The First Step To Overcoming Addiction: Admitting You Have A Problem

Long-term recovery achieved with specialist addiction centres such as addiction rehab in Essex can be a dream scenario for many addicts. It takes a lot of work to get there, though, including therapy, detoxing, behavioural awareness and education, and facing the damage to various aspects of life that have been impacted by the addiction. And yet the biggest step of all is actually admitting you have an addiction problem in the first place.

When you’re ‘through the other side’ though, and receiving aftercare and relapse prevention, you’ve gone through the most acute part and you’re now regaining control over your life. Your long-term prospects have improved.

For some, all of the above is unreachable, or even, irrelevant – if you are that person in denial!

Maybe you feel you have control over your habits, and so, there is no problem. Maybe you think family or friends who have made comments about your cocaine use or drinking are being paranoid or overly dramatic. Maybe you feel like, yes, you use drugs or you drink, but you’re managing OK. You’re still working, you’re still looking after the kids, you are still social – you don’t look like ‘an addict’ like you see in the media. You’re not in the gutter, you’re functioning.

You’re not alone, many, many people feel like you do. But you’re here because something inside you somewhere knows that something is wrong. Something deep down is telling you that maybe you don’t have as much control as you think.

You know deep down that your habits are impacting your family, your friends, your job, your emotional wellbeing. You know, deep down, you never wanted to be somebody who struggled with addictive habits, and perhaps you aren’t doing as well as you thought.

“Recovery is an acceptance that your life is in shambles and you have to change it.” – Jamie Lee Curtis

It’s not so easy to admit you have an addiction problem though, is it? That there is a problem. It’s scary to be truly honest and admit powerlessness. But it is the first step to better future prospects; it means opening the door to better health, true happiness and completely turning your life around.

Admitting You Have An Addiction Problem Does Not Mean Self Deprecation

You do have to take some responsibility for your actions when you have a problem with addiction, but it is also important not to place toxic blame on yourself for the way things have turned out. Beating yourself up only feeds deeper reasons for addictive behaviours, and ultimately, it is love for yourself that will encourage you to seek help.

Your mind is such a strong and complex force, and without your awareness, it has found many ways to feed your addiction. Repeatedly, your mind will always tell you that it is OK to have another drink, to seek out more opportunities to take cocaine. “Just one more day drinking and then I’ll stop”. “If I am only snorting cocaine at weekends I can control it, so it isn’t a problem”.

Our brains will have us thinking we have control, or will someday have control over addictive behaviours, and in the end, will continue to convince us of this even in the most dire of circumstances, which is why over 4,500 deaths occur annually due to drug poisoning in the UK, and over 8,900 deaths occur every year in the UK due to alcohol poisoning. Remembering, of course, that addiction can also relate to prescribed medications such as opioids.

It’s not a slow suicide, it’s not intentional, and nobody does this knowingly and expects to slip down that slope. Studies tell us that addictive behaviours are not related to morals and are not a choice and, in fact, the biological impact of addictive behaviours on the brain is vast. Research has shown that addiction can completely hijack, and even destroy parts of the brain designed to help us survive.

There is a lot working against you, and to admit that you have an addiction problem is having to pull strength from the deepest depths of yourself. In reality, though, without summoning that strength to admit there is a problem, ultimately things are likely to get worse, and may result in a real tragedy. Admitting you have a problem is probably the hardest thing you’ll ever have to do, but it’s also going to save your life.

Speak To Addiction Services To Start Your Recovery

Speaking to addiction services in Essex or anywhere else in the country may seem like a huge step that is premature before you can admit you have a problem, but actually, it can make admitting you have a problem a little easier.

In such safe hands, you will feel supported, cared for and able to connect with information that educates you on how addiction works. You can have confidential help from an experienced team who know exactly what you need to work through this challenge and come through the other side.

To admit you have an addiction means admitting powerlessness to the addiction itself, but by admitting you have a problem, you regain control over your life and your future prospects. With the support of addiction services, you can go into recovery, and hopefully, experience being sober long-term. You can also access intervention help from experts who can help you to reach a loved one struggling to admit they have a problem.

By admitting you have a problem, you acknowledge there is a solution and that solution is private rehab.

It is never too late to reach out for help and move towards the happy, healthy life you deserve.