Have you ever made a big decision based on the advice of someone else only to discover that your advisor was wrong? It is the kind of thing that can happen to most anyone. Someone we trust tells us something that sounds reasonable, and we base our actions on their thoughts and ideas. If they have the facts wrong, however, the results can be less than ideal.
And that is true even if the person giving the advice really and truly believes what they have told you. Many incorrect ideas are floating out there in the world and are accepted by a lot of well-meaning people.
Most of the time, fortunately, taking a bit of bad advice might be a painful learning experience but is far from catastrophic. But there are certainly exceptions.
Take, for example, bad information about sobriety and recovery. For a person struggling with a substance use disorder, bad advice can have extremely negative consequences. That is why it is so important to make sure you have accurate information when you are making decisions about how best to overcome your struggles with drugs or alcohol.
This blog post is the first in a series devoted to debunking some myths and misinformation so that you can make quality decisions that help you reclaim your sobriety and your life. In this entry, we want to tackle two ideas that can keep a person from seeking out the help they need. That delay in getting treatment can lead to all kinds of undesirable outcomes.
Incorrect Info: Sobriety is All About Willpower, Character, and Faith
This particular nugget of misinformation is unfortunately quite prevalent. Many people believe—and insist on suggesting to others—that substance use disorders are evidence of a failure of a person’s willpower, their character, their faith, or some combination of these things.
The idea here is that a person who is using drugs or alcohol should be able to change the direction of their life either by resolutely refusing to keep ingesting substances or by putting their trust in a higher power that can free them from addiction. This argument is grounded in the idea that a substance use disorder is, first and foremost, a moral failing. But that isn’t true at all.
A substance use disorder is a brain disease that is manageable but not curable. Like any other disease, it requires treatment. While it is certainly true that ongoing sobriety can be supported by personal resolve and by connecting with your personal spirituality, it is not true that these are sufficient approaches to getting and staying sober.
Instead, a person struggling with drugs or alcohol needs to seek out treatment to get their recovery underway.
Incorrect Info: Legal Drugs Do Not Lead to Addiction
The incorrect idea should be easily countered. After all, alcohol is legal, and we know beyond a shadow of a doubt that it can lead to the development of a substance use disorder. We also know that people under the influence of alcohol often make poor decisions that can lead to irreparable harm to themselves and to others.
Still and all, it can be tempting to consider “legal” a synonym for “safe.” That kind of thinking can, for example, lead to the misuse of a prescription drug that is, in fact, safe—but only when used exactly as directed by a physician or pharmacist. Many people find themselves addicted to prescription drugs after deciding it was “safe” to take them in ways or amounts other than was intended.
Similarly, the increasing legalization of marijuana has lent credence to the idea that the drug is safe. But that isn’t necessarily true for all users of the drug.
Substance use disorders do not check the legality of a drug before developing—and that is important to remember.
We Are Just Getting Started
As we noted above, this blog post is the first in a series that will tackle several more incorrect ideas about substance use disorders and recovery. We want The Farley Center to be a trusted source of truth around these issues because making good decisions based on good information is vitally important when it comes to addressing a substance use disorder.
Your Journey Toward Sobriety Begins with Us
Located in Williamsburg, Virginia, The Farley Center provides personalized treatment plans for each person we serve. We know that there are no cookie-cutter solutions when it comes to substance use disorder treatment, and so we craft a plan that meets your physical, emotional, and psychological needs.
The Farley Center offers robust treatment programs, including inpatient, outpatient, and virtual options. Treatment includes group and individual therapy, relapse prevention strategies and support, and 12-Step programming. We also provide specialized options for families, Veterans, and alumni of our treatment programs.
