Addiction, does it ever get better.

[Bri20]

Yes, to answer your question it does get better but only if you want to do it for yourself, first of all. I'm not going to tell you it's going to be easy. I was addicted to opiates for 9 years and a meth addict for 3 years. I have been clean for a little over a year now. But I had been trying to get clean for a year before that. It wasn't until I had an accidental drug overdose a little over a year ago that really woke me up. I was in a coma for 6 days and what I saw and experienced while in that coma I wouldn't wish upon anyone. Let's just say if God wouldn't have saved me I would be in Hell right now. And since then I have gone back to church and have been seeking God ever since. I had been away from God for awhile but in his mercy he saved me.

[reachout]

Hello Bri

Welcome! For a first post, wow!, what a knockout one! Just beautiful.

I am GLAD you made it. Agree totally that is by mercy alone that you are here to share and testify with us today.


READ THIS ALL WHO ARE WONDERING! Bri's post lets us see the whole spectrum... and each of us is going to end up one one end of the spectrum or the other with continued misuse, abuse, of drugs. Dead or alive? I choose alive like Bri.

Thanks for coming here, Bri
God Bless
reach

[maggie0704]

Originally Posted by Bri20

It wasn't until I had an accidental drug overdose a little over a year ago that really woke me up. I was in a coma for 6 days and what I saw and experienced while in that coma I wouldn't wish upon anyone. Let's just say if God wouldn't have saved me I would be in Hell right now. And since then I have gone back to church and have been seeking God ever since. I had been away from God for awhile but in his mercy he saved me.

Absolutely beautiful miracles said in this post! He did save you, and now you have a 2nd chance to live and love life. I have to tell you, i have been away from God for a while now, and i know that i am suffering emotionally/physically bcuz of this. And your post moved me so much. It was exactly what i needed to read......inspiration for me to keep going and stay close to my higher power. Bcuz only thru Him can i find true happiness, peace, and sobriety. You are an example of His blessings and i am so glad that you have used your crisis in a positive way, and changed for the better. He has a purpose for you and it may just be so you can witness to others of how it is possible to be sober and be happy. Take Care!

[kadee]

Hi Bri
This thread is amazing, everybody is incredible. Such a gathering. Yes, absolutely you can recover from the drugs and the alcohol. You can cross the bridge and have a new way of seeing things, original thoughts and fresh ideas. You might replace the drugs with exercise of the body or the mind, you will have healthy organs and won’t be waking up sick n tired of being sick n tired. You will feel renewed and refreshed. Your old druggie-bottleneck friends will eventually come across as boring or a threat, you will find different friends and you will discover new coping methods. The sparkle will come back in your eyes and you will look after your diet better. You might even get a little happy for no reason at all. You come to realize how precious you are to yourself and others. You learn how to honour yourself and others. You learn about positives instead of negatives. You learn how to keep what you have. You learn how to rely on faith and trust of a power bigger than yourself. It is awesome. This stuff is what makes our lives so appealing and rewarding. Once you get a taste of it, you won’t want to throw it in the trash; you won’t want to jump ship.

There are times when you feel like a drink coming on. That doesn’t mean that you have to go to the store and buy a bottle. It might be something as simple as your sugar level is down, your body thinks it wants alcohol, but your body is craving for the sugar in the alcohol. Replace it with diet soda or candy. Nothing is impossible. It is a new way of living and thinking. Recovery is learning how to live again -it must be nurtured every day like a newborn baby is. If you learn how to keep it simple, you are ahead. If you complicate things, you fall behind. Chaos is the natural order of things when you are loaded. Celebration is the natural order of things when you have cleaned up.

I used drugs and alcohol for 38 years. I’ve been in 2 detoxes and one recovery house over the past 9 years .I cleaned up at home this past January with the help of the wonderful people on this board. I have a lot of outside support, an addiction counsellor, group session meetings and a psychiatrist. I focus on keeping my mind sharp. Yes there was depression after the physical shock. I have had thoughts of going on antipressants to help my black n blue days but I have come this far, I can probably ride out another 6 months. I have had a few weekend slips with wine and I couldn’t stand it, so I jump right back to where I want to be. I want to be free of the slave and master, the demon seed. And I am, for today. I give thanks everyday for my clean time. That is all I have, is today, and so I take advantage of all the good stuff a day can bring. Simple, just breathe in and out and don’t put anything in your body in-between breaths. (except soul food)

I won’t be around the internet for a while, I’ll check back on Tuesday.
Life is indeed beautiful after all.

Take TL care
kadee

[Sunshinegirl]

Doddsgirl - Our stories are similar and I'm now dealing with anxiety and depression after about 2 months of detoxing from the vics. I'm curious about Cymbalta as I've been on just about every anti-depressant out there over the years. Bad, bad side effects. Most recently, since the detox, Prozac and Seroquel (hellish side effects with both). Did you experience any side effects with Cymbalta???? I'm at my wits end.........just walking around feeling like there's no reason to live. Because of the depression and anxiety. Some days are worse than others, but the days that are bad are overwhelming and I just want to crawl in bed and stay there. Sorry, didn't mean to hijack this thread, but really curious about Cymbalta. Thanks!