Studying

Studying is a very simple concept right!?! Yes it is, but it also takes some dedication and a heck of a lot of keeping focused and keeping on track. It is so important that we study, in order to get the results that we want. And if we don’t want better results than we don’t study. In order to get good grades in class, we must apply ourselves, focus on what we are doing, and make sure that we are directly connected to what we are doing.

It is so simple, yet sometimes we will become complacent and that isn’t good for us. We need to do the very best that we can in whatever we are doing. One thing that I have noticed here lately is that it takes a lot more than just to show up for a class. It takes involvement in that class also. We must participate in what we are doing in order for whatever we are studying to become very effective. Now this concept isn’t knew to us, yet it is like a God Shot to someone such as myself.

I have been in recovery for quite sometime now. However even with the time that I have in, I have not participated too much in my recovery, nor have I even studied that much in order to get the results that I would like to have. I suppose a guy would even say that I have pretty much just rested on my morals, if in fact I even had any to begin with. So I come up with the conclusion that we need to get back to the basics. And what are the basics of studying.

First thing is to show up on time. We can not be late for class because there are consequences for being late, or tardy if you remember. And if you get too many of them than you can get suspended and than if that happens you are going to be missing out on a lot of things from the class that you will probably end up failing. So showing up on time is very important.

Now in class we have to also pay attention to the teacher. That being said, if you are in Recovery, the teacher can be a lot of different things. I know many will automatically go into the Sponsor, God stuff, etc. but there are other teachers such as just friends, maybe your partner, books, literature, Forums sites that have a whole lot of Resources and things of the such. These things are all teachers and if we are paying attention to it than we are off to a wonderful start.

Now usually during class, when the teacher is teaching, most of us have used what we know as taking notes. Now as far as the notes are concerned, that is pretty much the same as journalism. Now if you go to most websites that are used for recovery they or most of them have journal forums in them so you are able post and most of the Internet world are not able to see them unless they are members of that Forum so that is a good way to express yourself and to be able to take note so to speak.

Than when all is said and done, once we have commensed this way of life, we than are ready to take the test. The test in recovery and being able to pass the test is to learn how to live life without the use of using. To put into action the things that we are taught by all the process above and to score on that test so to speak. The score depends on how well we follow the directions and how well we have listened throughout sessions. That my friends is Studying to this addict.

Thanks for allowing me to share.

Sleeping Is Healthy

Finally got a decent night sleep in almost 4 weeks of being in Lincoln.

Sleeping isn’t easy for me. Most of my lack of sleeping is caused from my drug use during my life. But when I am able to get a good night sleep it feels really good I am glad that I finally was able to get a good nights rest! Sometimes I think that has a lot to do with my recovery as well. They talk a lot about the H.A.L.T.S. (Hungry, Angry, Lonely, Tired, Sick) part in the rooms of AA/NA and I am sure that it has a lot to do with relapse. I get most of those quite a bit, maybe I should pay more attention to that little check list.

I woke up earlier and did my postings on the server for the meditations for the day. That was a good thing around 3 or 4am and than I went back to bed. But let us get back to the topic at hand. Sleeping is Healthy.

Most of us don’t realize how important it is to have a good night sleep. It is very important to be well rested. It helps us through out the day to be able to function in a healthy manner and I also believe that it helps us to react to situations in a much healthier manner as well. Without having a good nights rest and having those nights build up into weeks without a good nights rest, we tend to be on the edge more with our attitude, and not only with our attitude but on dealing with issues that may arise. So it is important in so many aspects to have a healthy sleeping schedule.

Now I am not one for the use of aids, however if you need a sleeping pill to help you get that nights rest, than by all means get in touch with your Doctor and talk it over with him/her. I know that you can by those things over the counter, however with alkies/addicts it isn’t a good thing to start going to the local drug store and just prescribing yourself medications without first talking it over with a Doctor. Now that is just my own opinion and you can take it or leave it. But I only know from my own experience that it isn’t best for me to start playing Doctor again, I have been down that road too many times and it always leads to other things which are not healthy.

Here are some tips that might help you out

Here are some Tips that may help.

• Sleep is as important as food and air. Quantity and quality are very important. Most adults need between 7.5 to 8.5 hours of uninterrupted sleep. If you press the snooze button on the alarm in the morning you are not getting enough sleep. This could be due to not enough time in bed, external disturbances, or a sleep disorder.
• Keep regular hours. Try to go to bed at the same time and get up at the same time every day. Getting up at the same time is most important. Getting bright light, like the sun, when you get up will also help. Try to go to bed only when you are sleepy. Bright light in the morning at a regular time should help you feel sleepy at the same time every night.
• Stay away from stimulants like caffeine. This will help you get deep sleep which is most refreshing. If you take any caffeine, take it in the morning. Avoid all stimulants in the evening, including chocolate, caffeinated sodas, and caffeinated teas. They will delay sleep and increase arousals during the night.
• Use the bed for sleeping. Avoid watching TV or using laptop computers. Know that reading in bed can be a problem if the material is very stimulation and you read with a bright light. If it helps to read before sleep make sure you use a very small wattage bulb to read. A 15 watt bulb should be enough. Bright light from these activities may inhibit sleep.
• Avoid bright light around the house before bed. Using dimmer switches in living rooms and bathrooms before bed can be helpful. (Dimmer switches can be set to maximum brightness for morning routines.)
• Don’t stress if you feel you are not getting enough sleep. It will just make matters worse. Know you will sleep eventually.
• Avoid exercise near bedtime. No exercise at least 3 hours before bed.
• Don’t go to bed hungry. Have a light snack, avoid a heavy meal before bed.
• Bedtime routines are helpful for good sleep. Keep routines on your normal schedule. A cup of herbal tea an hour before bed can begin a routine.
• Avoid looking at the clock if you wake up in the middle of the night. It can cause anxiety. This is very difficult for most of us, so turn the clock away from your eyes so you would have to turn it to see the time. You may decide not to make the effort and go right back to sleep.
• If you can’t get to sleep for over 30 minutes, get out of bed and do something boring in dim light till you are sleepy.
• Keep your bedroom at comfortable temperature. Not too warm and not too cold. Cooler is better than warmer.
• If you have problems with noise in your environment you can use a white noise generator. A old fan will work or you can buy noise machies from many sources.
• Know that the “night cap” has a price. Alcohol may help you to get to sleep but it will cause you to wake up throughout the night. You may not notice it. (It is worse if you have sleep apnea because the alcohol makes the apnea worse.) Sometimes people snore only if they have had some alcohol or may snore worse if they already snore.)
• If you have a sleeping partner, ask them if they notice any snoring, leg movements and/or pauses in breathing . Take this information and try the sleep test. You may have a sleep disorder or you may just need to increase your awareness about your own sleep need. If you have any concerns see your doctor.

What Are Substance Abuse and Addiction?

The difference between substance abuse and addiction is very slight. Substance abuse means using an illegal substance or using a legal substance in the wrong way. Addiction begins as abuse, or using a substance like marijuana or cocaine. You can abuse a drug (or alcohol) without having an addiction. For example, just because Sara smoked weed a few times doesn't mean that she has an addiction, but it does mean that she's abusing a drug — and that could lead to an addiction.

People can get addicted to all sorts of substances. When we think of addiction, we usually think of alcohol or illegal drugs. But people become addicted to medications, cigarettes, even glue! And some substances are more addictive than others: Drugs like crack or heroin are so addictive that they might only be used once or twice before the user loses control.

Addiction means a person has no control over whether he or she uses a drug or drinks. Someone who's addicted to cocaine has grown so used to the drug that he or she has to have it. Addiction can be physical, psychological, or both.

Physical addiction is when a person's body actually becomes dependent on a particular substance (even smoking is physically addictive). It also means building tolerance to that substance, so that a person needs a larger dose than ever before to get the same effects. Someone who is physically addicted and stops using a substance like drugs, alcohol, or cigarettes may experience withdrawal symptoms. Common symptoms of withdrawal are diarrhea, shaking, and generally feeling awful.

Psychological addiction happens when the cravings for a drug are psychological or emotional. People who are psychologically addicted feel overcome by the desire to have a drug. They may lie or steal to get it.

A person crosses the line between abuse and addiction when he or she is no longer trying the drug to have fun or get high, but has come to depend on it. His or her whole life centers around the need for the drug. An addicted person — whether it's a physical or psychological addiction or both — no longer feels like there is a choice in taking a substance.

Stop! Go! A Rogue System in the Brain

Summary

• Drug abuse damages a person's ability to make decisions.
• Healthy people have interacting systems in their brain that signal when to take action (go) and when to refrain (stop).
• A leading addiction researcher says that when someone is addicted, it's as if the "go" system is "running off on its own" instead of interacting with the "stop" system.

Our brain controls our decisionmaking, letting us know when to go forward with an action and when to stop. Scientists have learned which parts of the brain send these messages. And they know that for addicted people, these "stop" and "go" systems are impaired.

The brain's reward, or "go" system, is basic to all humans. Called the mesolimbic dopamine system, it evolved to help us pursue things necessary for survival such as food or sex. Conversely, the brain's frontal lobes or "stop" system evolved to help us weigh the consequences of our impulses. For example, this system will help keep us from driving through a red light when we're in a hurry, because the brain will tell us that doing so would be both dangerous and illegal. In this case, the "stop" system sends a message that the consequences of doing what the "go" system wants are too negative.

"When things are working right, the 'go' circuitry and the 'stop' circuitry really are interconnected and are really talking to each other to help you weigh the consequences of a decision and decide when to go or not to go," says Dr. Anna Rose Childress, a psychology researcher at the University of Pennsylvania. "It's not that they're separable. They're interactive. They're interlinked at all times." That means that even when you are in a great hurry and risk missing an appointment, you still do not run the red light. "Go" and "stop" have communicated with each other, and "stop" has prevailed.

With Childress's addicted patients, however, "it is as though [the systems] have become functionally disconnected. It is as though the 'go' system is sort of running off on its own, is a rogue system now, and is not interacting in a regular, seamless, integrated way with the 'stop' system."

When an addicted person, even one who is working to recover, gets certain signs, or triggers, such as conflict with a companion, the "go" system overwhelms the part of the brain that's telling them, "Stop! This is a very bad idea!" The trigger can be something essential to the addicted person's life: one recovered writer realized that his addiction was partly triggered by the deadline pressure of his chosen profession as a journalist, and was prompted to start a new career; other recovering people often move from their old neighborhoods to be away from triggers. But a trigger can also be something as subtle as a scent that reminds a person of the place where they used to buy drugs.

When that trigger surfaces, Childress says, "instead of being able to say, 'What? Wait a minute. Think about what happened last week. You lost your job. You almost lost your life,' the 'stop' system doesn't seem to get into the picture at all. It's all about 'go.'"

The Problem

So what exactly is the Problem? Or does that even need to be addressed? I believe that the problem should be addressed, however there is so many forms of the problem that it would be so hard to pinpoint it all into one area of any particular area of our lives that sometimes we will spend way too much time looking for what the problem is that we miss the solution to the problem. However we need to set up a blueprint if you will allow me to use this phrase for without a solid blueprint of a building you wouldn't have a solid building now would you? So we need to address the issue of what is the problem. That is a individual opinion and I am sure that there are many that will disagree with me here.

In my Own Experience I have came to believe that until we are sure of what the problem is there is no process to regain control over our addiction or over our addictive thinking which is my own opinion. I believe that we need to get down to the root and the cause of each of the addictions that are ailing us and than once we have opened up that door we will than be able to proceed to the next level of the recovery process.

Since the word addiction as we saw has what is now coincide with our minds and the way in which we react to the issues at hand it means that we have now discovered that we are not only physically, and mentally ill from the use of the substance, but it also processes some sort of bad vibes in the process also and this process never ceases until we do actually face the fact concerning the Problems that entail our everyday lives not just the days that we cleaned up from our main DOC (Drug Of Choice).

We start by recognizing our Problems with each other through our active drug use and being able to relate to the situation that got us there. This is the first part of the recovery phase that I like to call the truth has hit ya in the face but is that enough. Yeah the truth will set you free but only if you are willing to actually accept the truth for the truth. It is not just knowing the truth for knowing the truth and living the truth are two very different things. One may know that they have a sex issue, drug issue, gambling issue, but knowing it isn't anything unless we are willing to accept this to be the truth and once that is done than we are than able to move into another direction from what some would say is the denial stage of recovery into the active process of the recovery road.

I believe that I finally accepted the truth to the fact that crack, meth had me licked on May 25, 2006 and yet I had know the truth for many years before that. But until I could accept the fact that these substances was making a huge mess up in my life nothing seemed to happen very effectively in my recovery road. Although I had sometime being clean the the process wasn't the same than as it is now. I actually believe that it was easier to stay off of the stuff while I was actually only acknowledging my problem rather than accepting that it was my problem. You see there that is what I am saying that while it was actually only acknowledge the fact rather than accepting that it was the fact of my problems and the word was is also a key thing here because it isn't in fact a part of myself that is hurting my sound mind although it still does from the damage that I have caused to the brain cells all of these years.

The fact remains that those two substances I had to get out of my life, also with any other drug/alcohol to start the journey into the recovery field. Today I am still haunted by the addiction to Nicotine that sounds harmless but my story is still being told and this part of my addiction is still causing me insane and unsound mind decisions, although it would be a lot worse which we all would have to agree if I were still using those other substances PERIOD. So Now I have set up the problem as I had to search for within myself. Maybe you have the same problems or not, maybe it is Nicotine, Sex, Pot, Speed, Crack, Meth, Porno, whatever is causing this obsessive/compulsive behavior that is making the wrong choices than we identify that and move on to the next step in our recovery path toward freedom from our addiction to whatever addiction it is for you. As many of forms of addiction there are at least that many forms for recovery, I use multiple ways to recover and it works for me. Today

Recovery and Relapse inventory worksheet

Recovery and Relapse inventory worksheet

I have worked with a great many folks that have utilized teh swinging door. I have found the following to be very helpful in preventing the next relapse.

The instructions that were given to me when I found the worksheet were only that the person be encouraged to be thoroughly honest and willing to make changes. Those that have done the worksheet remain clean and sober. So I know it owrks…..and as the promises say..”if we work it”
I hope this will be helpful

Recovery and Relapse inventory worksheet

1) what fear did your relaps create?

2) what guilt did it bring?

3) what regret did it create?

4) what harm did you do to yourself?

5) what harm did you do to others?

6) what financial harm was done?

7) what relationship damage was done?

what did it do to your self esteem?

9) what damage was done to your relationship with God?

10) what other problems did your using create?

Read recovery and relapse every day for a month.

The chapter says a relapse means we are holding on to

Reservations.

11) what parts of the program are you not willing to trust?Can

you identify any reservations?

Often we find that our surrender only scratches the surface.Only

A full surrender works with this disease.Use this chapter as a guideline

The whole point of this worksheet is to look back and identify and discover in what areas you failed to work your program of recovery. If we don’t learn from our relapses…..and become aware of what not to do again…..we are destined to repeat those same mistakes.

If you are willing to at least look at your thinking, feelings, and behavior that led up to the relapse…..you are moving towards recovery, not away from it.

It is just as important to look at assets, as well as liabilities. We look at what was working as opposed to what didn’t work and identify problem areas. These are the areas we want to bring into our awareness this time….so they won’t slip below the radar again.

In what ways was I actively working my program? (explain/describe, include feelings)
Meetings?
Sponsor?
Steps?
Higher power?
Service?

In what areas did I let my program slide or become complacent? (explain/describe, include feelings)
Meetings?
Sponsor?
Steps?
Higher power?
Service?

In what ways was my life manageable?(explain/describe, include feelings)
Mentally?
Emotionally?
Physically?
Spiritually?

In what ways was my life unmanageable? (explain/describe – be specific, include feelings)
Mentally?
Emotionally?
Physically?
Spiritually?

What events/situations affected my life negatively? (people, places, things, relationships, work)
How did I handle those events? (positive/negative)
What choices (self-will) do I think led me back into unmanageability?
Were these choices well thought out or impulsive reactions? Did you choose by default and ignore the warning signs)
In what ways was I in denial of the direction I was heading?
What circumstances could I have handled differently? In what way?

How was my emotional life unmanageable without the use of drugs? (in what ways – describe feelings and over what).

What were my thinking processes? (describe) Was I lying to myself? Did I justify my actions?

How did my behavior change? In what ways?

In what areas did I lack faith or not use my Higher Powers Guidance?

In what ways did my character defects come into play? (explain/describe all areas)
Denial?
Dishonesty?
Selfishness?
Stealing? Emotional stealing others trust?
Emotional, physical, sexual, financial manipulation of others?
Distrust of self and others?
Resentments? How they affected me and what actions did I take / or not take?
Self reliance/isolation?
Blame? Who did I blame for my feelings and why?
Did I abandon myself?

In what ways did I depend on others to meet my needs?
Where did I not take responsibility for myself and my program?
In what ways did I give my power to others?

Now looking at the answers to all these questions – Identify the problem areas?

List them:

What do I need to work on?
What do I need to watch for? Warning signs? Triggers?

In my best thinking…..How could I actively stay aware and work my program differently this time? (explain/describe).

What active actions can I take to promote my recovery?

How does my behavior need to change?

How will I rely on my Higher power to help me make these changes?

How can I align my will with my Higher powers guidance?

What can I do this time that I did not do last time to ensure a stronger program.

What does a complete surrender mean to me?

Nebraska Drug News

Nebraska Drug News

Volunteers and maintenance crews who clean up roadside litter are being urged to watch for potentially toxic debris discarded from methamphetamine labs.

Transportation agencies in several states and organizations that promote highway cleanups are creating brochures and DVDs to educate workers about dangers from materials used to make the drug, also known as meth or speed.

“We felt it was important to notify the public that the trash you might as a Good Samaritan be out picking up on the side of the road could possibly be dangerous to you,” says Lt. John Eichkorn of the Kansas Highway Patrol. The agency issued a news release in March that warned volunteers and highway cleanup crews.
advertisement

Bystanders who come across materials used to make the drug can be burned or their lungs damaged from inhaling fumes. Clues indicating a dumpsite include empty bottles attached to a rubber hose, the smell of ammonia and coffee filters stained red or containing a white powder residue.

Meth is a highly addictive stimulant that can be made using household chemicals and equipment and common cold remedies containing ephedrine or pseudoephedrine.

To combat the drug’s spread, most states have passed laws restricting access to those medicines, including limiting how much a customer can buy and having buyers sign a log, says Blake Harrison of the National Conference of State Legislatures. President Bush in March signed a federal law that imposes similar restrictions.

Such legislation has dramatically reduced the number of illegal meth labs found inside homes, says Ashley Cradduck, spokeswoman for Gov. Dave Heineman of Nebraska, where a law was passed last year.

Among actions:

� Keep Nebraska Beautiful, a civic group, launched an education campaign last year and created a DVD on meth litter for the thousands of 4-H clubs, Scout troops and Rotary clubs involved in cleanup efforts. “We recommend to every single group to view that video before they go out so they know how to respond,” says Jane Polson, the group’s executive director.

� Colorado’s Department of Transportation offers an instructional video warning that meth litter is “a deadly threat to all Adopt-A-Highway volunteers.” The video urges group leaders to scout areas before volunteers begin work.

“There was a need for a higher level of attention to it because I don’t think the crews really realized the risk they were in,” says Stacey Stegman, a department spokeswoman. A maintenance worker was overwhelmed two years ago by fumes from meth materials tossed in a rest stop trash bin, she says. “It burned his lungs,” she says. “He was off work for close to a month.”