For most people, entering treatment for the first time represents a milestone in their lives that serves as a major wake up call. They've reached a point in their lives in which they are so out of control that they are willing to seek help. While their surface denial may still be strong, underneath there is a growing awareness of how bad things are.
But for others who have been in treatment multiple times, the idea of readmission has become normal. The process of detoxification is well known and predictable. Adjusting to the routine of a treatment and aftercare program schedule has become second nature. For these people, entering treatment has simply become part of their addiction cycle.
The solution for this second group isn’t relapse prevention – relapse implies that there is a commitment to ongoing recovery. For the person caught up in this pattern, his or her involvement in recovery is similar to the individual who binge drinks and then abstains for days or weeks. A look at the big picture reveals a person much like Sisyphus, from Greek mythology, who was compelled to roll an immense boulder up a hill, only to watch it roll back down, and to repeat this action forever.
This month I’ve returned to some of the issues covered in the January 2013 post. The key difference here is the idea of rising a little bit higher and taking a look at broader (3 or more years) patterns in our lives. In change work our first goal is to define the issue as fully as possible. This definition will serve as a foundation and guide for the actions we need to take to achieve the lives we’ve always wanted.
John
But for others who have been in treatment multiple times, the idea of readmission has become normal. The process of detoxification is well known and predictable. Adjusting to the routine of a treatment and aftercare program schedule has become second nature. For these people, entering treatment has simply become part of their addiction cycle.
The solution for this second group isn’t relapse prevention – relapse implies that there is a commitment to ongoing recovery. For the person caught up in this pattern, his or her involvement in recovery is similar to the individual who binge drinks and then abstains for days or weeks. A look at the big picture reveals a person much like Sisyphus, from Greek mythology, who was compelled to roll an immense boulder up a hill, only to watch it roll back down, and to repeat this action forever.
This month I’ve returned to some of the issues covered in the January 2013 post. The key difference here is the idea of rising a little bit higher and taking a look at broader (3 or more years) patterns in our lives. In change work our first goal is to define the issue as fully as possible. This definition will serve as a foundation and guide for the actions we need to take to achieve the lives we’ve always wanted.
John
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