This Basic Challenge

It’s not hard to see that alcohol damages the brain—look no further than the stereotypical “drunk person.” They stumble, unable to coordinate their body. Their speech is slurred, and they can’t exercise the same kind of judgment that they could sober. They’re more likely to engaged in violence or unprotected/unwanted sexual activity. To be concise: their brains aren’t working to the best of their ability. Normally, drunkenness wears off and the brain is not significantly worse for it, but it’s a different story if the drinker is an alcoholic.

Prioritization Awareness  on the Effects of Abuse

Excessive alcohol consumption may cause serious damage to a person’s brain, even when they aren’t acutely drunk. Judgment, memory, and learning can be seriously impaired if someone has a habit of regular alcohol abuse. Younger adults, whose brains are still developing, are at an increased risk of developing problems with learning and memory from alcohol abuse. Recovering alcoholics retain this brain deficiencies, if their previous drinking habits were severe enough to cause them. This means that their ability to recall events and create new memories will still be suboptimal, even though they’re sober, and their decision-making skills won’t be back up to their old standard. This can be a recipe for a difficult time in recovery, but there’s several things that give recovering alcoholics hope.

The Ridge is a treatment center with a very successful recovery rate near Mason, Ohio. Take one step toward gaining your life back by contacting us.

Forward Movement

The first is that there is no shortage of support and help for those working to overcome alcoholism. AA, aftercare, and outpatient care can all help a recovering alcoholic stay committed to health and find ways to work past the damage that drinking has done to their brains.

The second, and more dramatic findings show that many studies suggest that long-term abstinence from alcohol can actually see that brain damage repair itself! The linked study examined a group of recovering alcoholics who were in recovery for an average of 6.7 years. Compared to a control group of similarly-aged adults who had never been addicted to alcohol, both groups were indistinguishable in most cognitive abilities with the exception of spatial processing.

Recovery – A life-long Commitment Return and Stay with Your True Self

This means that alcoholics who undergo alcohol abuse rehab and get into recovery can look forward to a cognitive rebuilding process that will let them one day reclaim a life of responsibility, sensible judgment, and sound critical thinking skills. That is—with enough commitment to health and recovery, a sober alcoholic can be mentally capable of a healthy career, fulfilling social life, and loving family relationships. Although the mental recovery isn’t complete, it’s significant, and provides a helpful goal for recovering alcoholics to strive towards as they are treated in alcohol abuse rehab.

At The Ridge’s drug and alcohol abuse rehab center, we treat a lot of professionals, like doctors, lawyers, or business people. These people have worked their entire lives to get where they are, and they are determined not to lose their lives to addiction. Their professions and status are huge motivators for them to get back to sobriety before addiction takes them away. As a result, we’ve noticed that these patients are exceptionally good at getting into recovery and staying there. However, not everyone has as strong a structure in their life to work toward regaining. Young adults struggling with drug addiction often find it difficult to “rebuild a life” if there was no strong structure in their lives to begin with.

One of the most important things a person can do when in recovery is to stay active and engaged. If a recovering addict is spending their time alone, doing nothing but thinking to themselves, they will very likely revert to focusing on drugs or alcohol. After all, an addict or alcoholic spends all of their time focused on their desired substance. If a recovering addict doesn’t work to pay attention to other activities, it’s all too easy to fall back on the habit that used to constantly occupy their mind. Professionals can immerse themselves in their work or their family with newfound appreciation, knowing how easily they could have been lost. But a high school or college student who becomes addicted to heroin doesn’t have the same support structure after young adult drug treatment. Young families come from Findlay, Ohio.

The Ridge encourages family participation during patient recovery and we aim to educate loved ones on the mindset of an addict. To learn more, contact us.

Many young adults don’t have jobs they are passionate about, and have few obligations in their life aside from school. Their adult lives are just starting, and therefore they haven’t had the time to build up a strong foundation the same way a doctor or lawyer has. As a result, young adult drug treatment needs to be more comprehensive than treatment for an adult professional to achieve the same level of long-term sobriety.

A young adult’s family is especially essential in helping them develop a structure. A family can help the recovering addict get a job, find a hobby, or some other method of keeping their mind occupied and off of relapse. That’s why The Ridge feels that family education is such an important part of drug or alcohol abuse rehab. A family is a person’s biggest support system, and if it’s doing its job, it can make a recovering addict’s chances of continued sobriety much higher.

When it comes to addiction, there are many generalizations that are misconstrued as truths. Here are a few more common myths about the nature of recovery as well as drug and alcohol abuse rehab.  Click here for Part 1.

5. Addicts have to hit rock bottom before treating them.

We’ve all heard the term “rock bottom.” It means the lowest an addict can sink in their life before they have no choice but to admit their problem and seek help. To an addict’s friends and family, it’s a convenient thing to believe. Confronting an addict and trying to get them into treatment is stressful and difficult thing. To rationalize not having to do this, they may think “they won’t get serious about treatment unless they choose it themselves. If we make them get treatment, they’ll just be resentful.” Still others think “this person’s addiction has really hurt me. I need to wait until it hurts them a lot, too, so they know just how unacceptable addiction is.”

These ways of thinking are selfish and harmful to an addicted loved one. Even if an addict knows that their addiction is a terrible disease they have to get rid of, they are unlikely to seek treatment. Why? Addiction itself means that a person is compelled to seek drugs or alcohol at the expense of everything else in their life. They no longer have control of their life, instead living entirely in service of their addiction. Seeking treatment requires a truly exceptional amount of willpower in this state, so much so that if it happens it should be considered miraculous. Interventions can work—the interventionists The Ridge partners with get their clients into treatment in 95% of their interventions.

Waiting for rock bottom to “teach the addict a lesson” doesn’t work either. They know how destructive their addiction is. What point is there in waiting for your loved one to destroy their life when you could get them help earlier? There’s always the grim truth that they might not have a rock bottom—too many addicts end up dead before they reach it.

Waiting until an addict loses everything doesn’t make recovery any easier – Dublin, Ohio. They feel powerless in their situation and the only solution is immediate treatment. Contact us now to learn about how we can help.

6. Addicts need to be punished.

Addiction doesn’t just hurt an addict, it hurts the people who love them. It’s painful to see a loved one fall to addiction. The person you loved starts changing, with everything they used to be falling away until the only thing left is a person who will do whatever it takes to consume more self-destructive drugs or alcohol. And an addict will do anything, including lie to and steal from people who love and trust them. A breach of trust like this can feel like a brutal, devastating betrayal. With all the pain an addicted loved one can cause, it’s easy to understand why some would want them to be punished for what they did.

As attractive as this is to think, it’s ultimately harmful and counter-intuitive. An addict has been punished enough by their disease. Most addicts are depressed and ashamed at their inability to control themselves. Punishment and shaming will only plunge them deeper into depression and self-hate. The best thing to do is to offer honesty and support to your addicted loved ones.

7. Treatment is a miserable, unpleasant experience.

Drug and alcohol abuse rehab isn’t exactly the most attractive prospect to most people. Many people expect rehabilitation to be like a hospital—cold, clinical, plain, with a subpar cafeteria and bedrooms like a college dorm. There once was a time this was the case, but addictionologists have since realized that the most cooperative patients are the ones who are comfortable, cared for, and actually having a good time. That’s why The Ridge is full of amenities to help our patients have the best recovery experience they can. We offer two on-staff chefs who prepare healthy meals daily, a gorgeous estate house, 51 beautiful acres, and plenty of recreational opportunities.  The Ridge’s family group is a key success factor as well. Beating addiction is hard work, and it takes a lot out of a person. It makes sense that their treatment center should offer as much comfort as possible to counteract that.

Drug and alcohol addiction may be one of the most misunderstood diseases out there. Most people who haven’t experienced it have an incorrect view of what addiction is, how it comes to be, and what it does to a person. We at The Ridge, a premier drug and alcohol abuse rehab center, believe that educating addicts and their loved ones about addiction is one of the best ways to help foster understanding, support, and recovery, so we rounded up some of the most common myths about addiction so we could help explain them.

Myth #1: Addiction is the sign of a weak person.

Many people think that getting hooked on a drug or on alcohol means that the addicted person is weak-willed or irresponsible. People who think this imagine that one gets addicted to drug by choosing to take large amounts of drugs without worrying about the consequences. This isn’t true. Many people get hooked on opiates or benzodiazepines prescribed to them by their doctors. Others are genetically predisposed to addiction and find themselves addicted after using the same amount of a substance as friends who do so without becoming addicted.

Becoming an addict isn’t a matter of weakness. It is a disease – Springfield, Ohio. The Ridge treats this disease with as much care as one would a physical illness. Contact us to learn more.

Myth #2: Addicts could recover if they just chose to stop.

People who aren’t addicted don’t always understand the compulsion that comes with addiction. They think “I can stop drinking whenever I want to. An alcoholic ought to be able to do the same. If they can’t, it’s because they aren’t as strong as me.” To the layman, it seems obvious when someone’s addiction is destroying their life. They might think “it’s so obvious how destructive their drug or alcohol use is. Why don’t they just stop?” The thing is, an addict probably knows exactly how much their addiction is ruining their life. However, once someone becomes addicted, they can’t choose to stop. Addiction alters the brain so that not taking the drug or drinking alcohol brings about nigh-unbearable withdrawal symptoms, and makes it so they are unable to feel pleasure without the drug.

Myth #3: One day, an addict will be able to safely drink or take drugs in moderation.

Some people assume that once someone is treated, detoxified, and off of drugs for a while, that means that addiction has been cured. However, anyone who has struggled with addiction knows that this isn’t the case. Addiction is never “cured,” the addict simply goes into recovery, a state that they have to work to maintain every day. Their brain is still vulnerable to the mood-altering effects of drugs or alcohol, and using them will lead to a relapse almost every time. For the best chance of lasting sobriety, recovering addicts should stay active in support groups and aftercare, and know that they should never even attempt to consume drugs or alcohol in any quantity.

Myth #4: You need to be Christian to do a 12-Step Program

Some people are wary of 12-step programs offered in drug or alcohol abuse rehab because they talk about a “higher power.” For non-believing patients, they may worry that the program will force them to feign belief in a deity. In reality, 12-step programs don’t require being part of any belief system. While many equate the “higher power” mentioned in the program with a deity, the important thing is that the addict realizes that they are not the highest power and they need help to heal themselves. Even if the “higher power” is the addict’s collective friends and family, admitting that help is necessary for recovery is what really matters.

Of all addictive drugs, few, if any, are more commonly consumed than alcohol. Every grocery store and restaurants serve it, bars promote it in every city and town, ads for it play during every sporting event. Few people correctly recognize alcohol as an addictive substance in the same league as cocaine and heroin. Detox from alcohol can be just as difficult an experience. This oversight is dangerous and can lead to disaster – Lexington, Kentucky.

    It’s easy to forget alcohol’s addictive nature if you don’t see it often. Many drinkers consume alcohol socially and in responsible amounts. Seeing this behavior can lull a person into thinking alcohol isn’t dangerous—but this is not the case. People who regularly drink to relax after a hard day or to socialize with friends run the risk of becoming dependent on alcohol to do these things. The risks are hugely magnified if a person has a history of alcoholism in their family.

    The first sign of a developing alcohol addiction is a growing tolerance to alcohol. If someone notices they need to drink significantly more alcohol to feel the same effects, this is a grim warning sign that one should take very seriously. Continuing to drink after noticing an increased tolerance will lead to the start of withdrawal symptoms. Going too long without a drink will make a user involuntarily shake, feel nauseous, and even have depressive episodes. As the person continues to drink, these symptoms will only intensify.

    Like all addictions, eventually, alcoholism will take control of the user’s life. The main focus of their waking hours will be the acquisition and consumption of more alcohol, even if this means damaging their personal and professional lives. Alcohol, in particular, has a profound effect on a drinker’s behavior, making it especially likely to lead to a broken relationship and lost jobs, often causing irreversible trauma in those areas.

    Excessive long-term drinking causes serious health damage. In addition to damaging the liver and brain, alcohol contributes to heart failure and the formation of some cancers. Alcohol causes insomnia, leading to chronic fatigue. As if that weren’t enough, alcoholic drinks are often extremely high in calories, so that excessive drinking will cause weight gain, further ruining the addict’s health.

    Alcoholics trying to quit will have to contend with alcohol’s severe and dangerous withdrawal symptoms. A heavily addicted alcoholic can have symptoms like seizures and hallucinations if they stop drinking. There are cases where these symptoms have been dramatic enough to cause death. To make matters worse, there is a phenomenon associated with alcoholism called “kindling”—this means that withdrawal symptoms will become more serious and more painful for each withdrawal process, which makes relapse an especially dangerous proposition.

After detox from alcohol, the journey is not over. Consider the Ridge for residential outpatient treatment.

    Since the withdrawal process of alcohol is so brutal, it’s a good idea to seek treatment for alcoholism rather than try to quit cold turkey. Alcoholism is a serious addiction like any other, but it takes extra vigilance to stay sober—after all, they don’t sell heroin or cocaine at the corner store! After detoxification, rehabilitation is necessary to get into recovery and learn how to live sober. After residential treatment from facilities like The Ridge, outpatient care and aftercare programs like AA offer continuing support to a recovering alcoholic, and will help them to stay on the path of health and sobriety. Alcoholism is a serious illness, but with commitment and education, a person can learn to live without drinking.

Breaking free of alcoholism is hard work.  At any alcohol abuse treatment center, one would hear that it takes constant vigilance to stay sober. It’s all very serious business, so it can be easy to overlook how recovery affects some of the simplest yet most important parts of our lives: our friendships. People with addiction make the substance the focal point of their lives, so when they have removed the substance, it’s difficult for them to know how to properly socialize without it. When the substance is alcohol, it can seem especially daunting considering the ubiquity of beers, liquor, and bars on the social scene. Don’t worry, though, because making friends and keeping old ones as a newly-sober person isn’t as hard as you think!

It’s understandable to be nervous in social situations after undergoing treatment. After spending so much time focused on recovery, talking with other addicted people, and making sobriety such a major part of your life and your interactions with others, you can get rusty when it comes to interacting with people who don’t have substance abuse problems. Going to a party with a group of people without addictions can be a scary thought when you’re used to talking to fellow addicts in 12-step programs. It doesn’t have to be, though. Non-addicts know that it’s easy to socialize and have fun without substance. Be upfront about your limits, so that any friends you spend time with know what kinds of activities are and are not safe for you. It’s better to be honest and open about what is off-limits than risk friends growing resentful of having to walk on eggshells because of your addiction.

As a drug and alcohol abuse treatment center, our treatment program builds and supports daily methods for addiction management. Click here to learn more.

If you find yourself thinking that all your favorite old activities revolve around drinking, the solution is simple: find new things to do! Go appreciate some culture by seeing a play or movie, check out a new band at a local concert, or join an amateur sports team. Most cities have vibrant communities centered around most hobbies, so if there’s something you’ve always wanted to try, recovery is the perfect time to do it. You’ll find something enjoyable to occupy yourself while meeting a new group of friends whose friendship isn’t based around drugs or alcohol.

Consider making your preferred meeting place or hangout spot a coffee shop instead of a bar. Since coffee shops are popular spots regardless, meeting there offers a great way to avoid alcohol in social situations. If you find that friends are unhappy with having to avoid alcohol during time spent with you, it could be a sign that a relationship with them is a liability to your recovery. Friendships should be comfortable, enriching experiences, not stressful ones full of pressure and discomfort.

Of course, there are always the people at your 12-step meetings if you’re looking for new friends as a sober person. You can be sure that they’ll be sensitive to your need for sobriety and that you’ll have something in common!

When choosing the best treatment option for someone struggling with addiction, there are lots of variables to consider: residential or outpatient? Location? Treatment philosophy? Recovery rate? Price? There’s another often-overlooked facet, though: size. Different drug and alcohol rehab facilities have different capacities, from less than a dozen to over one hundred patients at once. How can you tell which size of rehab facility best suits your needs?

Larger facilities have the capacity to hold up to (and sometimes more than) a hundred patients simultaneously. These centers often look very similar to hospitals or even college dormitories or campuses. They can have deeper medical staffs with entire detox wings. Size can be an asset. Group therapy is easy to organize with the massive client base. There is less chance of having to be on a waiting list, since there are more beds to fill. Food is generally served in cafeterias with buffet lines. Large facilities often have amenities on-site like a gym or lecture hall. This opens up a wide variety of possible activities for a patient in a center like this, and allows the center to schedule inspirational or motivational speakers to give speeches to the patients. Also, these centers can be more economical than facilities with fewer beds, although of course there are exceptions.

However, because of the sheer volume of patients at a large residential facility, it’s difficult to provide very focused treatment nor have a high staff to patient ratio. The setting might also seem uncomfortable to patients unused to small, dorm- or hospital-like rooms or an institutional way of living. Smaller facilities like The Ridge offer very few beds—only 14 in The Ridge’s case.

Addiction patients should not feel like they’re passing through an assembly line during treatment. Each patient at The Ridge receives focused attention. For more about us and our program click here.

Because the staff-to-patient ratio is much higher than in a larger center, patients receive intensely focused care and have special needs addressed. Often the facility is comfortably furnished like a lavish home. This level of familiarity and comfort with the setting helps patients not feel tense or afraid about treatment. Because the client base is so small and so concentrated, the patients often feel as if they’re living as a family. They form bonds of support and trust between each other that can be very helpful in recovery. Essentially, a patient at a smaller facility feels more like they personally matter and are receiving care for them as opposed to being a cog in a treatment machine.

Smaller drug and alcohol abuse rehab facilities may represent a higher investment, but The Ridge feels the quality of care makes that investment well worthwhile. The low census allows us to not only closely focus treatment, but also to provide recreation, exercise and chef-plated meals to restore nutrition.  We feel this premium care approach helps to boost our recovery rates.  Along with our Joint Commission accreditation, we are now certified by various licensing board assistance groups to treat licensed professionals, including doctors, dentists, nurses and lawyers.