VisionAfricaMedia

By Godfred Mensah

Addiction and abuse of alcohol and drugs have become major global problems. African countries have been hit just as hard, and face huge challenges in dealing with it. Efforts to find solutions continue, but not much progress has been made in part because of the way in which they relate to it. How does it begin? Who gets to be victimized? Are some people more vulnerable than others? Let’s break it down and provide you with some insights that will answer most questions.

WHO GETS HOOKED AND WHY?

While driving your car down a highway, you hear a peculiar rattle coming from the engine. How will you respond? Will you look under the hood to examine the problem? Or will you simply turn up the volume of the radio to drown out the noise?

The answer seems obvious, yet people who are addicts consistently make the wrong choice  – not with their cars, but with their lives. By means of addiction to such substances as drugs,alcohol, and even food, many attempt to drown out their personal problems rather than successfully cope with them.

Drugs and Alcohol 

What starts a person on the path of addiction to drugs and alcohol? Peer pressure and curiosity often play a significant role, especially for youths. Indeed the reason many people become addicted is their association with those who are abusing drugs and alcohol. 

However, there is a difference between abuse and addiction. Many who abuse substances are not addicted. These can stop the abuse and then not have a compulsion to return to it. But those who are addicted find that they cannot stop it. Furthermore, any euphoric pleasure they once derived is overshadowed by anguish. 

Many who are dependent on alcohol or drugs use them as escape routes from emotional crises. Such crises are too common today. Today’s environments are a fertile soil for addiction. A study of male  adolescent addicts revealed that more than a third had been physically abused. Another study of 178 adults alcoholic women found that 88 percent had been severely mistreated. A person suffering  emotionally because of some terrible experiences may later irrationally turn to drugs or to alcohol for relief. But drugs and alcohol are not the only addiction.

Eating  Disorders 

Eating disorders sometimes serve as a distraction from unpleasant feelings. Many with eating disorders think that they are defective. To build feelings of selfself-worth, they strive to subdue their body’s craving for food. No matter what the cause of addiction is, help is available 

CONQUERING SUBSTANCE ADDICTION

Giving up an addiction is like moving from the house you were raised in. Even if the house is old and dilapidated, leaving it is difficult. It was your home. 

 If you are an addict, addiction has likely been your emotional home. Although it has undoubtedly been chaotic, it is familiar. Moving away from from addiction will be difficult, but it is worth the effort. 

 The first step is abstinence from addictive substances. Do not delay or simply promise to taper off. Dispose of all supplies and related paraphernalia at once. A brief period of withdrawal will follow  , which at times may best be accomplished under medical supervision. This is the beginning of lifelong abstinence. But do not think that it is impossible. Start by setting a goal that is within reach. Abstinence for a month, a week, even a day. At the end of each period, without returning to use, renew your resolve. 

 This is just the beginning of changing addictive behavior. Addiction is more than a defilement of the flesh. The spirit, mental inclination, is also affected. What can help to recover, both in flesh and in spirit?

CONTINUED EFFORTS NECESSARY 

  Addiction is a disorder of the entire self. Conquering addiction must address the whole person. It must change your entire value system. This takes time. There is no shortcut to recovery. Any promise of hasty recovery will only foster a hasty relapse. Recovery is a continuous process. Conquering addiction is therefore gradual. 

SEEKING THE CAUSE

For many, addiction is an attempt to bury painful events in the past. However, one can cope successfully without examining the past. Others find that the feelings rooted in their previous experiences continue to fuel addiction craving. 

DEALING WITH FEELINGS 

Have you ever stepped out of a dark building and direct into sunlight? You wince at the sudden assault of brightness. Similarly, when beginning to cope with addiction, you may find that you are suddenly and painfully bombarded with a full range of feelings. Love, anger, pride, jealousy, fear, resentment, and other emotions that have long been masked now blaze with full intensity. 

  Anxiety may tell you to retreat to the familiar darkness of substance abuse. But you need not run from your feelings. They can be a helpful source of information for you. Feelings are often merely a signal that something needs attention. So if necessary, think your feelings through. What are they telling you? If the answer is unclear or if feelings seem overwhelming, confide in trusted people. You don’t have to face your feelings alone. 

  Remember that feelings are not necessarily your enemies. Like the sudden glare of  sunlight, feelings may at first be painful. But in time they will also become like sunlight, a source of guidance and warmth. 

   PROBLEM SOLVING

Walking a tightrope is petrifying to a person who is afraid of heights. To the addict beginning recovery, life can seem like a terrifying tightrope walk. The elevated responsibility of sobriety may bring on a fear of heights, as it were. Anticipation of failure may cause you to reason. I’m going to fall anyway. Why not get it over with?

 But remember, problems are not personal assaults. They are merely situations that need to be dealt with. So do not panic. Confront your problem one at a time. 

  SELF-WORTH 

  Breaking the grip of addiction demands that you learn- perhaps for the first time- your worth as a person. This is difficult if your life has been torn apart by addiction. WHAT CAN HELP?

Treasure your body. As the good book says: No man ever hated his own flesh; but he feeds and cherishes it. Yes, you can face the challenges of recovery from addiction.