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164 - The Unfortunate Truths of Addiction

Real Recovery Talk

Release Date: 12/31/2020

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Do you have a family member/loved one srtuggling with addiction?  In this episode of Real Recovery Talk, we sit down with Mattie Johnson, a firefighter who was told he would never ride a fire truck again. Why? Because alcohol nearly killed him. For years, Mattie lived fast — drinking hard, partying, and pushing his limits while working in the fire service. He ignored repeated warnings from doctors: “If you don’t stop drinking, you’re going to die.” The wake-up calls came in the form of multiple ICU visits, coughing up blood, and finally stage 4 liver failure. At one point,...

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Real Recovery Talk

Do you have someone in your life that struggles with addiction and you feel lost or alone? Join us here!  We are excited for this new adventure, and freaked out a little bit too! 👉 Don’t forget to subscribe for more real conversations about addiction, recovery, and hope. 📩 Questions or need help?  Reach out: [email protected]

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Do you have a family member/loved one srtuggling with addiction?  In this episode of Real Recovery Talk, we sit down with George, who recently graduated with not one — but two master’s degrees. His story is a powerful reminder that getting clean and sober isn’t the end of the road — it’s the start of an entirely new life. George opens up about his journey through addiction, the turning points that led him to sobriety, and how he’s used his recovery as a launching pad for personal and professional transformation. From rebuilding his self-worth to achieving academic excellence,...

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We received two phone calls a couple of days ago that two people we know quite well had overdosed on drugs. One was rushed to the hospital, treated, and released. However, the second person is in ICU and will most likely not make it through his overdose. As a result of these recent tragedies, Ben and I decided to talk about what happens when addicts come to a place where they overdose and signs you can look for to hopefully prevent this from happening to someone you love.

Ben Recalls His Early Days of Addiction

While addicted, his mom would warn him to make sure that his drug source was “OK” because she was worried that his source could be laced with another drug. His mom was concerned, and now, Ben feels the same. When Ben would doctor shop, he knew his opiates would be regulated through a pharmacy. 

The “Wash and Rinse Cycle” of Treatment

People will go to treatment, get clean time, and then their tolerance to drugs and alcohol drops as they haven’t had their drug of choice in their system for some time. At this point, you can get the wrong combination when you buy drugs off the street and you can easily overdose. It’s playing Russian roulette if your drug of choice is opiates and you choose to purchase them off the street.

The majority of clients coming in for treatment have dabbled in opiates, even if their main drug of choice is alcohol. It’s rare to see a client that hasn’t tried opiate drugs. The primary drugs we see people recovering from at Rock Recovery Center are heroin and opiates, although many identify as an alcoholic.

Relapsing to Drugs Via Alcohol

Alcohol is a gateway drug to other harder street drugs. We’ve seen people start to drink from an office party, then slide back into drug addiction. Whether or not alcohol has been a problem for someone in the past, if you’ve been an addict to drugs, you also need to stay away from alcohol so as not to relapse back into your old pattern.

At Rock Recovery Center, we take a humanistic approach to recovery, teaching our clients how to live independently in a sober world. We care about the success and safety of each and every one of our clients from the moment they step into our center to the future of their well-being.

Check out my new website where you can download any episode right from my site along with other useful information for those in recovery.

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Show Notes:

  • [04:41] Differences in drug addicts and alcoholics.
  • [07:19] The dangers of laced drugs in the 21st century.
  • [10:08] What it means to have a case of severe jitters when you’re addicted. 
  • [14:05] Alcoholics typically die slow, painful deaths.
  • [16:46] Relapsing into drugs starting with alcohol.
  • [18:53] The ease of covering up alcoholism as it is socially accepted and easily available.
  • [22:25] Why alcoholism needs to be recognized as a powerful drug.
  • [26:38] Addiction needs to have more resources to be combated.
  • [30:20] This circumstance has been heartbreaking and we don’t want to see another person overdose again.

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