“There is no mental defense against the first drinker drug”. I don’t buy it and here is why:
The idea that there is no mental defense against the first drink or drug, can lead one to believe that relapse is inevitable and addiction recovery is impossible. We might as well stand around doing nothing waiting for relapse to happen. That’s silly. Millions of people enjoy continued addiction recovery without a relapse. In fact, a well designed relapse prevention plan can increase your chances of continued sobriety dramatically.
In discussing relapse prevention and drug and alcohol relapse itself, it is very important to make two distinctions:
Firstly, relapse process is not an event. It involves the thinking processes, feelings, urge is in cravings, as well as the drug and alcohol seeking, that precede the actual use.
Secondly,
Relapse Prevention involves identifying your early warning signs of relapse and having a plan in place to interrupt the process. In other words, relapse is simply not going to strike one down without reason or warning like a mugger attacking in the night.
It is your job to self monitor your own relapse justifications, whether they are thoughts, feelings, or post acute withdrawal symptoms. You must have an early warning detection system in place, effective strategies to cope with them, and a willingness and ability to act on them.
I believe it is imperative for everyone, regardless of how well their addiction recovery is going, to have in place and effect if relapse prevention plan.
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TREATMENT CENTRES
Treatment Centres utilizing the Twelve Step method of Alcoholics Anonymous aim to bring about a psychological break in the patient. This psychological break is referred to in Alcoholics Anonymous as a “complete psychological change”.
The techniques used by treatment centres to cause a psychological break involve cutting off the patient from his familiar social setting (restricting contact with family and friends) and restricting access to reading material, radio and television.
The patient lives in a situation of inferiority and is regularly reproached by his counsellor and “group” members for using defence mechanisms (humour, self-pity, anger, etc.). The patient is bombarded with repetitive slogans and phrases.
The idea is to create sufficient stress to cause a psychological collapse at which point the patient becomes susceptible to influence.
The desired goal is for the patient to abandon free will and to accept the program. The most commonly known term for this form of this process of psychological restructuring is brainwashing.
Mickys last blog post..THE TRUTH ABOUT ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS
Micky,
I certainly respect your right to express your opinion, but do don’t see the relevancy to the post concerning relapse prevention.
I am a trained and certified therapist and am very familiar with 12 step facilliataion; and can assure you that the goals of 12 step facilitation therapy are not those you describe.
Be aware that 12 step facilitation as a therapy and going to 12 step meetings and being a participating member are 2 distinctly different venues.
The highly confrontive style of therapy you describe is no longer regarded as effective as a more supportive approach. Top treatment centers have all but abandoned the approach you describe.
Regards,
Bill
We need to realize that we are not ALCOHOLICS in need of SOBRIETY; we are SINNERS in need of GOD.
We will never find God by trying to clean up our sinful behaviour one piece at a time.
This is the wrong method to find true Biblical healing. A Christian does not keep their old clothes and simply sew new patches of unshrunk cloth on them, patching them up as they cleanse each sin.
If they were to do that their clothes would be worse off with the patch, not better! Look at what Jesus said:
“No man putteth a piece of new cloth unto an old garment, for that which is put in to fill it up taketh from the garment, and the rent is made worse.
Neither do men put new wine into old bottles: else the bottles break, and the wine runneth out, and the bottles perish: but they put new wine into new bottles, and both are preserved.” (Matthew 9:16 – 17)