Very cool video about SMART recovery, and recovery from drug addiction in general.
He talks about the stages of change, which is an idea that fundamentally changed the way I view addiction/substance use disorders. It is taught in colleges, and is a well understood principal in psychology. Sadly, it isn't talked about all that much, if at all, in places like AA/NA.
The 5 stages of change, the way I was taught(there are a few variations) is as follows:
1. Pre-contemplation: the person isn't considering changing, doesn't see a need for change or problem.
2. Contemplation: the person is considering changing, aware of problem, but unsure of solution.
3. Preparation: the person has discovered a solution, or possible solutions, and is now planning and preparing to take action
4. Action: the person has started taking steps to change behavior.
5. Maintenance: the person continues to progress or maintain change.
These stages are not necessarily linear either, going in order of 1-2-3-4. Most people skip around a bit, going forward, backward, and even skipping steps. It is just a generalized way of organizing your thoughts about change, and a good way to gauge yourself. I find, for myself, if I don't stay vigilant in the maintenance phase(daily schedule, healthy support/family, friends), I quickly start to slip back into the pre-contemplation phase, where I start doubting my whole recovery, thinking it was all BS and that I'm better off using shitty coping skills like getting high to try not to feel bad. After the novelty of this "phase" wears off, I quickly go back to preparation without spending much time in contemplation, as I know what makes me happy and what I desire more than drugs(music, chemistry & science, exercise, real friends). I definitely spend a lot of time in the preparation phase though, as even though I know what I need to do, it is still a struggle to get started. I kind of bounce back and forth between preparation and action, like only smoking a little weed before working out or practicing music, then smoking a lot once I have finished my chores for the day. Or I'll start the day off well, then fall back and reward myself with a smoke or pill at the end of the day.
It's been nearly 2 years since I have stopped using opioids and benzos daily, with only a few relapses. So in that regard, I have made it to the maintenance phase, with exception of the relapses. I still think about pills a lot, mostly benzos, but I have pretty good ways of dealing with those cravings most the time. For me, it's very hard to rationalize use because of how destructive they were in my life.
With weed, I've only made it about 8 months consecutively without any, and maybe another 4-6 months after that only smoking maybe 2-3g a week(not a problem imo). However, it doesn't stay at a manageable level for me and quickly progresses to a problematic level(noticeable functional impairment). The bigger problem is that it quickly leads to old habits that are far more destructive and problematic.
So just wanted to share this with everyone, mostly as a positive reminder to not get down on yourself. People commonly bounce between stages of change, and some even skip over them. I highly disagree with the whole 12 step ideology of having to start over after a relapse. The physiological recovery, namely the neurological recovery, is not discarded because of 1 day of drug use, or even 1+ yr long relapse.
Just to clarify, I think 12step, AA, NA, etc all do great work. The problem I find is that they are often presented as the only way with many cultish views tied to it. Recovery does not need a ton of dogmatic beliefs to work- there is a lot of science(namely psychology and neuroscience) that evidences the reasons why these 12 step groups work. The biggest provable factor in why 12 step groups work is the community(i.e. group therapy).
I'm looking to start my own SMART recovery group in my town, as well as other SMART online recovery groups. If anyone has more info, please msg me. Thanks.