Just asking the question could be the first sign..
What's the biggest factor standing in the way of a person getting much-needed heroin addiction treatment? The answer characterizes a major mountain in any addict's journey to recovery: admitting that one has a problem and needs treatment.
If we've discovered that to get help one needs to admit they need it, how does an addict admit they need help?
For many, their need for help is evident and undeniable. Perhaps their lives are clearly ripping apart at the seams. They may have lost a job, ruined their finances, flatlined a relationship, or ended up behind bars. These unfortunate setbacks prompt them to admit they have a problem and get the help they need. They see enrolling in one of our heroin addiction recovery centers as a way to regain control, to free themselves from drugs and alcohol, and to knit the pieces of their lives back together.
But, what can be said for the person whose addiction is much less obvious, the high-functioning addict. Do they still need help? And, if so, how do they get it?
High-Functioning Heroin Addiction, Defined
Experts now see addiction as a "chronic, relapsing brain disease", one in which a person spends an inordinate amount of their time compulsively using or seeking drugs, even when bad things happen because of their drug use. Addiction causes long-term changes in the brain and is often associated with negative or destructive behavior patterns.
It's important to clarify this definition of addiction to understand the issue of high-functioning heroin addicts not willingly admitting themselves into heroin addiction treatment programs. This definition of a "compulsive brain disease" encompasses much more than those heroin addicts whose lives are clearly falling apart.
If a person compulsively uses and seeks out heroin, they're still a heroin addict— even if they hold down promising careers, help out at home, and have a nice, loving family. High-functioning addicts have many of the same similarities as others: they are known lie, manipulate, and shift blame to take the focus off themselves.
What's worse is that high-functioning addicts often pose a greater threat—because they seem to have it together, they don't think they need help. But they do.
Heroin Addiction Treatment: Accepting Help
Regardless of how polished or respectable they seem, high-functioning addicts are still addicts. And they still need to go to heroin addiction rehab centers for help. Here's how they can finally accept the treatment they need…
Positive change starts with acceptance, which is essentially the opposite of denial. All addicts experience denial, but high-functioning addicts may be even more disillusioned because, on the surface, they seem to be doing okay.
To overcome denial, a high-functioning addict can:
Make a list of the problems in their life (e.g. strained relationships, shaky finances, thin ice at work, etc.).
See how some of the problems on their list relates to heroin use.
Release the need to be fully in control. Let go.
Acknowledge that they are helpless in resolving those problems without outside help.
Take one positive step forward (e.g. talk to someone about their drug use, research heroin addiction rehab centers go to a support group meeting, etc.).
Come to terms with your high-functioning addiction today. Realize that you can't control it on your own. You need professional help from qualified heroin addiction recovery centers. If you're searching for heroin addiction treatment programs for functioning addicts, check out Elevate today.
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