(Part 2) Top products from r/OpiatesRecovery

Exercise has been a godsend for me. I used to live in a place where I could easily surf and hike and after moving I found the normal gym thing unappealing and sort of boring. Not sure why it is so easy now but probably has to do with how great it makes me feel. :) The cardio in particular brings such a rush and calming zen state.

I always liked the green powder drinks. My fave is this one called "Capra Greens" by Mount Capra. Goat Whey with lots of minerals and tastes way better than any other I've tried. Awesome in smoothies. If you want to experiment with any probiotics, a few basic ones are the "pearls" https://www.amazon.com/Enzymatic-Therapy-Pearls-Intensive-Probiotics/dp/B002NL165W/ref=pd_lpo_vtph_121_tr_t_1?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=XFWXX2D5MHE9D06FF2CJ

and Jarro-dophilus. They are a great company:
https://www.amazon.com/Jarrow-Formulas-Jarro-Dophilus-Supports-Intestinal/dp/B00028NV2E/ref=sr_1_3_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1524554221&sr=8-3&keywords=jarro-dophilus&dpID=51xngr4HSVL&preST=_SY300_QL70_&dpSrc=srch

You probably know about the cardio stuff of target heart rate. It's based on your resting heart rate, age, and such. I sometimes only speed walk / run for 20 minutes at the gym but that's more than enough to bring all that happy juice. :)

Wishing you the best, friend!

Got it from Caroline Myss and her concept was in the A Woman's Way Through the Twelve Steps. I'ma dude, but it's still a great book.

Probably a bit more 11th step which I am not on. There's certain types of meditation where you only listen to your thoughts and non-judgmentally let them go as they arise (which reminds me, I haven't meditated today)...

But the idea is, IF every thought is a prayer, then self-actualization is more pronounced because every thought is focused and comes from that "spiritual" center. (Whatever spirituality looks like to you.) The power of intention or law of attraction...

For me, it's a set of ideals. Peace, love, pardon, faith, hope, joy, consolation, understanding, and giving. Gratitude.

I'm an atheist too, but of all the practices I have it's one of my favs.

Right, I don't do the whole nomenclature thing, but labels are sometimes useful for describing exactly what "system" someone is using. Living in the now, so to speak, and not identifying with the mind are definitely great skills to cultivate. If you don't already utilize some form of cognitive behavioral therapy, like REBT, you should look into that because the two complement each other very well.

I'm waiting on:

Mindfulness in Plain English

Focused and Fearless: A Meditator's Guide to States of Deep Joy, Calm, and Clarity

Mindfulness, Bliss, and Beyond: A Meditator's Handbook

They were from the /r/meditation book recommendation thread, and I've been trying to develop mindfulness skills more.

I stand by what i said its a christian based program.


We admitted we were powerless over alcohol—that our lives had become unmanageable.

You are not powerless.

Came to believe that a power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.

Statement referring to God

Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood Him.

God

Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.

Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs.

God

Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.

God

Humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings.

Him = God

Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all.

Quit living in the fucking past and move the fuck on

Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.

see above

Continued to take personal inventory, and when we were wrong, promptly admitted it.

Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.

God

Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to alcoholics, and to practice these principles in all our affairs.

God

Dont forget reciting the Lords prayer and serenity prayer.

I have done my research and thats why I am clean now. If you want to say its a disease that the treatment should be treated as such and not have an addict shuffled off to have the idea you are powerless shoved down your throat and the only hope is a belief in GOD. Here is a good read that shows AA has no benefit

If you enjoy feeling sorry for yourself and your not at fault keep attending 12 steps, I personally think that once you wake up and realize you aren't powerless get motivated to make some changes you will clean up.

Keep trudging that road to happiness, its a long walk the AA way.

edit: if you want to throw books to read try reading Lance and Zachary Dodes’ The Sober Truth: Debunking the Bad Science Behind 12-Step Programs and the Rehab Industry

There are so, so, so many different ways that addiction can manifest in any given person's brain. We're learning more and more about it as time progresses. There's no one, universal explanation of the neuroscience of addiction that can explain the complex patterns of behaviours, cognitions and emotions that we experience on a daily basis. There are a few things that I could point out, though!

The nucleus accumbens is involved pretty heavily in anything that has to do with addiction. Really central in the experience of "wanting", pleasure, and the anticipation of reward.

Another favourite of mine is the orbitofrontal cortex, which is important in the perception of reward saliency, or how rewarding you think a particular behaviour will be.

The amygdala is also pretty central because it is involved in the processing of emotions (and is considered part of the limbic system), and can actually be damaged by persistent episodes of intoxication and withdrawal.

These are just very over-arching and simplified explanations. I highly recommend In The Realm of the Hungry Ghost by Gabor Mate (it's on the pirate bay!). He does a really good job of explaining these anatomical structures and so much more, in the context of his work with addicts in the downtown east side of Vancouver.

Also, if you're into it, see if you can download a first year neuroscience textbook (like this). I've found learning about the neuroscience behind addiction to be really empowering.

Whatever you do, don't start again. For your own good hear me out.

I started off with painkillers and got up to using about 1 gram of heroin per day. In other words, I was very addicted, it felt like drugs took my soul and I was never going to get it back.

I've been clean for ~4 years now, life isn't roses, but guess what, it never will be. I can promise you one thing though, life is at least 900 times better without drugs. Slavery or freedom, it's an easy choice. Ugh, just thinking about it makes me shudder (figuratively).

Never give opiates another THOUGHT, those thoughts are not that of your own. I was taught to think of them more like a transmission from your enemy, and that did the trick. Quickly enough life moved on, and the worst experience of my life thus far became merely a chapter in my past to learn from.

P.S. (OPINION): NA is useless, it is as much a disease as the drugs themselves. It is cult like, and not mentally healthy behavior. If you learn some things about psychology, you'll quickly learn the mindset that NA provides is not that of a healthy successful individual. You can do it on your own, the mind is all you need.

Reading can be more powerful than anything else if you allow it. Reading one method from one book was what changed the course of my life. That is to identify addictive thoughts as not your own, but rather a transmission from the enemy, you must identify that transmission and it's sender (your enemy) and block it out/demand that it stop. I tried to find the book for you and I couldn't, unfortunately. Point is, knowledge and effort alone are enough. For now though, do whatever works.

EDIT: I remember the book.

Rational Recovery: The New Cure for Substance Addiction
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0671528580/

This book taught me things that were a huge help in getting clean for good.

I wasn't suggesting total abstinence but I don't think it's possible to use a substance such as heroin responsibly after being addicted the first time.

How does the acid help you? I want to try one of those ayahuasca rituals without having to travel to deepest Peru. Joe Rogan did a nice podcast on this subject that got me intrigued. Shroom also covered some interesting ground in this area.

That's horrible, and I'm so sorry you and your family are dealing with this right now. I hope you can reach a new normal that you can live with sooner rather than later. I read this book over and over again when my brother died of an overdose. Super corny title, but they describe all kinds of amazing coping skills and it helped me process I was feeling. I felt like I was going crazy in the months after the funeral, and the text made me feel normal.

You are not doing anything wrong. I am about a year into recovery and went through many different avenues. I tried AA, Smart Recovery, Refuge Recovery and an outpatient program with my health insurance. So, I have gotten a taste of most of them.

Just like in all walks of life, there will be some people that try to bring you down. This is no different at the meetings you will go to. Some people will belittle you for whatever reason. There is 100% nothing wrong with being new. Try to ignore the odd lingo that some of people use, such as, "rehab virgin, normies, etc."

I suggest you also broaden your search and see if you can find any of these resources in your area:

• Smart Recovery
  
• LifeRing
  
• Refuge Recovery
  
• Out patient program with you health insurance
  
  I found more success moving between all these resources based on what I was struggling with at the time. I also suggest you pick up a couple books. I found a lot of solace looking towards philosophy. Some books that helped me were:
  
  
• Beyond Addiction
  
• The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck
  
• Refuge Recovery
  
  With recovery, just stay away from any of the social drama. Listen to the knowledgable people. And, always remember that we are all in a vulnerable place.
  
  Hope this helps!

> Any pointers on this?

My two humble recommendations;

1. https://www.amazon.com/Allen-Carrs-Easy-Stop-Smoking/dp/0615482155
   
2. Make a promise to someone that you simply cannot let down. (I promised my son 7-years ago that I would stop smoking and I did).

Alot of the ideas come from the large amount of research in the past decade in mindfulness (i.e. the secular, westernized, science oriented practice of buddhist-derived meditation), particular the benefits of mindfulness practice on addiction recovery. You can get a decent overview on the topics specific applications to addiction treatment in the psychologist couple Thomas and Beverly Bien's book "Mindful Recovery".

The stuff about the early humans I picked up from a lecture course put out by the Teaching Company called The Science of Mindfulness: A Research-Based Path to Well-Being by Harvard University pschology professor Ronald Siegel.

I’m grateful for my girlfriend, family and friends who forgive my relapses so readily and so often. They truly want to see me beat this thing.

It’s been two weeks since I’ve used- maybe a day less- and am seeing a doctor tomorrow morning about the Vivitrol shot. Should’ve done this a long time ago.

Just finished reading Everything is Horrible and Wonderful by Stephanie Wittels Wachs, Harris Wittels’ older sister. There is so much pain and devastation wreaked upon the family of an addict. I can’t even imagine the impact if I died- how that would affect others around me.

Not really something I thought about much as an addict.

Put a bunch of these in the room:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0912075023