In the past 7 years, I have had experience with many people in Recovery and can say that I see two basic pathways to recovery: Determination and Surrender.

determination

Determination is a path that is far harder to take than Surrender, but interestingly many people without addiction seem to think that Determination is the way everyone should naturally use. “Just quit,” they may say. Talk to someone who has wrestled with smoking cigarettes for years trying approach after approach to quit, who has chosen the path of Determination over and over again to no avail. They will assure you, I think, that it is not easy to do. The way of Determination does, however, work for some people and for some issues, and for those who are interested in learning and applying this route, I have a tried and tested approach. As I said, it is harder, but it is doable.

Surrender

The path of Surrender is one that seems to defy logic – it is one that I would call magical or miraculous in that no one is really sure how it works, though it does. This path is taken when a person recognizes that an addiction has more power than they do over their behavior, and in reaction to this they literally give the task of fighting it over to their higher power. Strangely enough, this act of surrendering works and far, far more people are able to do it successfully than are able to do the path of Determination. In Recovery, some people will do the 12 steps. I see many of the steps beyond the ones I have alluded to as contributing to dealing with Triggers of Addiction. For instance, the moral inventory attacks shame directly. However, there are more triggers of addiction than shame. Even someone who is in a Recovery program will likely need to process and work through issues such as Trauma, Anxiety, Depression, old woundings and meaningful habits. These are subjects that Counseling can help with in ways that Peers are unable to do, making Counseling, for some people, a critical element of their Recovery journey.

Addiction Triggers

Whether you take the path of Determination or that of Surrender, or if you have a style that is all your own, there are likely events, circumstances, mental states or people in your past that seem to make you want to use when you think about them or have experience with them. Many addiction triggers are mental health concerns like Trauma (PTSD), Depression or Anxiety which are best helped by a trained professional. As well as working with a person to do that initial step in Recovery work of laying their addiction down, I work with people to help resolve these triggers of addiction.

Methods

As well as relying on my experience in the field and with the 12 step programs, I draw on Motivational Interviewing, Cost/Benefit Analysis, Person Centered, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Exposure and Response Prevention, Existential and Psychodynamic therapy approaches. I can also work from a Christian and Biblical perspective if a client requests this.