Addiction advice thread

EvilQueen said:
Noooooooooooo.................... don't say that! I dread that day! Maybe I should just go have my self checked out! The doctor that originally wanted to diagnose me is a quack, so maybe I should go to JHB or some place bigger than the town I am in, there should be a specialist somewhere........... And hopefully, they can tell me that I am just one of the lucky ones, I am perfectly healthy and no chemical imbalances. lol!
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I was fine for about 2 years, stayed on my meds and stayed away from substances and everything....Then work started to get really hectic, new baby, financial stress, blah blah blah...Life happened.
Without even realizing it I started to go crazy manic and then cry myself to sleep and eventually I started doing the irrational stuff again, like snorting my ritalin and getting high all day .....Lost my job...My wife was amazing though and she helped me stay clean while the Shrink stabilized me, check my lithium levels and added to my cocktail...The additional meds make me a little tired, but I aint crazy at this point....I'm clean again and working in an awesome job....The lesson here is that Bipolar is chronic....It needs to be monitored, just like a diabetic has to monitor his condition...Bipolar people need to do the same, but it cant be done alone and the family need to know what to look for and need to be able to recognize the telling signs and intervene before the demon wreaks havoc and destroys lives.
 
I know this sounds silly but I am addicted to the net. I love reading news and following sports. I am online from when I wake up until I fall asleep (use my phone and pc). I have an uncapped line at home and at work. I can go weeks without doing any work. I constantly refresh sites( every couple of seconds) expecting a new story or a new post. Not sure what to do, I have tried various routines and plans but nothing has worked and it not something people take seriously either
 
ratty said:
I know this sounds silly but I am addicted to the net. I love reading news and following sports. I am online from when I wake up until I fall asleep (use my phone and pc). I have an uncapped line at home and at work. I can go weeks without doing any work. I constantly refresh sites( every couple of seconds) expecting a new story or a new post. Not sure what to do, I have tried various routines and plans but nothing has worked and it not something people take seriously either
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Information addiction comes in many forms, and the net is the perfect opiate.

My information gathering addiction became quite chronic within the first years I had internet, but it all started long before the net. It started decades ago, when I started meeting smart and informed people and I realised that I was uninformed, naive and lacking in an information database.

It started with reading books, progressed to magazines, to tv documentaries and then to the net.

Now years later, I've learned to pace myself, and I've also branched off into using different types of information gathering styles. At the moment my chosen style is 'talking to people', which entails, me listening and prompting them to divulge the knowledge they have. I like this personalised form of knowledge & information sharing as it gives a wide perspective on the psychological angle, eg: why do people know the stuff they know, how did they gain the knowledge, how did they incorporate it into their background database and do they understand the information they can sprout.

Thus I am currently gathering personalised information and how individuals gather that information, not only with the intent of gathering information for myself, but also to understand individuals better and to have insight into the electronic revolution and its impact on the way we network, communicate and of course, how we process information in an 'information saturated world'.

Addictions can be tricky, however by understanding your own needs and why you have them, you can find ways to make your addiction a positive aspect of your life, through creative submission: eg I am addicted, and I am not going to stop, so, how can I make this work with and for me ?
 
HyperBudgie said:
I don't think you need therapy but you can go to your GP and get a script for "Zyban"...It's actually an anti-depressant but they discovered that it suppresses the craving for nicotine...Many have found this successful...but like any other addiction YOU need to make the conscious decision that you don't want or need to smoke anymore...
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Just a note of warning here. (Sorry, been reading the thread from the start for the first time, so I apologise for dredging up an old post.)

Be very careful of Zyban. It is essential that you see a knowledgable GP about it and also that you properly research it and its side-effects. Zyban was originally tested as an anti-depressant, of sorts, and it was discovered that it also coincidentally suppresses the urge to smoke; however it ALSO generally suppresses quite a few natural cravings such as the urge to eat. This can be devastating to people who have a history of eating disorders. Furthermore, because of the way it messes with the chemicals in the brain, it can trigger some sort of psychosis.

If you have tried just about everything to quit smoking, I can suggest you contact Allen Carr and go on one of their seminars. Discovery will even pay for it.

Juice
 
HyperBudgie said:
It's not only addiction to substances that destroy lives...Eating disorders are probably the most dangerous of all addictions...
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Catching up - half-way through.

Eating Disorders are one of the least-understood mental illnesses and was only recently even categorised as such. I'm not sure that it can be categorised as an addiction since in some way it is aided by the body's natural defense mechanisms against starvation. Within 24 hours of stopping to eat, your brain responds by producing a protein/hormone that starts suppressing your need to eat and your stomach starts to atrophy, further suppressing your apetite.

People who suffer from eating disorders usually do so due to a perceived lack of control over some (or all) aspects of their lives and through their illness they feel that they gain control they would otherwise not have.

Whether it is an addiction or not is probably irrelevant. It's a terrible disease and no-one ever really recovers from it.

Juice
 
wrathex said:
Addictions can be tricky, however by understanding your own needs and why you have them, you can find ways to make your addiction a positive aspect of your life, through creative submission: eg I am addicted, and I am not going to stop, so, how can I make this work with and for me ?
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Here's something that might interest you:

http://www.amazon.com/Discover-Your-Strengths-Marcus-Buckingham/dp/0743201140

In the book they describe something called an "Input" skill. It's defined as:

People strong in the Input theme have a craving to know more. Often they like to collect and archive all kinds of information.

Read a summary here: http://paulsmith.s5.com/ASTD-Feb2011/StrengthsFinder.pdf

Calling this an addiction is a tricky one, since on the one hand it is something useful (hey, you're probably an awesome quiz-night partner :) but when it threatens to consume your life then you need to manage it carefully.

Happy input-gathering :)

Fellow Gatherer,
Juice
 
The other side of the coin

Co-dependency and addiction often go hand-in-hand. Addicts are often surrounded by people who are co-dependent. If you're in a relationship (partner, parent, child, sibling, etc) with an addict, it might help you to understand what you yourself are going through, either to be able to better support your partner or to be able to walk away if it comes to it.

This might help you understand yourself and your role a little better:

http://www.amazon.com/Codependent-N...DAXS/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1300988563&sr=8-3

Juice
 
juice - you can fully recover from an eating disorder. it's up to the individual if they want to heal themselves or not. i was anorexic at one stage to the point of being my lowest weight of 32 kgs. i did go through relapses of not eating and i admit that it's not a conscious thing that ones does when you stop eating. if you do not keep it under control you can easily lose the control to eat. but am a "recovered" anorexic and try my best.
 
In that sense beating Anorexia is a lot like beating any other addiction, I guess. Skipping a meal is almost as bad for a former Anorexic as having a drink is for an alcoholic. One leads to two, two to three and before you know it you're on a bender and days have gone by without a meal. The actual recovery rate on any eating disorder is extremely low and if you're one of the few who've made it then that is something to be truly proud of. Keep up the good work! :)

Juice
 
Juice said:
Co-dependency and addiction often go hand-in-hand. Addicts are often surrounded by people who are co-dependent. If you're in a relationship (partner, parent, child, sibling, etc) with an addict, it might help you to understand what you yourself are going through, either to be able to better support your partner or to be able to walk away if it comes to it.

This might help you understand yourself and your role a little better:

http://www.amazon.com/Codependent-N...DAXS/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1300988563&sr=8-3

Juice
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I was in a co-dependent relationship with my ex wife, we were both Heroin addicts when we got married and it took a lot to get clean. We're both clean now but the marriage ended 4 years ago.
 
Juice said:
In that sense beating Anorexia is a lot like beating any other addiction, I guess. Skipping a meal is almost as bad for a former Anorexic as having a drink is for an alcoholic. One leads to two, two to three and before you know it you're on a bender and days have gone by without a meal. The actual recovery rate on any eating disorder is extremely low and if you're one of the few who've made it then that is something to be truly proud of. Keep up the good work! :)

Juice
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It's actually quite refreshing to see people supporting each other, even in this online environment. thanks for all the sound advice Juice.
 
Its time for me to seriously cut down on my alcohol! The stuff is going to ruin me,the only reason I drink is to cope with anxiety but its stupid because it just makes it worse in the long run.Wish me luck,going to try not drink during the week.

EDIT:Any tips?
 
Alcohol is actually a central nervous system depressant, so yes, you're absolutely right. If you're using it to 'take the edge off' then in the long run it achieves the opposite effect.

A friend of mine gives up drinking every January. He'll have his last drinks on New Year's Eve and then won't drink anything alcoholic for the whole of January. He uses it as a 'dependency test' of sorts to see how much he misses having a drink. Since this discussion with him I've also started doing the same thing and I think it's a useful way to gauge your relationship with alcohol.

In terms of 'coping with anxiety', I do have a couple of suggestions. If you don't already know what it is, I suggest identifying the source of your anxiety as a good place to start. You could also speak to your GP about a medical prescription for mitigating your anxiety issues, though your GP will (should!) probably also tell you that any kind of medication will only buy you time and that you should find a way to deal with the anxiety in a constructive and sustainable way. Based on the source of your anxiety, the GP might refer you to a psychologist. Even if you don't feel comfortable talking to a specialist, it would be a good idea to find someone with whom you can discuss your issues anyway. A specialist offers a relatively 'safe' environment and has definite benefits.

Dependency often offers an escape from some circumstance and if you are concerned that you're developing a dependency it's probably better to deal with the circumstances that you are trying avoid.

Juice
 
Wellbutrin is your friend! Good for depression, anxiety and addiction problems. For bipolar you'll need a mood stabilizer like Seraquel though. Also used off-label for addictions
 
DuidelikeDave said:
Wellbutrin is your friend! Good for depression, anxiety and addiction problems. For bipolar you'll need a mood stabilizer like Seraquel though. Also used off-label for addictions
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This is 100% true
Wellbutrin helped me get over a 14 year marijuana addiction
also doesnt screw with ur serotonin -- and increases libido ;)
 
Hi, I'm Praeses and I'm addicted to caffeine. It's been two days since my last chocolate/coffee. Just been drinking water and rooibos. It's a rough road, got a headache atm. Damn you, sweet dark yummy liquid!

/me waits for the rest of C-anon to say hi.

I feel comatose...need...coffee...help...me!
 
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