This course will help you learn how to deal with these stressors in a more functional, productive way. What is in your control is learning to deal with these stressors in a healthy and productive manner instead of relying on substances. Then, you must also accept that the environment and stressors that may have led to your addiction might be out of your control. How can you fight addiction? How can you cope with stress without depending on substances? It starts with accepting that you have an addiction. It just means you have accepted the reality of a situation. Acceptance does not mean approval and does not change the fact that you may not have wanted something to happen. That does not change the fact that we must accept these situations as reality. Things happen frequently that are unplanned or unwanted. Often in life, acceptance is difficult: You must accept losing a promotion, your pet running away, or your car dying. In order to fight addiction, you must have acceptance of it. As the stress continues, the individual feels an increasing need to find relief through the substance abuse. Unfortunately, because the original stressor has not been properly dealt with, the substance abuse becomes the individual’s primary method of dealing with the stress. During these times, feeling emotionally overwhelmed may find temporary relief by using addictive substances. For some, addictive behavior was at one time a short-term remedy to a distressing situation. Withdrawal, such as sweating or shaking, after not usingĪ characteristic of addiction can be the inability to deal with emotions or stressful situations without the aid of drugs and alcohol.Excessive time spent seeking drugs or alcohol.Decreased performance at work or school.Preference to use above other duties or activities.
The repeated activity may produce short-term pleasurable feelings/thoughts/sensations but over time, it will interfere with life in a way that has negative and sometimes very harmful consequences. What is addiction?Īddiction can be defined as the repetitive engagement in activities (such as using drugs or alcohol), despite their negative consequences on daily living. As we move into talking about what addiction is, and how to be more accepting of where things may be in your life, please try to carry that a sense of compassion for yourself and your experiences with you. It’s also probably time to learn some more helpful coping mechanisms. We bring this up because it might be helpful to start this class by cultivating some compassion for yourself and the situations that got you here. Can you think of what was going on in your life when you started over-relying on drugs and/or alcohol? Most people develop addictions because the substance that is now harmful once helped the person cope with something particularly challenging. That means that if drugs and/or alcohol have become hindrances to you in your life, they probably helped you get through something difficult when you first started using them. There’s a common expression in the mental health world: That which is now a problem, was once a solution. We will never try to place blame on, or suppress your experiences with addiction, but by examining your experiences in our course, you will learn more effective ways to cope with stressors that are harmful for you and your loved ones. – can lead to a dangerous addiction and in turn, create more problems for you.
Relying on such substances as a means to cope with or escape the trials and tribulations of everyday life – the ending of a relationship, family strife, loss of employment, difficulty in school, etc. Open Path’s course on drugs & alcohol is designed to help you if you are struggling with addiction to drugs and/or alcohol, and potential problems related to substance abuse, such as a DUI conviction. Introductory Class Alcohol & Other Drugs Awareness