Heroin and Other Drug Addictions:
A Drug Addict's Guide to Treatment and Rehab
by
An Ex-Addict
By Robert King
Smashwords Edition
Copyright 2011 by King & Associates. All Rights Reserved
Published by King & Associates
Casa Grande, Arizona
To purchase a paperback copy of this book, please visit the website whatisheroin.net.
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Acknowledgements
To the Almighty Living God.
My thanks for His great love,
And
for delivering me
From a life of heroin addiction.
To my wife and children,
For their love and support.
And to all the people
who helped me when I was an addict
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Introduction
I'm
Addicted, Now What?
Getting
Off the Drugs
Changing
the Drug Mindset
A
New Environment and Lifestyle
Cravings,
Thoughts, and Dreams
A
Guarded Victory
Conclusion
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This book is primarily for drug addicts though many of its principles can be applied to those with alcohol problems as well. It is for the religious, the agnostic and the atheist. It is for both male and female, though I use "he" to describe the addict simply for the sake of simplicity. This book is also written primarily with the adult addict in mind since it is based on the assumption that the addict reading this book has the free will and ability to make proper moves and decisions of responsibility to break free from the pattern of drug addiction. Though the juvenile can apply all these principles as well, they may find themselves in some dysfunctional family situations or other hindrances which are beyond their ability to control due to the fact that they are not legally responsible for themselves and cannot always act as they please. Yet, I believe in many cases this book may help juveniles struggling with these problems as well and most of them should also be able to overcome their addictions if they apply the steps and principals in this book.
For those who have never experienced addiction and can't understand why an addict continues to return to their addiction again and again despite all the efforts of family, friends and society to help them, I must stress that the euphoria and escape that addicts find in drug and alcohol use is almost irresistible to them. They are not using drugs for the purpose of hurting those around them, but rather they are simply pursuing a strange type of solace in their addiction that others cannot understand. For those of you who are addicts, I understand and can relate to your addiction. I am a recovered heroin and cocaine addict as well as a past user of most other types of drugs and alcohol. In addition, my wife is an ex-alcoholic so I have been with her during her struggles as well.
I began using marijuana, LSD, and many other drugs while still in my teens. Eventually I ended up in juvenile hall and later prison. My exploration with drugs finally progressed to heroin. I became an intravenous drug addict with a very high daily dosage of both heroin and cocaine. Up until my recovery at 29 years of age, I spent most of my life on drugs when I was not in prison. I tried many different ways to break free from the drugs, including Methadone detoxification, a drug recovery live-in facility, and an actual hospital-based drug recovery program. I got off of drugs by necessity several times while incarcerated, and even once for a short time while out of prison, but I eventually ended up back on drugs again even though I tried to stay off. My deliverance from drugs was a slow, gradual process, but eventually I was able to break free from them. That was over two decades ago as of this writing. If I had the knowledge that I have today, I believe my recovery could have been much sooner and much smoother.
I am now living a peaceful existence with a wonderful wife and children. I am successful and very content. It could have been different. I might have ended up wasting away in prison, or I could be dead. Fortunately, I was able to make the right decisions and break free from the addiction that could have destroyed my life--and almost did. I have learned a lot in the process and I am writing this book to share what I have learned with other addicts. In addition, there is also input from my wife, who is a recovered alcoholic that has now been clean for over a decade. Neither one of us use drugs or drink alcohol even though we have no support groups, we do not attend counseling, and we do not go to Narcotics Anonymous or Alcoholics Anonymous meetings. There is a better life waiting for the addict if they will only make the correct decisions and pursue the right course of actions to break free from their addiction. If we did it, they can too.
I will be honest with my readers, writing this book was not a great desire of mine and I really didn't want to write it. I now see my past with drugs as another time, another world, that I would just prefer to leave back in the past. I have no desire to even think about drugs anymore, and definitely not to write about them. They are a bad nightmare that has no place in the peace of my life today. In addition to this, I am not a doctor or an expert on drug addiction and recovery. I am simply a former addict with my own opinions and insights learned through personal experience.
So why am I writing this book? In addition to being a former addict, I am also a published author, having written articles and books on various theological topics. In seeking divine guidance about what I should write about next, the need to write this book rested heavily upon my heart. That is why I am writing this book, because of my desire to help others escape from the misery of drug addiction.
Having said this, let me also clarify that this book is not a book about finding God and being saved, or about seeking God as a means to overcome drug addiction. It is not a religious testimonial on deliverance. It is not a book solely for drug addicts who believe in God; it is for all drug addicts, believers and nonbelievers alike. This is a recovery guide with specific actions and practical steps any addict can take to really overcome their addiction.
The rest of this book will be speaking directly to the addict since that is for whom this book was written.
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In order for someone who is addicted to drugs to kick their habit for good, it is first very important that they really want to quit. Before you can kick heroin or other drugs, you must first have the desire to do so. I remember being with many addicts in prison who simply wanted to use again as soon as they got out, and some were still using while incarcerated. These addicts cannot quit at this point in their life no matter how much the courts, family members or others try to get them to do so. They may attempt it for the sake of others or under pressure from others, but they themselves would really prefer to just keep using and will almost always certainly return to drugs, usually sooner than later. Almost all addicts first trying to quit still have a desire for drugs, so this is not what I'm talking about. I am talking about the addict who has no real desire to quit. Though they may be unhappy with some of the circumstances of their life, they are comfortable in their lifestyle as strange as that may seem.
There are what I would consider two major steps one must make before they can really begin the real process of quitting drugs for good.
Recognize the Negative Effects
Recognizing that drugs are bad for you is an absolute necessity if you really want to quit. The phrase "Wake up and smell the coffee" is a good premise here. I have never known of anyone whose life was better while using drugs. The circumstances of the addict's life always get worse with each passing day, even if he doesn't see it himself. Sometimes an addict may not notice how bad his life has gotten until he finds himself in serious problems or trouble. Even then, he often will not associate it directly with the drugs, but rather find some other source of blame. Though he may even see drugs as part of the problem, he often will still fail to recognize that drugs are the real significant problem in his life.
If you end up jobless, homeless, incarcerated, hospitalized or in any other problematic situation in life, it is more often than not the drugs themselves that are the primary culprit. Whether or not you got ripped off, ratted off, mistreated, abused, injured, etc. is really beside the point. The drugs are your real problem. It is absolutely crucial that you realize this. Let us examine some fictitious circumstances some addicts may find themselves in to better understand this.
Penny works at an office building as a receptionist and has seemed to function fairly well for quite some time even though she was an addict. As time passed, she began arriving to work late and sometimes calling in sick. Meanwhile, at work, there was a manager who did not like her. This manager saw this as the perfect opportunity to take advantage of her dislike for Penny and convinced upper management to fire her as being unreliable.
Jeff seemed to have a good life with a good job, a nice home, and a pretty wife. He eventually got into drugs and his life began to have financial problems. He lost his home and had to move into an apartment with his wife and kids. Shortly after that, his wife had an affair and then left him, taking the kids with her while coming after him for child support. He then started using more to escape his problems and eventually even lost his job and found himself having to live at a weekly motel and steal just to pay for his habit.
John was an addict and did odd jobs and/or sold drugs to support his habit and lifestyle. He barely could get by, but seemed to be making it all work for the time being. One of his friends got arrested for drug possession and then told the police about his criminal activity. He was then arrested by the police and went to prison.
Betty only used sometimes and was not quite a full-blown addict yet, but she hung around with other addicts. When she did use, it was usually with her addict friends. One day, while at work, one of her other addict friends broke into her apartment and stole almost everything she owned.