Drug addiction

tom_olech

Hey guys,

My background:

My story started 3 years ago when i was a gym junkie and in great shape. But one day i went into the gym really pissed off and didnt have a spotter when i was doing the dumbbell shoulder press; one the weights fell backwards and took my arm with it. I ended up nearly dislocating my shoulder and the sprain was so bad that my shoulder literally appeared to shift forward by an inch (due to weakened ligaments). So from that i lost my main means of coping with stress....

4 months after I hurt myslef my dad was diagnosed with cancer (dont worry, he is alive and well and is in remission now); I couldnt cope and started using crystal meth every few days to forget about all my problems. 6 months after my dad was diagnosed, my mom was diagnosed with cancer too and needed major surgery (dont worry, she also survived and is in remission). Right around the time of her returning from the hospital, my addiction to crystal meth spiralled out of control...

I spent the next year if my life locked in my room sketching out and doing nothing constructive. I had to temporarily leave university because i wouldnt even attempt to do the work or attend classes; i didnt want the world to see me. Before i knew it, about a year had gone by and all i had to show for it was debt and poor health....so i came clean to my family and quit cold turkey.

So now im sober (10 months baby, YA!), back in university and have gained alittle over 100 ibs since i hurt myself 3 years ago. Im looking to rebuild my body into the shape it was once in, but i find that when i eat right and exercise, i tend to get really runned down and then my drug cravings strike with a vengence...

Does anyone out there have a similar problem? And do you have any tips or tricks to help you get through the rough patches?

Im sick of my mind running in circles around drugs when i have NO intention of going back to them....

DeeDee2211

I don't have any tips for you, I just wanted to say congrats on being clean for 10 months, you should be very very proud of yourself!!!!!!!!

JacksMom12

I am 23 months clean. I gained 100 lbs also, from getting clean and then getting pregnant only after being 1 month clean. Thank god for my son, he is what keeps me strong every day. I am now at my goal weight, and still working on my body composition. I am not as thin as when I was using (98 lbs) because that's just plain gross, but I'm happily maintaining at a healthy 116-120.

Congrats on 10 months clean, that is an awesome accomplishment! You can totally achieve your goals, I have no doubt.

Oh, and I just built up very slowly... And I use 5 hour energy shots pre workout and coffee to get me through the days. It took me about 12-18 months before my mind didn't go straight to craving drugs every time I got tired or run down. When my son was a newborn and up all night I DREAMED about using just to get through the sleepless times. Caffeine was my friend. Hang in there, soon enough you'll feel back to normal. They told me that it takes up to 18 months for the body to completely wean physiologically, as far as the fatigue goes.

knowak82

First off, Congrats on getting clean and staying there...that is a tremendous accomplishment! :flowerforyou:

Also, I'm glad to hear that your parents are doing well and in remission!

Weight loss is a journey and a tough one to take!!! I'd like to recommend to you the Eat More To Weigh Less group here on MFP. If you haven't checked it out, you really should! It is a great family of supporters, and it has taught me so much about how to fuel my body and lose weight the right way...and the best thing is, I'm eating more than I ever have while trying to lose weight, and it's working great!!!

Please come and check us out, and feel free to send me a friend request if you'd like!!!

Good luck on your journey!!!

kaydensmom12

Congrats on sobriety and wanting to make a change in your health:)

I am a recovering alcohol/drug/ shooting heroin addict, it was 3 years on July 2nd of this year. I had this disease from the very young age of 12, so drugs/alcohol was literally the only way that I knew to cope with stress. About 2 months after I quit doing heroin I became pregnant and used food as my drug, I gained 75lbs during my pregnancy, I also quit smoking during that time so I ate even more. I just kept eating and eating, and stayed 170lbs after I had my son, and I was 120 before having him. So yes at this point I was off of drugs, still craving them like crazy, and using food as my drug. So I was healthier but not eating healthy at all, so still poisoning my body.

After he was a year old I decided that I needed to lose weight, so I stopped drinking pepsi, that I would drink 6-8 times a day. It was also very difficult, but I did it, and it has been over a year now without it. I started changing small things at a time, and what started off as a diet became a lifestyle change. Now I am not only eating healthy to stay at a healthy weight, but to create a healthy body and healthy future. I ended up losing 40lbs, it took me a year because I it took me a long time to make the small, permanent changes in my diet. We came off of drugs, we can come off of food. You just have to realize that food is your comfort and create another way to cope when you are feeling that stress/cravings. I personally exercise, it really improves my mood and helps with cravings. You could try going to meetings if you are into NA, calling a friend, drawing, writing, painting, planting. Just make a list of things to do when you are very stressed out instead of eating/doing drugs, you will have to individualize it for yourself, somethings that you like to do that will calm you down.

Us drug addicts tend to have an addicting personality and replace one drug for another often, whether its weed, cigarettes, alcohol, food, caffeine. My advice is to recognize this and to break the cycle by finding other ways to cope, other than drugs/food, when you are stressed out. You must find things that you like to do that are not unhealthy for you, and not feeding into the cycle.

Start changing small things in your diet, and plan to not be on a diet, but make a permanent lifestyle change that you will not quit once you lose the weight. As for the exercising making the cravings worse, do not exercise crazily then. Do not exercise daily, do it 3 times a week, any more can make it seem like a job. If it is exhausting you make sure you are getting enough Vitamin C/iron/calcium/protein, if you do not have enough then it can make you even more tired than normal. I still go through rough patches, and now I can feel them coming on for about a month previously, so that is when I make an appointment with my counselor. I am also on an antidepressant, not sure if you are on one or not, or need to be, but check on it to see if you do because that can make a difference.

thats all that I have based on my experience, hope I helped. Congrats on the sobriety, it really is quite an accomplishment!

Giddyduck

I am not an addict however I have loved one so I can recognize and truly appreciate the accomplishment. Congrats on your sobriety. I will agree with something the previous poster said...addicts have an addictive personality and do tend to replace it with something else. I saw this in my past relationship and my significant other had been sober for 10 years, he continues to be sober and we are friends, just no longer together. Keep it up. One day at a time. Shana

davert123

my only suggestion for anyone addicted is NA/AA/CA/OA. 12 step programmes work and work for the long term, not just to kick the habit but to re-factor lives :-)

33neenaj

Its a continual process. Everyday is going to be a struggle. Keep yourself occupied with something you enjoy to keep from thinking about it so much.