Cocaine Addiction & Recovery Support Group
Cocaine addiction is the excessive intake of cocaine, and can result in physiological damage, lethargy, depression, or a potentially fatal overdose. Though the immediate craving to do more cocaine is strong and very common, this feeling usually subsides in most users within an hour. This craving can, as it has in many users, develop rather quickly into an intense...
Hello all. I haven't been on this site in a long time. First and foremost, I want to say how much this site helped me two years and more ago. It gave me the strength to stop enabling my addict, begin counseling for myself, and have the courage to continue on with life raising two little boys who had a father in active addiction. My addict has been in prison for nearly two years due to charges stemming from things he did while using and trying to obtain more of his drug of choice--crack. At any rate, he is likely to get a judicial release soon in which he will be heading to a six month in-house rehabilitation center. He is very nervous about getting out and rebuilding his life. He is nervous about the stigma attached to not only being an addict, but also felon. He is worried about getting a job. He is scared that he will relapse since his prison sentence came about after a relapse after 18 months clean. The prison he is in hasn't offered any programs or recovery options other than a weekly NA meeting. He has been reading the AA and NA books, but he is still anxious about staying clean when he gets out. I'm looking for any positive thoughts and advice from anyone in this group that understands or has dealt with similar circumstances. I would like to pass on your advice for him and share with him success stories from others so he knows he is not alone and can be successful in breaking the cycle of addiction. Thank you so much for any positive comments you can send our way. I'm also interested in any suggestions for our boys. They understand the basics of addiction, but we want to make this transition as easy as possible for our family. Best wishes to all on their current journeys!
So his eyes are open, and that's probably a really good thing. He knows what he's up against. I'm hoping that the rehab center is a good program, because it is there that he can learn methods to guide himself away from the pull, obtain tools to live his life with his sobriety as his top priority, and find his strengths and self awareness to help him through. I think one of the first rules of thumb, from my personal experience, is that he HAS to cut ties with the people from that part of his past. I had to put a tremendous amount of distance between me and people I love who also use. I can love them, but I can't be anywhere near them. Ever.
Having a loving family and support system is so important, so I'm really happy to hear he has you and the boys. I can't even pretend I know what you can say or do to help your sons during this time, but having an imprisoned addict for a father certainly seems to warrant some family/private counseling for them, in my opinion.
Aww I am wishing so much for you all in these coming months. I'm sure I speak on behalf of many of us in here that it is so wonderful to know that there is love out there for us, even when we feel it is so hard to love ourselves.. Bless you and best wishes to you, your partner, and your boys. I'm in your corner 100%.
He can find work being a felon. He should ask his PO if they know places that do hire felons. if he has a trade or other skill, start with the phone book and apply somewhere every day. it will keep him busy and should allow him to feel productive.
I was in prison. I have over 20 years clean with Narcotics Anonymous. My record is clean today and I retired from a job I got when my record was not clean.
He doesn't want to start alibiing out on fear. Caution is fine, but fear restrains, then we start to feel isolated and then we want to escape those feelings. He can turn it back around, and don't tell him this part, but if you allow him to feel sorry for himself over his situation,his disease will play with that like a puppy with a squeak toy. It's fine he feels remorse, but remorse doesn't pay the grocery bill.