OPIATE PAIN MEDS FOR ADDICTS

<span class="GingerNoCheckStart"></span>Disclaimer. Our materials are intended for entertainment purposes only. We are not doctors or professionals. This website does not offer, and we do not purport to offer, any medical, psychological, therapeutic, religious, or other professional advice to users. Non Affiliation. We are not affiliated with Alcoholics Anonymous or any other so called “12 Step” program.<br /> <span style="background-color: white;"><br /> </span><br /> <br /> <h1 class="entry-title" style="border: 0px; clear: both; font-family: Oswald, arial; font-size: 28px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 36px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 7px; text-transform: uppercase; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial; font-size: 21px; line-height: 22px;">Need for Opiate Painkillers</span></h1><div class="entry-content" style="border: 0px; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 22px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div style="border: 0px; margin-bottom: 22px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">There are times when a physician feels the need to prescribe <a href="http://alcoholrehab.com/alcohol-rehab/opiate-painkiller-addiction/" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">opiate painkillers</a> to their <span class="GRcorrect" grphrase="7c5519968f7f32dc8dc34f8e39a3fe90a5c167a1" grtype="null" id="GRmark_7c5519968f7f32dc8dc34f8e39a3fe90a5c167a1_patient:0">patient</span>. This may be because the individual is undergoing some type of surgical treatment or they are dealing with chronic pain. This type of medication is tightly controlled because of abuse and addiction – it is illegal to use such drugs for recreational purposes. Most physicians will be cautious about prescribing opiates and will only do so when they believe the benefits outweigh the risks. The vast majority of people who do use these medications never develop any problems as a result. Increasingly doctors are aware of how important it is to get the balance right between <a href="http://www.drugfree.org/join-together/addiction/challenges-of-treating-chronic-pain-in-people-with-opioid-dependence" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">managing the pain and avoiding addiction</a>.</span></div><h2 style="border: 0px; clear: both; font-family: Arial; font-size: 21px; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 14px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Worries about Relapse after Using Opiate Analgesia</span></h2><div style="border: 0px; margin-bottom: 22px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Those individuals who are in addiction recovery will have particular concerns in regards to the medical use of opiate analgesia. This is particularly true for those who have been previously addicted to opiates – although it does apply to all recovering addicts including those recovering from alcohol abuse. The worry is that once the individual uses these substances it will <a href="http://alcoholrehab.com/alcohol-rehab/understanding-relapse/" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">trigger a relapse</a> back to addiction. There are examples of people who fell into this trap after they used opiates under prescription. This is a reasonable concern because even people with no history of drug abuse have developed addiction problems after taking prescribed opiate medication. Thankfully there are things that can be done to prevent that from happening.</span></div><h2 style="border: 0px; clear: both; font-family: Arial; font-size: 21px; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 14px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Alternatives to Opiate Analgesia</span></h2><div style="border: 0px; margin-bottom: 22px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">There are many options when it comes to pain management including:</span></div><ul style="border: 0px; list-style: none; margin: 0px 0px 22px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><li class="first" style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Techniques such as <a href="http://alcoholrehab.com/alcohol-rehab/meditation-benefits/" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">mindfulness <span class="GRcorrect" grphrase="936949d6fa9eda4196b090aad3ca416426541908" grtype="null" id="GRmark_936949d6fa9eda4196b090aad3ca416426541908_mediation:0">mediation</span></a> have <span class="GRcorrect" grphrase="936949d6fa9eda4196b090aad3ca416426541908" grtype="null" id="GRmark_936949d6fa9eda4196b090aad3ca416426541908_proving:1">proving</span> to be effective in the <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2900099/" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">treatment of chronic pain</a>. This type of treatment for pain is inexpensive and involves no unpleasant side effects.</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">If people are tense it can make the pain feel far more severe. This is why <a href="http://alcoholrehab.com/alcohol-rehab/relaxation-techniques-in-recovery/" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="GRcorrect" grphrase="b84e0d10219a2f8a46a2fc6c05b80ec9c3844ff3" grtype="null" id="GRmark_b84e0d10219a2f8a46a2fc6c05b80ec9c3844ff3_relaxations:0">relaxations</span> </a><a href="http://alcoholrehab.com/alcohol-rehab/relaxation-techniques-in-recovery/" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></a><span class="GRcorrect" grphrase="b84e0d10219a2f8a46a2fc6c05b80ec9c3844ff3" grtype="null" id="GRmark_b84e0d10219a2f8a46a2fc6c05b80ec9c3844ff3_techniquesare:1"><a href="http://alcoholrehab.com/alcohol-rehab/relaxation-techniques-in-recovery/" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">techniques</a>are</span> able to reduce the experience of this discomfort.</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">There are a number of effective non-opiate medications that will be able to manage severe pain in many instances. This includes drugs that are most often used to treat epilepsy and depression – they also have <a href="http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/pain-medications/PN00044" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">pain management prosperities</a>.</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Some people will experience pain relief from <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transcutaneous_electrical_nerve_stimulation" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS machine)</a>. This is regularly used in the management of pain associated with childbirth – it is based on the <a href="http://www.sciencedaily.com/articles/g/gate_control_theory_of_pain.htm" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">gate control theory of pain</a>.</span></li> <li class="last" style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;"><span class="GRcorrect" grphrase="41807e1d39096b763e66b6b4c690a1cead6f0a0f" grtype="null" id="GRmark_41807e1d39096b763e66b6b4c690a1cead6f0a0f_Alternatives:0">Alternatives</span> treatments such as acupuncture or <span class="GRcorrect" grphrase="41807e1d39096b763e66b6b4c690a1cead6f0a0f" grtype="null" id="GRmark_41807e1d39096b763e66b6b4c690a1cead6f0a0f_reiki:1">reiki</span> can help people deal with pain.</span></li> </ul><h2 style="border: 0px; clear: both; font-family: Arial; font-size: 21px; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 14px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Justifiable Use of Opiate Analgesia in Recovery</span></h2><div style="border: 0px; margin-bottom: 22px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">There are justifiable reasons for using opiate analgesia medication in recovery. It is inhumane for people to be left in pain. In most instances this discomfort can be dealt with by using non-opiate medications and pain management techniques, but this is not always possible. Chronic pain makes life unbearable and to leave somebody in this state, when there is a remedy, would a form of cruelty – and therefore unethical for a physician. This is why in some instances there will be justifiable reasons for prescribing opiate analgesia. Physicians will not deny people the medication they need, but they have an obligation to help the individual understand the risks involved – they also need a treatment plan that will help reduce these risks.</span></div><h2 style="border: 0px; clear: both; font-family: Arial; font-size: 21px; font-weight: normal; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 14px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Safe use of Opiate Analgesia in Recovery</span></h2><div style="border: 0px; margin-bottom: 22px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Here are some suggestions about the safe use of opiate analgesia in addiction recovery:</span></div><ul style="border: 0px; list-style: none; margin: 0px 0px 22px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><li class="first" style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">It is vital that the physician prescribing opiate medication is aware of the patient’s history of addiction. If they are aware of the risks they may be able to suggest a non –opiate alternative first of all.</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">The individual needs to keep in mind that the opiate medication is being used to treat a symptom. There is a great deal of difference between this and taking drugs to get high.</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">It is vital that people follow their physician’s instructions carefully. If they are worried that their doctor is not taking the risk of relapse seriously enough they should ask for a second opinion.</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">It is important to establish that there are no non-opiate alternatives that could be tried first of all. Unfortunately some physicians still have a tendency to just automatically prescribe opiate medications without fully considering other options.</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Those individuals who are dealing with chronic pain will usually be assigned to a pain management team made up of a number of different professionals. This expert multidisciplinary team will be well aware of <span class="GRcorrect" grphrase="a0bd8f2efa8ed3fbee92a15fe07906780989be6e" grtype="null" id="GRmark_a0bd8f2efa8ed3fbee92a15fe07906780989be6e_dangers:0">dangers</span> of opiates and will be able to provide the best guidance.</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">The doctor can prescribe opiate medication to prevent the pain from arising or to treat it when it does arise. In practice this means that the individual will be expected to take the drug at regular intervals or as they feel they need it (this is referred to as <em style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">pro re nata</em> (PRN) or as required) – it is vital to take this medication as per instructions.</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Those individuals who have been prescribed PRN opiate medication should only take it treat their pain. This means that they need to be honest with themselves and not take the drug for any other reason.</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">The sooner the individual can come off these medications the better for them. Of course, this cannot happen until their pain is managed by <span class="GRcorrect" grphrase="33a8785cdbffb78acccd194241171f34a0bdf7d0" grtype="null" id="GRmark_33a8785cdbffb78acccd194241171f34a0bdf7d0_non:0">non</span>-opiate means.</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">It has been suggested that a <a href="http://paincenter.stanford.edu/press/external/2011-06-24drugfree.pdf" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">blinded pain cocktail</a> might be a good option when using methadone opiates for pain. This means mixing the drug with other substances, and the individual will not be told how much methadone is inside.</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">A family member can be given the responsibility for managing the pain medication; although there could be ethical reasons for why this could become a problem.</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">So long as the individual <span class="GRcorrect" grphrase="31fa8c5d8195ab75f4455031fd330c8a2ec4144f" grtype="null" id="GRmark_31fa8c5d8195ab75f4455031fd330c8a2ec4144f_is only using:0">is only using</span> these substances under strict doctor’s orders they will not have relapsed back to drug use. It should not affect their status in recovery.</span></li> <li class="last" style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Those individuals who belong to a recovery fellowship should share their concerns and ask for support – a sponsor is generally good for this. It is important to keep in mind though, that the members of this group should not be handing out any medical advice that they are not qualified to give.</span></li> </ul></div><span class="GingerNoCheckEnd"></span>

OPIATE PAIN MEDS FOR ADDICTS

Disclaimer. Our materials are intended for entertainment purposes only. We are not doctors or professionals. This website does not offer, an...

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Symptoms of Exercise Addiction

<span style="background-color: white;"><br /> </span><br /> <span style="background-color: white;"><br /> </span><br /> <br /> <h2 style="border: 0px; clear: both; font-family: Arial; font-size: 21px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 22px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 14px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;"><span class="GingerNoCheckStart"></span>Physical Fitness in Recovery</span></h2><div style="border: 0px; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 22px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Addicts describe reaching a point in their addiction where they <em style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">feel sick and tired of feeling sick and tired</em>. It is this that motivates them to quit. When people manage to escape alcohol or drug abuse they will often be full of determination to find a new healthier way of living. They will be living a life that is the complete opposite of what they previously experienced. This often inspires them to become interested in physical fitness. This healthy pursuit can bring great joy to people in recovery. It can also provide many mental and physical benefits. Problems can arise if the individual becomes too obsessed with this type of activity. They may begin to neglect other areas of their life. If they are not careful, they can find themselves back in the midst of addiction. Physical fitness is usually a positive habit, but it can lead to physical and mental harm when taken to extremes.</span></div><h2 style="border: 0px; clear: both; font-family: Arial; font-size: 21px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 22px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 14px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Symptoms of Exercise Addiction</span></h2><div style="border: 0px; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 22px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Like other forms of addiction there will be signs that people have developed an unhealthy relationship with intense physical activity. These are some of the most <a href="http://www.fitsugar.com/Doctors-Advice-Identifying-Exercise-Addiction-Symptoms-2935898" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">common signs of exercise addiction</a>:</span></div><ul style="border: 0px; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; list-style: none; margin: 0px 0px 22px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><li class="first" style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">The individual experiences a great deal of guilt if they miss an exercise session</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">People begin to spend more and more time devoted to exercise</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">They may even attempt to hide the extent that they are exercising</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">The individual feels annoyed if any event interrupts their exercise schedule</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">This activity begins to interfere with family and work commitments</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">If the individual is questioned about the amount they exercise they will become defensive</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">The person is unwilling to cut down on the amount they exercise</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">They may lose interest in other activities they used to enjoy</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">The individual exercises at odd hours (for example, the middle of the night)</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">The person misses important events because of their desire to exercise</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">They spend an excessive amount of time thinking about physical fitness</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">When people are overdoing it, they begin to suffer the symptoms of overtraining syndrome</span></li> <li class="last" style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">When people miss a couple of sessions of their fitness routine, they become convinced that their health is impaired</span></li> </ul><div style="border: 0px; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 22px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">The individual will not usually experience all of these symptoms. Like other forms of addiction, things begin to deteriorate over time.</span></div><h2 style="border: 0px; clear: both; font-family: Arial; font-size: 21px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 22px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 14px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;"><span class="GRcorrect" grphrase="f013627eccff0562f4a3ea23902269d40f3f214e" grtype="null" id="GRmark_f013627eccff0562f4a3ea23902269d40f3f214e_Overtraining:0">Overtraining</span> Syndrome</span></h2><div style="border: 0px; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 22px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">When people exercise too much they can develop a condition known as <em style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="GRcorrect" grphrase="ce0176249963064d9c571a26ae153fd59ae70ed7" grtype="null" id="GRmark_ce0176249963064d9c571a26ae153fd59ae70ed7_overtraining:0">overtraining</span> syndrome</em>. <span class="GRcorrect" grphrase="1f38665ec39c3700f07c7add09312c346ec246bf" grtype="null" id="GRmark_1f38665ec39c3700f07c7add09312c346ec246bf_Thesymptoms:0">The<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Overtraining" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">symptoms</a></span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Overtraining" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> of overtraining</a> include:</span></div><ul style="border: 0px; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; list-style: none; margin: 0px 0px 22px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><li class="first" style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Symptoms of depression</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Feeling tired most of the time</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Muscle soreness that does not seem to go away</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Irritability</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Deteriorating mental health</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heart_rate_variability" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Reduced heart rate variability</a>. This is worrying because reduction of this variability has been associated with the increased likelihood of experiencing a myocardial infarction (heart attack). This variability in heart rate is also associated with <span class="GRcorrect" grphrase="9ff3218f8ba35fbe1f14072a8423215a6fa77d82" grtype="null" id="GRmark_9ff3218f8ba35fbe1f14072a8423215a6fa77d82_emotional state:0">emotional state</span>.</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Excessive loss of weight</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Heart palpitations</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">People who are experiencing <span class="GRcorrect" grphrase="d2c951a2c74e59e1efa0849e4515872fbba8cd51" grtype="null" id="GRmark_d2c951a2c74e59e1efa0849e4515872fbba8cd51_overtraining syndrome:0">overtraining syndrome</span> will often have an increased risk of picking up infections. This is due to a number of factors including increased levels of cortisol (the stress hormone) in the blood and lack of sufficient calories.</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">The individual will be far more likely to pick up injuries</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Inability to sleep at night</span></li> <li class="last" style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Women may stop menstruating</span></li> </ul><h2 style="border: 0px; clear: both; font-family: Arial; font-size: 21px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 22px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 14px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Dangers of Exercise Addiction</span></h2><div style="border: 0px; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 22px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">While a moderate amount of physical activity is beneficial to health there are dangers when people take things to excess. This type of addiction can damage people both physically and mentally. Some of the dangers of this type of obsessive behavior include:</span></div><ul style="border: 0px; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; list-style: none; margin: 0px 0px 22px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><li class="first" style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">When the individual is unable to engage in the activity they will suffer from depressive like symptoms. They can feel excessive guilt about missing out on their workout. They can also experience a great deal of anxiety because of it.</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">People become obsessed with their body weight and may <a href="http://sportsmedicine.about.com/cs/eatingdisorders1/a/compulsive_ex.htm" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">develop symptoms of anorexia or bulimia</a>. They may exercise many hours each day in an attempt to burn calories. As their body weight falls, it can have a disastrous impact on their health. They may suffer from cardiovascular or kidney problems as a result.</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">The exercise addict is just like an alcohol or drug addict. They develop a tolerance for the <em style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">feel good</em> hormones produced by intense activity. This means that they need to keep on increasing the intensity of their training in order to achieve the same reward.</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Those people who are addicted to this type of activity are at risk of developing <em style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span class="GRcorrect" grphrase="2031278ead7a822d88750b7715510ef21a8aea46" grtype="null" id="GRmark_2031278ead7a822d88750b7715510ef21a8aea46_overtraining syndrome:0">overtraining syndrome</span></em>. This can have an impact on their mental and physical health.</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">When people are obsessed with fitness their relationships may begin to suffer. They neglect loved ones and fail to meet their family commitments.</span></li> <li class="last" style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Excessive physical fitness may interfere with people’s ability to perform well at work. This may be due to tiredness or constantly picking up injuries because they have overstrained. Things can get so bad that that the individual puts their career in jeopardy.</span></li> </ul><h2 style="border: 0px; clear: both; font-family: Arial; font-size: 21px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 22px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 14px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Exercise as an Addiction Substitution</span></h2><div style="border: 0px; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 22px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Exercise addiction can be particularly harmful for people who are recovering from alcohol or drug abuse. It is a form of addiction substitution where the individual continues to avoid reality by engaging in <a href="http://alcoholism.about.com/od/support/a/compulsive.htm" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">compulsive</a> behaviors. This means that they fail to do the necessary things to build a good life away substance abuse. It is also common for this type of substitute addiction to lead right back to their old behavior. People in recovery tend to be at a higher risk of developing an exercise addiction. This means that they need to be more vigilant in order to avoid such excesses.</span></div><h2 style="border: 0px; clear: both; font-family: Arial; font-size: 21px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 22px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 14px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Causes of Exercise Addiction in Recovery</span></h2><div style="border: 0px; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 22px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">There are a number of reasons why people may be susceptible to this type of substitute addiction in recovery:</span></div><ul style="border: 0px; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; list-style: none; margin: 0px 0px 22px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><li class="first" style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">It is claimed that certain people have an <a href="http://alcoholrehab.com/alcohol-rehab/addictive-personality/" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">addictive personality</a>. This means that they are prone to all types of addictive behavior. If people are not careful, they may escape one addiction but replace it with something else that is equally as destructive</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">This type of excessive exercising can be a sign that the individual is caught up in the <a href="http://alcoholrehab.com/alcohol-rehab/understanding-relapse/" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">relapse process</a>.</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Most people do not set out to become obsessed with physical fitness. It just creeps up on them. It is easy for people to just slip across the line from healthy exercise to obsessive behavior without even noticing the transition.</span></li> <li class="last" style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Exercise can be <span class="GRcorrect" grphrase="7cb906b6ea39b14cdd254d22d9034d1773a90439" grtype="null" id="GRmark_7cb906b6ea39b14cdd254d22d9034d1773a90439_way:0">way</span> to avoid facing problems. It keeps people busy and they get to enjoy feel-good hormones pumping through their body.</span></li> </ul><h2 style="border: 0px; clear: both; font-family: Arial; font-size: 21px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 22px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 14px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Exercise Addiction and the Relapse Process</span></h2><div style="border: 0px; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 22px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">When people in recovery begin to over exercise it can be a sign that they are experiencing the early stages of the relapse process. What happens is that the individual <a href="http://alcoholrehab.com/alcohol-rehab/facing-challenges-in-recovery/" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">meets a challenge in recovery</a> that they feel unwilling to face. Their failure to deal with the problem means that they become stuck. This leads to increasing levels of dissatisfaction and tension. The individual attempts to deal with their discomfort by turning to maladaptive behaviors such as exercise addiction. This may provide a temporary reprieve but eventually it leads to even more discomfort. As <span class="GRcorrect" grphrase="8d7c1d7c0263033b6e246fffda50efae110dac7f" grtype="null" id="GRmark_8d7c1d7c0263033b6e246fffda50efae110dac7f_life:0">life</span> <span class="GRcorrect" grphrase="8d7c1d7c0263033b6e246fffda50efae110dac7f" grtype="null" id="GRmark_8d7c1d7c0263033b6e246fffda50efae110dac7f_for:1">for</span> the individual in recovery deteriorates they once again return to alcohol or drugs as a way to escape the misery.</span></div><h2 style="border: 0px; clear: both; font-family: Arial; font-size: 21px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 22px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 14px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">How to Avoid Exercise Addiction</span></h2><div style="border: 0px; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; margin-bottom: 22px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Exercise can be a great asset for those who are trying to build a successful life away from addiction. Moderation is the key. Here are a few suggestions for how people can avoid this type of addiction:</span></div><ul style="border: 0px; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22px; list-style: none; margin: 0px 0px 22px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><li class="first" style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">It is best if people have multiple interests as this should prevent them from becoming too obsessed with one activity. It is recommended that find at least one hobby that is not related to physical fitness.</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">People in recovery need to be aware of the symptoms of exercise addiction so that they can escape the behavior before it causes too much damage.</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">It is important for people to avoid exercising when they have picked up an injury</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">They should never feel bad about missing an exercise session. This activity is there to improve their life and not to become something to feel guilty about.</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">People should never allow this activity to get in the way of their family and work commitments.</span></li> <li style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">Avoid <span class="GRcorrect" grphrase="3c4d1c004de85a0abff512876a01ab6f19b42a6a" grtype="null" id="GRmark_3c4d1c004de85a0abff512876a01ab6f19b42a6a_exercising:0">exercising</span> for more than a couple of hours a day. It is also recommended that people should have rest days so that their body can recover.</span></li> <li class="last" style="background-image: url(http://alcoholrehab.com/wp-content/themes/RehabOne/images/bodydot.png); background-position: 0% 10px; border: 0px; margin: 0px 0px 0px 3px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px 0px 0px 13px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">It is recommended that people educate themselves about healthy levels of physical activity. They need to escape the thinking that more is always better. It is also important for the individual to understand about the importance of good nutrition.</span></li> </ul><span class="GingerNoCheckEnd"></span>

Symptoms of Exercise Addiction

Physical Fitness in Recovery Addicts describe reaching a point in their addiction where they  feel sick and tired of feeling sick and t...

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The Role of an Sponsor

<p><h2></h2><p>The  sponsor fulfills a number of useful functions including:</p><ul><li>This is an individual who will usually have more experience in the program than the sponsee. This means that they will be able to share their<span style="color: #ff0000;"> wisdom and experience.</span></li><li>Most sponsors will tell their sponsee to<span style="color: #ff0000;"> contact them at any time of the day or night if it is an emergency. </span>The urge to relapse can come at any time, and having somebody to contact can make all the difference.</li><li><span style="color: #ff0000;">A sponsor can just be a good friend.</span> One of the things that people worry about when they first enter recovery is that they will never be able to form meaningful relationships without their chemical crutch. What they learn is that friendships in sobriety can be stronger than anything they have ever experienced previously. One of their most important relationships may be with their sponsor.</li><li>This is an individual who will <span style="color: #ff0000;">provide encouragement and provide praise for achievements.</span></li><li>A sponsor should be able to provide<span style="color: #ff0000;"> honest feedback.</span></li><li>A more experienced person in recovery will be able to <span style="color: #ff0000;">spot the warning signs of an approaching relapse</span>. They may be able to guide the sponsee back to safety.</li><li>This is someone who can be a <span style="color: #ff0000;">good role model for their sponsee</span></li><li><span style="color: #ff0000;">It is the job of the sponsor to help the sponsee work their way through the 12 steps quickly.</span></li></ul></p>

The Role of an Sponsor

The  sponsor fulfills a number of useful functions including: This is an individual who will usually have more experience in the program tha...

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True guilt is guilt at the obligation one owes to oneself to be oneself. False guilt is guilt felt at not being what other people feel one ought to be or assume that one is. Moderate feelings of guilt are beneficial because they encourage the individual to do the right thing

<p>The Scottish psychologist R.D. Laing once said: True guilt is guilt at the obligation one owes to oneself to be oneself. False guilt is guilt felt at not being what other people feel one ought to be or assume that one is. Moderate feelings of guilt are beneficial because they encourage the individual to do the right thing. If nobody felt guilty about anything it would likely lead to a fearful world and it could even threaten the survival of the human species. There is also a more negative form of guilt which is excessive and harmful. This refers to a situation where the individual carries a sense of guilt around with them most of the time. The reasons for why the individual may become a victim of excessive guilt include: They have a poor self image. It can be a sign of mental health difficulties. Some people fall into negative thinking and this tends to include guilt. The individual has been a victim of physical or sexual abuse. Unhealthy relationships can leave people with feelings of guilt. Excessive stress. Alcohol or drug abuse.</p>

True guilt is guilt at the obligation one owes to oneself to be oneself. False guilt is guilt felt at not being what other people feel one ought to be or assume that one is. Moderate feelings of guilt are beneficial because they encourage the individual to do the right thing

The Scottish psychologist R.D. Laing once said: True guilt is guilt at the obligation one owes to oneself to be oneself. False guilt is gui...

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That's exactly what the Steps are all about, getting God into the deal.

<p><p>I have been scolded a few times (by fellow AA's) because of the fact that I sometimes share at meetings about how the Steps are meant to be worked immediately and quickly. I've been told that this "theory" will "harm" newcomers (having only a few days, a few weeks, or a few months) who could not possibly be "ready" to do the work yet. Then I'm usually told that these newer members should just go to meetings for a while and eventually they'll "know" when they are ready to get into the Program (if they don't relapse first.)</p><p>I do not agree that we first get our life together and then turn to God. I believe that we turn to God and then, AND ONLY THEN, do we begin to get our life together. That's exactly what the Steps are all about, getting God into the deal.</p><p>In the early days of AA, when a new person showed up to their first meeting and asked about when they were going to get into working the Steps, established members usually asked them, "Well, when do you want to get better? If you want to get better now, we'll be working the Steps now. If you DON'T want to get better now, I guess you can put off the Steps, but by doing so you're probably going to drink." And so it was in 1974 when I got sober, the reply being "In your case, the sooner the better."</p><p>As a matter of fact, Bill Wilson got into the Steps within a couple of days, Dr. Bob got into the Steps after one day, and Bill Dotson (AA #3) also got into the Steps after a few days. But for me the bottom line is "What does the AA Program and the AA literature have to say about it?"The following is a list of time frames found in the Big Book. Page and paragraph numbers are from the new Fourth edition.</p><p>Page xxvi:4 - "Though we work out our solution on the spiritual as well as an altruistic plane, we favor hospitalization for the alcoholic who is very jittery or befogged. More often than not, it is imperative that a man's brain be cleared before he is approached, as he has then a better chance of understanding and accepting what we have to offer." (So it says we need to be detoxed off of alcohol first, which usually takes two or three days but in extreme cases takes five or six days, before getting into the work. See also page xxvii:7.)</p><p>Page xxvii:5 - "Many years ago one of the leading contributors to this book (Bill Wilson) came under our care in this hospital and while here he acquired some ideas which he put into practical application AT ONCE." (In about three days Bill was into working most of what later became the AA program. See also page 13.)</p><p>Page xxvii:7 - "Of course an alcoholic ought to be freed from his physical craving for liquor, and this often requires a definite hospital procedure, before psychological measures (like the Steps) can be of maximum benefit." (For psychological measures to benefit us we need to be applying them. So again, it's saying we need to be detoxed off of alcohol first, which usually takes two or three days but in extreme cases takes five or six days, before getting into the Steps. See also page xxvi:4.)</p><p>Pages 13 thru 15 - "At the hospital I (Bill Wilson) was separated from alcohol for the last time (Bill was admitted to Towns Hospital at 2:30pm on December 11, 1934. Bill was 39 years old.). Treatment seemed wise, for I showed signs of delirium tremens.</p><img alt="" height="284" src="http://www.barefootsworld.net/graphics/townsbwrecord.jpg" width="520" /><br />A Most Important Piece Of Paper<p>"There I humbly offered myself to God, as I then I understood Him, to do with me as He would. I placed myself UNRESERVEDLY under His care and direction. I admitted for the first time that of myself I was nothing; that without Him I was lost (Bill takes what later became Step Three. He reached the conclusions of Step One on page 8:1 and Step Two on 12:4). I RUTHLESSLY faced my sins (what later became Step Four) and became willing to have my new-found Friend (God) take them away, root and branch (what later became Steps Six and Seven). I have not had a drink since.</p><p>"My schoolmate (Ebby Thacher) visited me, and I FULLY acquainted him with my problems and deficiencies (what later became Step Five). We made a list of people I had hurt or toward whom I felt resentment. I expressed my entire willingness to approach these individuals, admitting my wrong (what later became Step Eight). NEVER was I to be critical of them. I was to right ALL such matters to the UTMOST of my ability (what later became Step Nine).</p><p>"I was to test my thinking by the new God-consciousness within. Common sense would thus become un-common sense (these two lines refer to what later became Step Ten). I was to sit quietly when in doubt, asking ONLY for direction and strength to meet my problems as He would have me. NEVER was I to pray for myself, except as my requests bore on my usefulness to others (what later became Step Eleven). Then only might I expect to receive. But that would be in great measure.</p><p>"My friend promised when these things were done I would enter upon a new relationship with my Creator; that I would have the elements of a way of living which answered ALL my problems (what later became the first two parts of Step Twelve). Belief in the power of God, plus enough willingness, honesty and humility to establish and maintain the new order of things, were the ESSENTIAL REQUIREMENTS.</p><p>"Simple, but not easy; a price HAD to be paid. It meant DESTRUCTION of self-centeredness. I MUST turn in ALL things to the Father of Light who presides over us all.</p><p>"These were revolutionary and drastic proposals, but the moment I FULLY accepted them, the effect was electric. There was a sense of victory, followed by such a peace and serenity as I had never known. There was utter confidence. I felt lifted up, as though the great clean wind of a mountain top blew through and through. God comes to most men gradually, but His impact on me was sudden and profound.</p><p>"For a moment I was alarmed, and called my friend, the doctor (Dr. Silkworth), to ask if I were still sane. He listened in wonder as I talked.</p><p>"Finally he shook his head saying, "Something has happened to you I don't understand. But you had better hang on to it. Anything is better than the way you were." The good doctor now sees many men who have such experiences. He knows that they are real.</p><p>"While I lay in the hospital the thought came that there were thousands of hopeless alcoholics who might be glad to have what had been so freely given me. Perhaps I could help some of them. They in turn might work with others.</p><p>"My friend had emphasized the ABSOLUTE NECESSITY of demonstrating these principles in ALL my affairs. Particularly was it IMPERATIVE to work with others as he had worked with me (what later became the last part of Step Twelve). Faith without works was dead, he said. And how appallingly true for the alcoholic! FOR IF AN ALCOHOLIC FAILED TO PERFECT AND ENLARGE HIS SPIRITUAL LIFE THROUGH WORK AND SELF-SACRIFICE FOR OTHERS, HE COULD NOT SURVIVE THE CERTAIN TRIALS AND LOW SPOTS AHEAD. If he did not work, he would SURELY drink again, and if he drank, he would surely die. Then faith would be dead indeed. With us it is just like that." (So two or three days after Bill is admitted into the hospital on December 11th, 1934 he has a spiritual experience AS THE RESULT of working almost all the Steps immediately and quickly in a few days. He THEN talks with his doctor about what happened to him on December 14th and is released from the hospital on the afternoon of December 18th).</p><p>Page 58:2 - "If you have decided you want what we have and are willing to go to any length to get it - THEN YOU ARE READY TO TAKE CERTAIN STEPS." (I'd like to suggest that they are talking about TWELVE CERTAIN STEPS and you'll soon see why. Some say that we stay within the first three Steps for a year when you are new, but please notice what it says next about Step Three on pages 63 and 64.)</p><p>Page 63:4 - "NEXT we launch out on a course of VIGOROUS action, the first step of which is a personal housecleaning, which many of us had never attempted. Though our decision (which is the Third Step decision) was a vital and crucial step, it could have LITTLE PERMANENT EFFECTunless AT ONCE followed by a STRENUOUS EFFORT to face, AND to be rid of, the things in ourselves which had been blocking us." (So it's saying that this Third Step decision will have LITTLE PERMANENT EFFECT unless we IMMEDIATELY follow it up with an INTENSELY ACTIVE EFFORT to work Steps Four through Nine, because where we face these things that block us from turning our will and our lives over to God is in Steps Four, Five, and Six; and where we get rid of what blocks us from turning our will and lives over is in Steps Seven, Eight, and Nine. So the way we turn our will and lives over to the care of God as we understand Him is by IMMEDIATELY and STRENUOUSLY working AT LEAST the six middle Steps.)</p><p>Page 74:2 - "Notwithstanding the GREAT NECESSITY for discussing ourselves with someone (doing a Fifth Step), it may be one is so situated that there is no suitable person available. If that is so, this step may be postponed, ONLY, however, if we hold ourselves in COMPLETE readiness to go through with it at the FIRST opportunity." (See also page 75:1.)</p><p>Page 75:1 - "When we decide who is to hear our story (our Fifth Step), WE WASTE NO TIME."(So after we write our Fourth Step inventories of resentments, fears, sex relations and harms done; it says we IMMEDIATELY share our Fifth Step.)</p><p>Page 75:3 - "Returning home we find a place where we can be quiet for AN HOUR, carefully reviewing what we have done." (It's saying that IMMEDIATELY following our Fifth Step, we spend ONE HOUR of undisturbed and uninterrupted quiet time, seeing if the foundation we have built with our first five Steps is done honestly and to the best of our ability. Then see page 76:1.)</p><p>Page 76:1 - "If we can answer to our satisfaction (the questions in the previous paragraph), we THEN look at Step Six. We have emphasized willingness as being indispensable. ARE WE NOW READY to let God remove from us ALL the things which we have admitted are objectionable (in our Fourth and Fifth Steps)? Can He NOW take them ALL – every one? If we still cling to something we will not let go, we ask God to help us be willing." (So Six immediately follows the hour we took after Five. So Five and Six are both done on the same day.)</p><p>Page 76:2 - "WHEN READY (which answers one of the questions of Step Six), we say something like this: 'My Creator, I am NOW willing that you should have all of me, good and bad. I pray that you NOW remove from me every single defect of character which stands in the way of my usefulness to you and my fellows. Grant me strength, as I go out from here, to do your bidding. Amen.' We have then completed Step Seven." (In Step Six, we were asked if we were now ready. If we are, we then do Step Seven. If there are SOME defects we are NOT willing to go to God with, we pray for the willingness to ask God to help us with them, but go on to Step Seven with the defects we ARE willing to ask God to help us with. Either way, Step Five, Six, and Seven are all done on the same day. Steps Three and Seven are then a daily striving and prayer, practiced for the rest of our lives.)</p><p>Page 76:3 - "NOW we need more action, without which we find that "Faith without works is dead." Let's look at Steps Eight and Nine. We have a list of ALL persons we have harmed and to whom we are willing to make amends. We made it when we took inventory. We subjected ourselves to a drastic self-appraisal. NOW we go out to our fellows and repair the damage done in the past. We attempt to sweep away the debris which has accumulated out of our effort to live on self-will and run the show ourselves. If we haven't the will to do this, we ask until it comes. Remember it was agreed at the beginning we would go to any lengths for victory over alcohol." (NOW is mentioned twice in this paragraph, and even says, "NOW we go out". So Steps Five through Nine are ALL done within a day or two according to the directions in the Big Book. If there are a few amends we are NOT willing to make, we pray for the willingness but proceed with the amends we ARE willing to make.)</p><p>Page 84:2 - "We vigorously commenced this way of living (Steps Ten and Eleven) AS WE CLEANED UP THE PAST (Step Nine)." (So Ten and Eleven are begun as soon as we start making amends.)</p><p>Page 156:3 - "But life was not easy for the two friends (Bill Wilson and Dr. Bob). Plenty of difficulties presented themselves. Both saw that they MUST KEEP SPIRITUALLY ACTIVE. One day (June 26, 1935, 16 days after Dr. Bob had his last drink) they called up the head nurse of a local hospital. They explained their need and inquired if she had a first class alcoholic prospect.</p><p>"She replied, "Yes, we've got a corker (Bill Dotson, whose sober date is June 26, 1935). He's just beaten up a couple of nurses. Goes off his head completely when he's drinking. But he's a grand chap when he's sober, though he's been in here eight times in the last six months. Understand he was once a well-known lawyer in town, but just now we've got him strapped down tight."</p><p>"Here was a prospect all right but, by the description, none too promising. The use of SPIRITUAL principles in such case was not so well understood as it is now. But one of the friends said, "Put him in a private room. We'll be down."</p><p>"Two days later (June 28, 1935), a future fellow of Alcoholics Anonymous stared glassily at the strangers beside his bed. "Who are you fellows, and why this private room? I was always in a ward before."</p><p>"Said one of the visitors, "We're giving you a treatment for alcoholism."</p><p>"Hopelessness was written large on the man's face as he replied, "Oh, but that's no use. Nothing would fix me. I'm a goner. The last three times, I got drunk on the way home from here. I'm afraid to go out the door. I can't understand it." (Part of Bill D.'s First Step, and please notice the Twelfth Step work over the next few paragraphs. Bill was only sober about 7 months and Dr. Bob only 18 days.)</p><p>"For an hour, the two friends told him about their drinking experiences. Over and over, he would say: "That's me. That's me. I drink like that."</p><p>"The man in the bed was told of the acute poisoning from which he suffered, how it deteriorates the body of an alcoholic and warps his mind. There was much talk about the mental state preceding the first drink."</p><p>"Yes, that's me," said the sick man, "the very image. You fellows know your stuff all right, but I don't see what good it'll do. You fellows are somebody. I was once, but I'm a nobody now. From what you tell me, I know more than ever I can't stop (more of Bill D.'s First Step)." At this both the visitors burst into a laugh. Said the future Fellow Anonymous: "Damn little to laugh about that I can see."</p><p>"The two friends spoke of their SPIRITUAL experience and told him about the course of action they carried out."</p><p>"He interrupted: "I used to be strong for the church, BUT THAT WON'T FIX IT. I've prayed to God on hangover mornings and sworn that I'd never touch another drop but by nine o'clock I'd be boiled as an owl."</p><p>"Next day found the prospect more receptive. He had been thinking it over. "Maybe you're right," he said. "God ought to be able to do anything (Bill D.'s Second Step)." Then he added, "He sure didn't do much for me when I was trying to fight this booze racket alone."</p><p>"ON THE THIRD DAY the lawyer gave his life to the care and direction of his Creator (Bill D.'s Step Three), and said he was perfectly willing to do ANYTHING necessary (Steps Four through Twelve). His wife came, scarcely daring to be hopeful, though she thought she saw something different about her husband already. He had begun to have a spiritual experience."</p></p><table border="5"><tbody><tr><td><img alt="" height="400" src="http://www.barefootsworld.net/graphics/billw12thstep.jpg" width="600" /></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Bill W. 12 Stepping The Man On The Bed<p>"That afternoon he put on his clothes and walked from the hospital a free man. He entered a political campaign, making speeches, frequenting men's gathering places of all sorts, often staying up all night. He lost the race by only a narrow margin. But he had found God and in finding God had found himself."</p><p>"That was in June, 1935. He never drank again. He too, has become a respected and useful member of his community. He has helped other men recover, and is a power in the church from which he was long absent." (So Bill Dotson, or AA #3, got right into the Steps within a few days, as was the practice in early AA.)</p><p>Page 291:6 - "The day before I (Earl T.) was due to go back to Chicago, a Wednesday and Dr. Bob's day off, he had me down to the office and we spent THREE OR FOUR HOURS formally going through the Six Step program (which later became AA's Twelve Step program) as it was at that time. The six steps were:</p><ol><li>Complete deflation (which later became Step 1).</li><li>Dependence and guidance from a Higher Power (which later became Steps 2,3,6,7 & 11).</li><li>Moral inventory (which later became Steps 4 & 10).</li><li>Confession (which later became Step 5).</li><li>Restitution (which later became Steps 8 & 9).</li><li>Continued work with other alcoholics (which later became Step 12).</li></ol><p>"Dr. Bob led me through ALL of these steps. At the moral inventory (Steps 4 & 5), he brought up some of my bad personality traits or character defects, such as selfishness, conceit, jealousy, carelessness, intolerance, ill-temper, sarcasm and resentments. We went over these at great length and then he finally asked me if I wanted these defects of character removed (Step 6). When I said yes, we both knelt at his desk and prayed, each of us asking to have these defects taken away (Step 7).</p><p>"This picture is still vivid. If I live to be a hundred, it will always stand out in my mind. It was very impressive and I wish that every A.A. could have the benefit of this type of sponsorship today. Dr. Bob ALWAYS emphasized the religious angle VERY STRONGLY, and I think it helped. I know it helped me. Dr. Bob then led me through the restitution step, in which I made a list of ALL of the persons I had harmed (Step 8), and worked out ways and means of slowly making restitution (Step 9)." (So again, most of the Steps being worked in one day.)</p><hr /><p>The 6 steps as Bill W. wrote them..</p><img alt="" height="637" src="http://www.barefootsworld.net/images/six_steps.gif" width="423" /><blockquote><blockquote><ol type="1"><li>Admitted hopeless</li><li>Got honest with self</li><li>Got honest with another</li><li>Made amends</li><li>Helped others without demand</li><li>Prayed to God as you understand Him</li></ol></blockquote></blockquote><hr /><p>And there you have it, so it was for me .. the spiritual experience happening on my 52nd day, April 21, 1974 .. I have not had a drink since my first meeting February 28, 1974, 14013 days ago todayJuly 11, 2012, because of this kind of sponsorship by Tex R., Chuck C., Cliff W., Joe Q., Wino Bob and the rest who took me under their wing and made damn sure I understood that I was to work the steps immediately, if not sooner, Tex insisting that I learn my A.A. from the original 1938 manuscript for the BigBook!! And for that I am everlastingly grateful!!</p><p>I suggest you read the shortest paragraph in the BigBook on page 88:1</p>"It works - It really does"</p>

That's exactly what the Steps are all about, getting God into the deal.

I have been scolded a few times (by fellow AA's) because of the fact that I sometimes share at meetings about how the Steps are meant to...

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One unexpected benefit of finding your way into recovery is that you pretty quickly learn who your real friends are.

<p> During active addiction, you are ironically both socially isolated and part of a drug-abusing community. You may spend a lot of time together and feel a bond based on your shared preoccupation with drugs. But that doesn’t mean those people are your friends.</p><p>Not surprisingly, when an addict gets clean, their “friends” don’t always have their back. In fact, some become downright toxic to their recovery. Here are a few reasons the people you thought were your friends may end up sabotaging your recovery efforts:</p><p>• Addiction drives away most of an addict’s true friends.</p><p>• Whether they use drugs or not, your friends may not understand the disease of addiction. Even if they want to be supportive, many are in denial or don’t know how to stop enabling.</p><p>• Your sobriety spells the end of the friendship. Drug-using pals don’t want to lose a friend, but even more, they don’t want to stop using drugs.<span id="more-393"> </span></p><p>• Your recovery holds up a mirror that shows them the reality of their lives – a vision they may not be ready or willing to see of themselves as an addict who needs help. They may be afraid that you’ll start preaching to them or rat them out to family, friends or law enforcement and put an end to their lifestyle.</p><p>• They have tried to quit unsuccessfully. It can be disheartening to see someone else succeed in what they can’t do so themselves.</p><p>• They don’t have a drug or alcohol problem, but want to continue to enjoy an occasional beer during a football game or glass of wine with dinner without worrying about their influence on you.</p><p>• A romantic partner or spouse may be concerned that your efforts to improve your life will lead to separation, divorce or finding someone else.</p><h3>Sure Signs of Sabotage</h3><p>Early in recovery, it can be difficult to separate the supportive relationships from the malicious motives of would-be saboteurs. How do you know when people are toxic to your recovery?</p><p>Pseudo-friends and even some family members may discourage you from getting help. They’ll tell you that you don’t really have a drug problem, recovery is a waste of time or relapse is inevitable. They may try bullying you to party with them, or use drugs in front of you.</p><p>Others may employ more subtle tactics, such as using your past behavior as leverage against you, holding onto resentments, making it difficult for you to get to meetings or therapy appointments, or belittling your efforts to get well. They may make hurtful comments that play into your doubts and fears or spread rumors among your social or professional circles.</p><p>Even non-drug-using comrades can be enablers. People who are unsympathetic to the difficulties of drug cravings may encourage you to meet them at bars, parties or other temptation-filled environments. When family members refuse to work on their own issues, they may stay stuck in old patterns of minimizing, rescuing and enabling without realizing that they are sabotaging the person they most want to help.</p><h3>Make the Tough Calls</h3><p>Addicts with toxic relationships must be proactive in taking steps to safeguard their recovery:</p><p>Cut Ties with Negative Influences. There is a general rule in recovery to stay away from the people, places and things associated with past drug use. Maintaining relationships with people who drink or use is strongly associated with relapse.</p><p>Cutting ties with old friends who continue to use and people who are not supportive of your sobriety is one of the hardest parts of early recovery. This may mean ending relationships with people you have relied on as a source of emotional or financial support, changing jobs if your drug-using circle extended to work, or getting out of an abusive relationship or unhealthy marriage – all of which can have a dramatic effect on your daily life.</p><p>These difficult decisions have to be made right up front. At a time when you have already lost your routines, your coping mechanism and your sense of identity, parting ways with your social circle can be agonizing – but it is an important part of creating a new life and ultimately, brings a profound sense of relief when you’re surrounded by people who truly care.</p><p>Of course, not all relationships have to end. You can reconnect with people you may have alienated during active addiction and you may have quality friends who are in their own recovery process or who are willing to join you on this journey. Often, family members are willing to grow and change with their addicted loved one by participating in therapy, learning about the disease of addiction and attending Al-Anon or Nar-Anon meetings. One close connection is all that’s needed to build the foundation for a social support network.</p><p>Make New Friends. Early recovery is also a time for making new friends and establishing healthy bonds with people who care about you, are willing to confront your addictive thinking and help you get the support you need. Positive friends, which can include people you meet at work, doing sober activities or attending self-help support groups, will not only avoid drug use but will be enthusiastic about your efforts to improve your life and lead balanced lives themselves.</p><p>Join Self-Help Support Groups. Groups like Alcoholics Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous, SMART Recovery and LifeRing offer regular meetings that not only keep you focused on your recovery but introduce you to a group of people who are working toward similar goals.</p><h3>Whatever it Takes</h3><p>The people who are most successful in recovery embrace the attitude that they will do whatever is necessary to protect their sobriety. Sometimes this means making difficult decisions and losing people you care about. But in truth, anyone that doesn’t have your best interests in mind was never really a friend at all and has no place in your new life in recovery.</p>

One unexpected benefit of finding your way into recovery is that you pretty quickly learn who your real friends are.

 During active addiction, you are ironically both socially isolated and part of a drug-abusing community. You may spend a lot of time togeth...

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