers save lives; as many as they can. Every time someone enters a clinic they are given the same opportunity to live a healthy life that the last person who walked through the doors was, and the next person to come in will. What they do with it is up to them and their loved ones.

Alcoholism and Unmanageability

“The idea that somehow, someday he will control and enjoy his drinking is the great obsession of every abnormal drinker. The persistence of this illusion is astonishing. Many pursue it into the gates of insanity or death.” Alcoholics Anonymous, Chapter 3

When an alcoholic or addict is in the grips of their addiction, the struggle for many is to both control and enjoy their drinking and using. As most people in recovery will tell you, it is sometimes possible to control and it is sometimes possible to enjoy but if one of those two is happening, the other is not. The unmanageability of the actual drinking and using, however, is but one facet of the unmanageable life lived by alcoholics and addicts.

Unmanageability pervades personal and professional relationships, financial well being, professional livelihood, emotional existence and day to day living of every alcoholic and addict.  If an alcoholic or addict is to recover, they must learn to identify the areas of unmanageability in their lives and to see not only where alcohol and drugs contributed to it, but where they attempted to manage it using them.

When an alcoholic or addict makes the decision to enter a drug detox or rehab center, they are surrounded by professionals who are trained and have the experience to guide them through this process as part of the foundation for a lifelong recovery and freedom from drugs and alcohol.

Find New Surroundings in a California Alcohol Rehab to Start Your New Life

Checking yourself in to a California alcohol rehab will be a completely different world than you now know. When you leave the area where your substance abuse was enabled, you may be able to see things in a new light. This change in environment may be the exact reason that you should go as far as possible in order to get the treatment you deserve. People travel from around the world to receive the best in rehabilitation therapy, and many of them travel great distances from the place where their addiction thrived.

Enabling is as much a part of addiction as the drugs and alcohol are, and getting the addict as far away from the people and places that allow them to use, as well as the substances that they abuse, allows your loved one a clean slate on which to write their new life. A California alcohol rehab is not only going to provide a scenic destination for them to relax and reflect upon their prior decisions and how to better themselves for the future, but it will also provide medically trained staff who are very well versed in the ways to manage substance abuse, detoxification, rehabilitation, and recovery.

No matter where they are from within the fifty United States, or even from other regions around the globe, going to a California alcohol rehab will provide the addict an opportunity to begin a new life. Being in the mountain air with the pristine lakes and wildlife right out of the back door is enough to calm anyone and give them the serenity to absorb new teachings and reflect upon old habits while giving them the distance they need in order to not be enabled and resorting back to old people and places where they use.

Being an alcohol or drug abuser is a solitary lifestyle most of the time. Alcoholics and addicts are usually only around people who are also substance abusers, in places where they can commiserate and feel accepted, or around their friends and family who enable them and allow their addiction to flourish yet still judge and try to get them the help they don’t feel they need yet. However, in a recovery facility, the addict is surrounded not only by other people recovering from the same affliction, but by habit and healthcare professionals that can not only monitor their physical needs, but also their mental capacity to process and move forward in a happy and healthy manner.

A California drug rehab center is one of the best ways to help your loved one get past the past and tackle the issues that need addressing in order to become a productive and sober citizen of their community. Taking them out of their community and having them placed in a California drug rehabilitation as far away from what they have been exposed to and relied upon is going to give them the highest chance for success that not only they deserve, but everyone in their circle of friends and family ought to have as well.

Alcoholism, Control and Recovery

“We alcoholics are men and women who have lost the ability to control our drinking. We know that no real alcoholic ever recovers control. All of us felt at times that we were regaining control, but such intervals usually brief were inevitably followed by still less control, which led in time to pitiful and incomprehensible demoralization. We are convinced to a man that alcoholics of our type are in the grip of a progressive illness. Over any considerable period we get worse, never better.” (From the big book of Alcoholics Anonymous, chapter three.)

For many alcoholics and addicts, drinking and using began as something fun and exciting that they did with friends and at parties. Over time, the ability to control one’s consumption evaporates, for some people, it never exists. Most alcoholics and addicts struggle for years in an attempt to rediscover those days and again have that control. As this passage from chapter three of the big book of Alcoholics Anonymous states, “no real alcoholic ever recovers control.”

The decision to get clean and sober begins with the alcoholic and the addict but isn’t a path that they must take alone, nor should they. There are 12 step meetings and drug rehab centers all over the world and a single call to one of them, or even a loved one to ask for help is a beginning…

Am I An Alcoholic?

If you are on this website, you may be wondering about what sobriety will be like and maybe even whether you are even an alcoholic. In chapter three of the “Big Book” of Alcoholics Anonymous, it says: “We do not like to pronounce any individual as alcoholic, but you can quickly diagnose yourself, step over to the nearest barroom and try some controlled drinking. Try to drink and stop abruptly. Try it more than once. It will not take long for you to decide, if you are honest with yourself about it. It may be worth a bad case of jitters if you get a full knowledge of your condition.”  There is also a set of questions that you can use to help you discover the truth, should you have any doubts and you can find them on Step 12.com.

Maybe you have been doing this for a long time, trying to control your drinking and using or trying to stop on your own. For the majority of alcoholics and addicts, quitting alone is next to impossible. Every day, people die trying to control and enjoy their drinking and using, either because they didn’t think they needed help or because they were too afraid to ask.

In the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous, there is an alcoholic who shares his story on Acceptance and says “…until I could accept my alcoholism, I could not stay sober.” Ask any sober alcoholic or addict and most of them will tell you this is true. If you can stop fighting it long enough to ask for help, your entire world can change. Rehab centers can help you with the drug detox and recovery process, all you need to do is ask.

Building a Foundation for Your Sobriety

Once you’ve been through a drug detox and your body is rid of the chemicals and toxins of drugs and alcohol, once you have achieved physical sobriety, it is important to lay a solid foundation in order to continue to grow in your recovery and maintain your sobriety.

How do you do that?

For many alcoholics and addicts, involvement in a 12 step program such as Alcoholics Anonymous is a crucial part not only of their foundation but their long-term sobriety. Many drug rehab centers incorporate the 12 steps as a core aspect of their program, holding 12 step meetings and workshops in the facility as well as making sure the clients experience 12 step meetings in the community are integral parts of most programs throughout the country.

The 12 steps have given many alcoholics and addicts a new “design for living” that allows them to live life happily and without drugs or alcohol. Outlined in the book “Alcoholics Anonymous.” Within its pages, alcoholics have been discovering answers for years, reading takes of others and thinking, sometimes for the first time, “that sounds like me.”

Being around other alcoholics and addicts who are getting sober and laying the foundation to stay that way is one of the things that makes a drug treatment center so beneficial and the reason why most professionals recommend a 90 day program. It makes sense, doesn’t it? When you are out there drinking and using, it works best if your companions do the same. Well, the same is true of sobriety. Surrounding yourself with others who are doing the same thing, getting sober and trying to stay that way, it makes all the difference in the world.

Choosing a Treatment Center

Once you have made the decision that enough is enough and are ready to ask for help, it will be important to find the treatment center that is right for you. It used to be that alcoholism and addiction treatment centers were few and those that were there were all relatively similar. This is not the case today. There are treatment centers specializing in a variety of treatment options and there are a number of things you will want to consider before making a choice.

  • Do you have special needs that should be considered, areas of focus?
  • How long will you stay?
  • Where do you want to be?
  • How much will treatment cost?
  • Do they accept insurance?
  • What type of accreditation does the center have and what credentials do its staff have?
  • What type of programs do they offer and how will they benefit you?
  • Is follow up care a part of the program?
  • What is their treatment philosophy?
  • How does the facility differ from other facilities that provide treatment for similar conditions?

You will doubtless have other questions as well but these are a good place to start. You may want to discuss them with your loved ones. While you may be comfortable staying near home, that is not always the best decision. Sometimes, it is better to be removed entirely from the environment where you have been drinking and using, away from all of the familiar triggers in order to establish a foundation for your new sobriety.