Do You Have Substance Abuse Issues? How to Get Help

Substance abuse issues affect hundreds of thousands of people each year in the United States and all over the globe. Whether you are addicted to alcohol, prescription drugs or illegal drugs, substance abuse can be life threatening and problematic to your professional and personal life.

If you feel like you are finally ready to get help, either because you have suffered a near-death experience or you just realize you have a problem you have already taken the first step on the road to recovery. However, the journey is only beginning, and if you want to get clean and sober, you have got some work ahead of you.

Use this guide to help you begin the process of kicking substance abuse. You will live a happier, healthier and longer life if you do.

Break Your Patterns

Many people who suffer from substance abuse do so because they are in a pattern of behavior that is hard to break. These patterns often involve something as simple as having a drink after they get home from work. That one drink could lead to another and then another, resulting in a person drinking all night or calling in sick the next morning.

Other patterns of behavior include simply going out with friends to let loose once in a while, like on a Friday night. While this might not seem like a bad thing – and it isn’t if letting loose is a slice of pizza and some time with friends – people with substance abuse issues tend to get drunk or high when out just having fun.

Whatever your pattern is, you are going to need to recognize it and begin to break it if you want to get clean and sober and stay that way.

Talk with Friends and Family

When you have a substance abuse probably you have likely spent a great deal of time hiding it from your friends and family. In fact, having to hide your use of alcohol or drugs out of embarrassment or fear of what others might think is a common sign that you actually have a substance abuse problem.

However, talking with your friends and family about wanting to get clean and sober requires honesty. While it can be a difficult talk to have with the people you love, they can help provide you with support while you are on the road to recovery. If they don’t know you are suffering they can’t help you with anything at all, and they may even encourage bad behavior without knowing it.

It’s your responsibility to change, but that doesn’t mean you have to do it all alone.

Avoid Triggers

Triggers are things, events or places that can cause a person to abuse a substance or use a substance that they are addicted to for a variety of reasons. Some of these triggers are obvious – like a regular bar for an alcoholic. However, others are a little bit harder to determine.

One example of a trigger might even be a person. Perhaps somebody you have often drank or done drugs with in the past. While they may not have a substance abuse problem, they are somebody who has been around when you have developed a problem. Another example might be a restaurant where you go to have a celebratory dinner and drink that leads to problem drinking.

Stressful situations, particularly with friends and family are also triggers in many people’s lives because alcohol and substances can help to ease irritation, anger and sadness when something goes wrong. Avoiding these triggers is particularly important when you are trying to get clean and sober and kick substance abuse for good.

Get Help

Getting clean isn’t something most people are able to do on their own, especially if their addiction or substance abuse has lasted for years and years. However, there are some ways that you can get help without going into a medical detox program, or if you simply need additional support after exiting a medical detox program.

If you simply need outpatient help to stay clean and fight addiction and substance abuse, a Boca Raton IOP Center can be your best bet. You will find the support you need to stay sober without having to check into a medical facility that can mean giving up your work and family for an extended period of time.

Not everybody needs that kind of help, especially if they have received it in the past. For some individuals, outpatient care is the best method for dealing with addiction and substance abuse in a productive manner.