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How long from drug abstenince does it take to feel normal again

Higherfocus420

Higherfocus420

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Apr 25, 2020
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How long does it take in recovery and abstenince from substances to feel mentally normal again I feel like drugs have had a permanent affect on my decision making I'm way more impulsive and neurotic have a loads of mental health issues from drug abuse addiction my concentration is fucked I find it hard to even watch TV sometimes
 
what sort of drugs have you been using? they have different timescales. when i was in rehab for crack and heroin i was completely joyless, i couldn't laugh. that was mostly an effect of the crack cos i was on the dark way longer and was not joyless the whole time. i first laughed after about 4 weeks.

sleep improved surprisingly quickly.

the first actively feeling good took at least 3 months. i was super super mentally unstable though up to 6 months when i got medicted for my CPTSD. i had been using drugs of one form or another daily since i was 16 so there was a lot of healing to do.

i had residual psychosis from the crack for about 6 months too though it diminished quite quickly.

it will depend on your nutrition, whether you're exercising, if you're doing other things to benefit your mental health. so there are lots of factors in your control that can help matters.
 
chinup said:
what sort of drugs have you been using? they have different timescales. when i was in rehab for crack and heroin i was completely joyless, i couldn't laugh. that was mostly an effect of the crack cos i was on the dark way longer and was not joyless the whole time. i first laughed after about 4 weeks.

sleep improved surprisingly quickly.

the first actively feeling good took at least 3 months. i was super super mentally unstable though up to 6 months when i got medicted for my CPTSD. i had been using drugs of one form or another daily since i was 16 so there was a lot of healing to do.

i had residual psychosis from the crack for about 6 months too though it diminished quite quickly.

it will depend on your nutrition, whether you're exercising, if you're doing other things to benefit your mental health. so there are lots of factors in your control tha
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Crack and heroin mainly but I used a lot of speed benzos even xtc and lsd but mainly crack and heroin
 
I personally don't think that one can ever feel 'normal' again after being addicted to powerful drugs.


The best we can hope for is a new 'normal' where you just accept that life is shit, but you've got to get on with it.
 
Higherfocus420 said:
How long does it take in recovery and abstenince from substances to feel mentally normal again I feel like drugs have had a permanent affect on my decision making I'm way more impulsive and neurotic have a loads of mental health issues from drug abuse
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I believe this is true for anybody that habitually uses any kind of mind altering substance. I mean How could it not? Even in the smallest of ways subtle or unsubtle the view and outlooks after the high is different. Could be as severe as never coming back from an acid trip or being perma-twacked to being as harmless as changing an opinion or whatnot. But regardless without the use we may never have come to that conclusion...or could have taken way longer. Prolong that use to where it becomes natural like it has/is for a lot of us here and well, we end up here. Personally Ive done the recovery thing whole hardheartedly twice and both times were different as far as that normal feeling went. I think (in my case at least) because of the young age I was introduced and then the addiction being as strong within me I couldn't ever really have "Normal" or even "Normal-ish" feeling simply because I don't remember it. It got easier after I was in recovery but away from the treatment/rehab/meeting a day environment. Nothing makes a mofo want to use more that talking about it for 8hrs a day, I mean damn. Though I totally agree with the 12 steps and think that everyone should do them at least once, It works if you try, ncrazy shit if u ask me but it dose, I also feel that being in those surroundings for too long is just as dangerous (maybe not physically) as being in the addiction. To get the feeling I think your hoping to get bak its going to come when u arent prepared, arent wrapped up in the flimsy security the meeting and chips give us in the beginning of recovery but it will. In some form. I dunno if this gives any worthwhile input to your post, but yeah. Be safe.
 
Higherfocus420 said:
How long does it take in recovery and abstenince from substances to feel mentally normal again I feel like drugs have had a permanent affect on my decision making I'm way more impulsive and neurotic have a loads of mental health issues from drug abuse addiction my concentration is fucked I find it hard to even watch TV sometimes
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6 months. In my experience.
 
F.U.B.A.R. said:
I personally don't think that one can ever feel 'normal' again after being addicted to powerful drugs.


The best we can hope for is a new 'normal' where you just accept that life is shit, but you've got to get on with it.
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1000000% 9999999x agree.
 
Former Opioid and crack user here. I went on Opioid Replacement Therapy for my Opioid addiction for two years to stabilize parts of my mood. I’m still on 6mg Suboxone a day at the moment. I’m going down to 4mg a day next month. I had to change Careers to one that got away from Corporate greed and which spoke to me personally and which suited me more. My energy levels are not the greatest still(3 years later), but I accept that I will never feel as good as when I was high. I’m doing a CBT counselling course for depression with a Counsellor although I find that reading about Buddhism has been of more help. I have accepted that I cannot change the horrible things that had happened to me in the past. To put things in perspective, I view my life now as not necessarily worse but rather just DIFFERENT.

I hope you find your proper path. I don’t claim to understand what you’ve been through but I hope that you can find some ideas from my story to help you in some way.

Peace.
 
Opi_Kid_Rock said:
Former Opioid and crack user here. I went on Opioid Replacement Therapy for my Opioid addiction for two years to stabilize parts of my mood. I’m still on 6mg Suboxone a day at the moment. I’m going down to 4mg a day next month. I had to change Careers to one that got away from Corporate greed and which spoke to me personally and which suited me more. My energy levels are not the greatest still(3 years later), but I accept that I will never feel as good as when I was high. I’m doing a CBT counselling course for depression with a Counsellor although I find that reading about Buddhism has been of more help. I have accepted that I cannot change the horrible things that had happened to me in the past. To put things in perspective, I view my life now as not necessarily worse but rather just DIFFERENT.

I hope you find your proper path. I don’t claim to understand what you’ve been through but I hope that you can find some ideas from my story to help you in some way.

Peace.
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Yea addiction is definitely a state of mind and a viscous cycle I've been meditating and exercising which help my well being immensely meditation is good for when I'm suffering from racing thoughts as when experience them I find it hard to focus on anything
 
I felt pretty normal after 16 months to be honest. Barely even thought about meth anymore. I relapsed due to significant life events but had it not been for that I never would have touched it again.
 
Higherfocus420 said:
How long does it take in recovery and abstenince from substances to feel mentally normal again I feel like drugs have had a permanent affect on my decision making I'm way more impulsive and neurotic have a loads of mental health issues from drug abuse addiction my concentration is fucked I find it hard to even watch TV sometimes
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Hey man, It took me about a year to feel normal again. It differs for everyone.

Dont think "oh its not worth being clean if it possibly will take me a year". The longer you are clean the better you feel.

I dont have cravings as much and when i do its like "ah wouldnt it be nice to smoke a cigarette(but i never do these days), I can be around drugs now and not use, i dont even smoke cigarettes or drink a shit ton of caffeine to feel a buzz. I have no desire to go back to heroin, dxm, hydrocodone, weed, shrooms, alcohol, nicontine, tobacco.

At first itll be hard but it really does get better. As for not being able to watch tv, itll pass. After quitting dxm i couldnt focus on tv at all. I barely watched tv for a long time. I was able to watch tv within a few months after being clean from dxm.

Best of luck. You have our backs to lean on 💕✌
 
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