Many of the people who come into treatment tell me they have depression or some form of personality disorder. While I do not disbelieve them, I also know from experience that in many cases they will no longer have this when they leave treatment. Why? Because often their depression and personality issues are caused by their drinking or their drug of choice; or, it may be that they were (possibly wrongly) labelled in the past and this label has led them to feel less of a person, which in turn has led them to drink or drugs.
To those prescribed anti-depressants – alcohol and drugs are depressants, so which came first? And anti-depressants don’t work with alcohol and so the downward spiral continues. Give up the drink and drugs, get some self-worth in treatment and begin to feel happy . Suddenly the depression lifts or the personality disorder is no longer apparent. A miracle of sorts!
Expert at Putting Ourselves Down – Personality Disorder
We are also expert at putting ourselves down. ‘That is a lovely top’ someone might say to me. ‘Oh’ I reply ‘it is only an old one / cheap one’ etc. ‘You look good today’. ‘Thanks, but my hair is a mess.’. We find it hard to accept compliments because we do not feel worthy. Perhaps, though, we should accept them as intended and not bat them back to the person who so genuinely made the comment.
In recovery we need to have faith that by working our programme all will be as it is meant to be. Some people are put off by the concept of God or a Higher Power. However the 12 Step Programme is not a religious programme but rather a spiritual one. A power greater than ourselves has guided us to where we are today, whether this is still being alive and in the misery of addiction (we are still around for some reason perhaps despite our best efforts to kill ourselves – perhaps there are plans for us to get well and do something positive with our lives); or having come through the other side and now being free of the substance that was controlling our lives and being around to help others.
Grow and Help Others
We need to believe that the path we have been down is for a purpose and to learn from it to become better people today. We can use our experiences from our past to grow and help others. Surely we have more compassion and understanding as a result of having experienced addiction? I know for a fact that I and many recovering addicts I know have. And by applying what we learn through the 12 Steps in our daily lives, so we can be an example and of help to others. From the misery of our addiction can come great good.
The Haynes Clinic is an alcohol rehab and alcohol addiction treatment centre which not only successfully teaches people how to stop drinking but also offers drug rehabilitation treatment.
If you or a loved one needs help for alcohol or drug addiction, please call 01462 851414.
