Hope Is In The Air

Addiction has been termed a "soul sickness." Doctors deal with the physical symptoms and ease the turmoil of withdrawal. Some insist the drinker go through it without helpful meds to "teach the alcoholic a lesson."

With alcohol, withdrawal can be fatal and should only be done under medical care. Alcohol cannot erase negative emotions, it suppresses them. When liquor is removed, all those feelings rise to the surface. One drinker described stopping as "slamming the breaks on a car full of emotional baggage."

With one in ten at risk and 88,000 Americans dying each year from "alcohol use disorder," doctors are finally looking at new ways to treat the addict while the government approves new forms of therapies. Trauma, auto accidents and organ failure are claiming so many lives. Relapse rates and multiple trips to rehabilitation clinics show that current methods need to be re-invented.

Ten percent of the population is too many to write off as "morally weak." As an alcoholic who couldn't stop, I didn't want to stay here any longer. I found life harsh and unrelenting. The greed, selfishness and indifference I found in some people took the wind out of my sails. A drinking lifestyle became an irritant to my soul.

New treatment options saved me. Eight years in AA provided some sobriety and a wonderful support system but I was an alcoholic that needed more. MAT-medication assisted therapy-allowed me to overcome the cravings and maintain long-term success.

Carl Jung said "Spiritum Contra Spiritus," which translates to "fight fire with fire." I begged God over and over to remove my desire to drink, all the cravings and any residual feeling of "turning to the bottle" to cope.

Up until recently, the first line of treatment for an addict seeking help was a list of nearby 12-step meetings. Alcoholics Anonymous had the corner on the recovery market because it was the only option offered. Today, some physicians understand the need for unique programs that directly meet the needs of the user.

No one woke up and decided to become addicted. Until the chemical hooks are deeply embedded, most don't know that they are hooked until stopping is attempted. Multiple 'serious' tries to get and remain clean are usually part of every addict's path.

Drugs, alcohol, illness, stress: all distort vision like a bad pair of glasses so one can't "see" what the right thing to do is. New ways are on the horizon and some are just beginning to enter the treatment world. Attitudes are shifting and fewer people damn the addict for self-medicating. Life itself brings the hope to heal.

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