There are addiction recovery principles that are based on years of treatment, information from AA and NA, research, recovery stories, etc. — these principles relate also to good living that date back to the first time humans decided to find the most effective ways to live and interact with one another.

Don’t get me wrong — people addicted to alcohol and other drugs aren’t necessarily bad people who need to be good — they’re sick people in need of recovery. However, the collective wisdom from those who deal with addiction recovery reveals certain principles we can describe as “good” living. Healthy living, nutrition, education, openmindedness, exercise and not putting toxins in the system, enhance recovery because they help clear the head, provide energy to take necessary actions, build self-esteem and prevent dangerous mood swings.

Meditation has become an addiction recovery principle. Meditation can mean different things to different people and it deserves its own blog post, which I will write soon. The basic benefit of meditation is that it slows down the process of stimulus/reaction to get a better understanding of why we sometimes feel like pinballs in a pinball machine, manipulated by outside sources we don’t fully understand. Slowing down the process of stimulus/reaction can help us understand why we react the way we do. An example is anger — someone might find themselves in recovery becoming angry over the smallest things. This person can continue reacting and making life miserable, or the person can stop and really give serious consideration to each incident anger arises. This person can talk to someone who understands the process of recovery and human emotions so that an objective perspective is presented. The point is that the more comfortable a person is in their own skin, the better chance they have to maintain long term recovery. There’s an old saying that’s repeated at AA meetings — The same man will drink again.

If a person in addiction recovery is angry and resentful, ashamed, dishonest, unwilling to become humble and admit that alcohol or some other drug is a serious problem that has taken control, then this person will likely drink again, or relapse to their drug of choice. In the treatment field we see it over and over — a person goes through treatment and quits drinking or using drugs for one reason or another, but says that this is all they’re doing, that they’ll still go to the bars they frequented, won’t make any big changes, won’t attend a support group, won’t follow up with their physician, won’t go to counseling with their spouse — by God, they’re doing enough by getting sober!

This is a defiant attitude that is not in tune with the principles of recovery. The person might remain abstinent from alcohol for a significant period of time, but it’s what’s called “white-knuckling” — this type of abstinence drains a person mentally and emotional — it doesn’t generate positive emotions and thought — it drains energy and creates resentment. The person likely still wants to drink or use their drug of choice, although they won’t admit it and deal with it, but uses all their will power to resist the urge. The person doesn’t understand or doesn’t accept that if they work a recovery program based on sound recovery principles, they’ll begin to enjoy sobriety and feel good about themselves. There’s a big difference between using all your energy to stay away from a drink or drug and being pulled toward recovery because you’re improving and making progress and changing in ways that enhance human flourishing. This is from AddictionandRecovery.org:

Your addiction has given you the opportunity to change your life. Changing your life is what makes recovery both difficult and rewarding. Recovery is difficult because you have to change your life, and all change is difficult, even good change. Recovery is rewarding because you get the chance to change your life. Most people sleepwalk through life. They don’t think about who they are or what they want to be, and then one day they wake up and wonder why they aren’t happy.

If you use this opportunity for change, you’ll look back and think of your addiction as one of the best things that ever happened to you. People in recovery often describe themselves as grateful addicts. Why would someone be grateful to have an addiction? Because their addiction helped them find an inner peace and tranquility that most people crave. Recovery can help you change your life.

After 5 years of abstinence relapse is rare. A study followed 268 Harvard University undergraduates, and 456 non-delinquent inner-city adolescents. The men were followed every two years by questionnaire, and every 5 years by physical examination. At some point during their lives, 55 (21%) of the college men and 150 (33%) of the inner-city men met the criteria for alcohol addiction.The study concluded that after 5 years of abstinence relapse is rare.(3)

The root cause of addiction doesn’t relate to whether a person is good or happy , but recovery does become more likely to last if a person is happy, healthy and growing emotionally, intellectually, psychologically and spiritually. Addiction recovery principles are based on what we’ve seen work — it’s hard to argue with that.