Tag: substance use

Negative emotions in recovery: Fear, sadness and everything inbetween

Posted on by kathleenmc1953@sbcglobal.net

negativecontrastmoon1

We all have our go-to negative emotions. For many of us it’s sadness, for others it’s fear. In my experience these are the two primary negative emotions with other negative emotions being contained in the continuum between them. Feelings of hurt, jealousy, desperation, disappointment, boredom, irritation- they all contribute to a sense of being on the emotional seesaw. Tip it too much toward one end and the feeling builds up and becomes overwhelming.

When you have a substance use problem emotions are not your friend. Abusing substances really is the elusive antidote to negative emotions. But it backfires. The sadness and fear build; sadness is transformed into depression and fear into anger. It’s no wonder that depression and antisocial behavior often go hand-in-hand with drinking and drug use.

In my view, when people go into recovery they are not only making a conscious decision to stop using drugs and/or alcohol but, whether they know it at the time or not, they are also committing to encountering their emotions fully. This is very courageous. Imagine how hard it would be to face years, and sometimes a lifetime, of misplaced emotions. For many, it really is almost too much to bear.

Consequently, accepting and expressing emotions are as much a part of recovery as not using. These skills are learned with time through developing self-awareness. In the end, the goal is emotional maturity.

So the next time someone you know stops using drugs or alcohol, treat them with tremendous respect. They are not the product of their past anymore. They are facing the past in the blinding light of their present, alone and vulnerable. All they want and need is your understanding and support.

__________________________________________________________
For some practical strategies on how to cope with negative emotions the following link is extremely helpful:

www.choosehelp.com/topics/recovery/how-to-handle-negative-emotions-without-drugs-or-alcohol-using-mindfulness-and-mental-imagery-to-cope-with-uncomfortable-feelings

__________________________________________________________
DISCLAIMER
This information is for educational purposes only and should not in any way be considered a substitute for professional help. If you feel that you need immediate assistance please call your local psychiatric emergency services.

Some random thoughts regarding Phillip Seymour Hoffman

Posted on by kathleenmc1953@sbcglobal.net
Untimely exit
Untimely exit

Since PSH’s death I’ve been thinking about all the people I have known that followed a similar path. People who had years of abstinence from drugs and alcohol and returned to using. People who then sometimes accidentally died from an overdose.

Some of these random thoughts led me to write here about what I know from my experience and to look into some more recent findings that may or may not be relevant to PSH but are relevant to the drug culture in the United States as it stands today. Add the following factors up and you have our present predicament.

1. A path from pain killers to heroin?

In the media there are reports that Hoffman had been using pain medications prior to his use of heroin. A recent report from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMSHA) notes that prior non medical use of prescription pain killers increased the likelihood of people initiating heroin use 19 times in the age group from 12-49.*

2. The new heroin: too much of a bad thing

In case you haven’t been up on the news regarding heroin, it is more potent and in greater supply than ever before. According to the US Drug Enforcement Administration’s System to Retrieve Information from Drug Evidence (STRIDE) between 1992 and 2007 (the last year that data was publicly available) the purity of heroin increased by 60% and the price decreased by 81%. (Similar trends can also be found for cannabis and cocaine.) Essentially you can get better heroin for less money. Word on the street is that a bag of heroin that was once $20 is now $10. For PSH cost was not an issue but purity may well have been.

3. The whole is greater than the sum of its parts

Several prescription drugs were also found in PSH’s apartment. Several drugs in combination with heroin might have contributed to his death. Polydrug intoxication can become lethal when two or more drugs in combination have a greater effect than each would have had if used alone.

4. Alone and using again

And then there is the prospect of the person using alone, isolated from those he or she loves. Where does the impulse to use take over in the face of losing all that one has in life- home, children, partner, successful career, friends? Heroin is not a drug that is recreational. It is a drug of annihilation; the pleasure is in a total escape from the pain of existence. It is fueled by shame. It feels better to be alone when you are ashamed of what you are doing. It also makes it harder to find you in time if you get in trouble with more potent heroin.

As a result

Being at home alone and using a drug of unknown potency possibly with other drugs and alcohol can be a lethal combination. Unfortunately this was the result for Phillip Seymour Hoffman and for all the other not-so-famous people who are dying in similar ways every day.

It doesn’t have to be this way…..

*Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Center for Behavioral Statistics and Quality Data Review. (2013, August). Associations of Non-Medical Pain Reliever Use and Initiation of Heroin Use in the United States. Retrieved from http://www.samhsa.gov/data/2k13/DataReview/DR006/nonmedical-pain-reliever-use-2013.pdf