Most addictions require psychological and psychiatric intervention but this starts with the user being aware and willing to work on behaviour changes. A person can begin their journey of stopping addictive behaviours by following these simple guidelines below:
- Document the harmful effects of your addiction in a notebook
- List all the positive changes you would like to see in your life
- Formulate a quitting commitment
Set a concrete date to quit - Seek personal and professional support
- Familiarise yourself with your triggers
- Start decreasing your responses to triggers by recognising them for what they are and the feelings associated to them
- Re-invent your environment and social circles so that you are not drawn back into self-destructive cycles
- Stop the addictive behaviour as planned, seeking a professional detox facility if required
- Occupy your time with new positive actions
- Identify and resist maladaptive rationalisations to “pick up” or start using again
- Congratulate yourself on your accomplishments
This list is seemingly simple however nothing beats talking to a registered professional and getting external guidance to re-enforce your positive new personal growth and to tackle the underlying causes for the addiction the first place. This treatment process enables and facilitates longer-term and more sustainable addiction recovery from powerful addiction cycles.
There are a number of inherent risks to stopping addictive substances like benzodiazepines, heroin, and alcohol and it is recommended that you at least seek guidance before any kind of detox is attempted.
About Recovery Direct’s Care Centre Johannesburg
Recovery Direct is an exclusive online therapy rehab from South Africa that focuses on personal growth from addiction using evidence-based therapy in a personal development programme. The centre focuses on the recovery from substances, depression and anxiety and is considered as one of the best centres in South Africa for an executive retreat for chronic stress or burnout. Recovery Direct is one of the few centres in the world where the treatment model is based around the resolution of complex post-traumatic stress disorder that encompasses a broad range of maladaptive behaviour origins as part of standard treatment.
For too long South Africa and the world have used punitive and vindictive treatment practices such as 12 step and as a means to “help” users stop compulsive use of substances to dealing with their past trauma. Recovery Direct simply provides a better alternative in a model that focuses on care and respect and provides a safe platform for people to reprocess and handle their recovery on their own terms and in an environment that is most conducive to their personal growth objectives.
