Addiction isn’t usually on the top of our minds when we have a drink, take prescription medication, or use illegal drugs. That’s because it’s not something that happens right away. Little by little, your brain adapts, altering your judgment and perceptions. Before you know it, you can be trapped in the cycle of addiction, with seemingly no way out.
Escaping the cycle of addiction takes hard work, courage, and support. It also takes the involvement of professionals involved in addiction treatment. The process of addiction treatment has helped millions of people restore themselves to a stable and sober path. Understanding the cycle of addiction can improve the chances of your success in addiction treatment.
Understanding the Cycle of Addiction
Addiction is a progressive condition that goes through various stages. The dangerous thing about addiction is you move from one stage to the next without even knowing it. Understanding the cycle of addiction is important for the success of addiction treatment. The cycle’s stages include:
- Initial use, when you take a drink or use a drug for the first time.
- Abuse, where some trigger causes you to increase the amount you drink or drug you use.
- Tolerance, where you require more of a certain substance to produce the same physiological effect
- Dependence, the most dangerous phase, happens when your brain and body begin to rely on drugs or alcohol in order to function normally.
- Addiction, which involves the persistent use of drugs and alcohol despite the problems they cause.
The best way to interrupt the cycle of addiction is through a commitment to addiction treatment.
How Addiction Treatment Works
No two experiences with addiction are the same. Doctors design treatment plans around individual circumstances. But the stages of addiction treatment are universal. They include:
- Intake, where doctors and counselors establish a baseline for your physical and mental health.
- Planning, where information from the intake is used to create a roadmap for your care.
- Detox, which involves stepping down from your drug or alcohol use under the supervision of doctors.
- Counseling, which calls for one-on-one and group therapy sessions to help you understand what’s happened and how to cope with it in the future.
- Aftercare, which is intended to help lower the chances of a relapse.
By sticking to the recommendations made by doctors, you can break the cycle of addiction.
The Importance of Aftercare
You might be wondering why it’s not enough to simply stop using drugs or drinking to break the cycle of addiction. The reason is that addiction is a disease that can recur. In fact, in the first year, a high percentage of rehab graduates will experience a relapse.
Aftercare is the stage of addiction treatment that guards against relapse. In aftercare, you continue with counseling and have the chance to join 12-step peer support groups.
The support of peers has been proven to be a powerful tool in recovery. It provides a safe, judgment-free environment where people with like experiences can discuss problems and share solutions.
Aftercare is where your recovery takes shape and where you can learn what it takes to maintain your safety and sobriety.
Beating Addiction with Blueprint Recovery Center
No one sets out to become trapped by addiction. The progression of the disease is steady and often outside of our immediate awareness. And before we can even explain what happened, we’re caught in an addiction’s web. There are ways to break the cycle of addiction. It requires enormous courage and effort. Let Blueprint Recovery Center guide you out of the darkness. We’re an outpatient drug and alcohol rehab center with more than two decades of experience with drug addiction treatment. Our staff of clinical and mental health experts will help you develop a treatment plan that works, putting your safety, security, and privacy at the forefront. Begin your path back to normalcy today. Contact Blueprint Recovery Center at 833.654.1004 today for an initial consultation.
