Hopelessly hooked

[NastyNas99]

So, I just signed up and this is my first post. SWIM has a very serious heroin addiction. They've been an opiate addict x 8 years and a hard heroin addict x 2 years. They've been to rehab, halfway houses, phsyc wards more times to count and can't kick. They've used every different method of detox, treatment and recovery with little success. The most clean time they've had was about 3 months with the help of a very expensive inpatient rehab and suboxone mantainance. Now, with no insurance and so many failed attempts in the past they are very discouraged about any chance of recovery. Although not suicidal, after 10 plus ODs they've almost made peace witht he fact that they will lose this war. They've spent 8 years in the military, is a registered nurse and has a free ride for school but can't accomplish anything with the habit they have. Their life has become NOTHING more than doing whatever it takes to get h, get high and isolate. Any advice or words of encouragement could help SWIM very much. Thanks...I hope I'm posting this in the right place and in the correct format

 

[girlgone11]

I'm pretty sure you can't use SWIM here anywhere

 

[batmanplaybaseball]

yeah no swim anywhere on bluelight. Its annoying, ridiculous, and against the rules. Some moderator will probably slap you with that anyway soo... You do have a serious issue which I have had except that you have a longer duration. I am about two weeks clean now, after about a month suboxone detox and actually doing well. The only thing that gets me still is lack of motivation and depression. I recommend a rapid suboxone detox, as in one to two weeks only. Maybe even one to two days if you can do it. But the one serious thing i do have to offer is that i have seen the other side of the tunnel. I had a year clean and I was feeling great. No opiates, no subs, nothing.(Then i found a little bottle of lortabs and off it went again, damn). You sound like you want to get clean, and if you really do then I can offer you that it does get better, completely better. It doesnt happen fast, but it will happen. Plus you have a free ride of education. and once you start to feel better, you will see that as an amazing gift. Good luck and i feel for you.

 

[NastyNas99]

Thanks batmanplaybaseball. I have had minimal success with suboxone but I will give it another try. I honestly don't see myself tapering off and my medical knowledge tells me a home rapid detox is completely out of the question. What did you do you for aftercare? Did you get into NA/HA or some sort of other support group? I'm thinking of getting into a suboxone rapid detox but I know that I will need additional support afterward and NA just didn't do it for me in the past. I guess a changing of my expectations and attitude will help. I've detoxed several times but I haven't been able to handle the depression and complete loss of energy of the PAWS. Thanks

 

[Kooter]

This might help a little, I am hoping it helps me. I am going to be going to the Salvation Army long term residential rehab. I heard that these "free or low-cost" rehabs are better just because they make you work for your sobriety. Again, I could be wrong but I hope I am right for two reasons. 1) I want to get clean really bad 2) I got no money for those nice rehabs. I know also you must participate in these programs to get as much as you can from them. I know what you mean about NA, it's really hard for me to relate to a lot of the people there, maybe it's because a lot or almost all of them seems like they are tweakers. But I wish you look and the one thing I do like what NA says is take it one day at a time.

 

[Dave]

Heh, yeah-- SWIM is discouraged here as it offers no protection whatsoever from law enforcement. Anyone who tells you otherwise is mis-informed or one of them...



I can't offer much advice, as I've not experienced opiate addiction, but all I can say is that there is no such thing as someone who is hopelessly addicted. Yours is a far harder struggle than the vast majority of people will ever have to endure, but with the right combination of time, support and motivation you'll be able to kick this. There are people here who have had similar habits who have gotten clean; it's not easy, but it can be done. Nobody is a writeoff; the whole world may be telling you that you are, but you should be the last person to ever say that.

 

[batmanplaybaseball]

My situation was complicated. I was long-term travelling at the time, and when withdrawal hit I had to run off and grab a cheap $70/month apartment in Budapest and just revive myself, meaning i was in bed for the better part of two months. It was bad. I mean if you think withdrawals are bad just imagine having them and not being able to say diarrhea in Hungarian.

After that I went and did volunteer work on farms for months, six or seven months. I returned to the states with my relationship in shambles but my life almost sewn back together. A few months of solid exercise and sunlight after that and I actually felt great.

Its hard to say what will precisely work for you. But my thing wasnt exactly what I wanted either. Being sick I wanted to be home and in the comforts of everything with which I was familiar. So "you cant always get what you want but you get what you need", and yeah its lame to quote a classic rock song but whatever. The point is that its hard, its probably not perfect, but it all still works out.