successful first time?

[sway1]

how many of you fine addicts, no offense to the weekend warriors here, but i mean serious users, were successful the first time you got clean. no relapse at all?    sway

[1234betterlife]

also, too many times to count. again, the last one was the one that i NEEDED to happen. the obsession overruled all attempts. until the obsession was removed could i truly begin to recover. it takes quite a bit of suffering to remove an obsession as strong as what we are dealing with.

[CATUF]

too many times to count.  But the last one was the one that did me the most good and put me where I needed to be to actually begin recovering instead of always trying to stop using.

CATUF
1384

[Ella789]

I have voted " I was" but have only been opiate free sense Feb. 16th and that's not hardly over a month now.  It's a big deal to me tho.  I never did picture myself quitting until I realized that I'd had enough of the drug and all the hell that came with useing it.  I can still be in pain and often go the day and night with it but I no longer suffer the emotional baggage that came with it!!  The Doctor appointments, the family, planning trips around my appts. , counting pills to make sure  I wasn't without..... ect....
Now,.... NO OPIATES... NO PROBLEMS

Ella789

[HelpinUtah]

I have not relapsed and hopefully I never will.  I put down that I haven't relapsed, but I'm just over 6 months out and although I'm fairly confident that I'm strong enough I don't know that I can honestly say without a doubt I couldn't relapse.  But, I am working DAMN hard on it everyday!  

Good post!

Hugs,
Janet

[RebelsHubby]

I have been clean for over 470 days!  But understand, I have a driving force unlike most, I am on prob. and if I do everything perfect the charges get expunged.
Great motivator!

[Totsie59]

Hey friend...You know I love you..oh wise one...I don't want to relapse...I am done...can't go back...I have done everything I know to cut off supply...

[ProdigalGirl]

I relapsed!

[avisg]

As of right now 94 % have relapsed

[kldiva70]

well i8 am only on day 10 but i cant relapse, I almost killed myself and i dont think God will give me another chance. So that is it for me. No goin back for me. not to mention i called my Pharmacists and had them put **allergy to ALL narcotics** Hows that for being done. ;)

[mojorisin64]

no i just cant type !!!!!

[avisg]

Kim is right whether we are 5 days clean or 5 years clean we have to constantly be aware that at any point we could slip just as easley .That's why recovery care has been such a major positive for me I have a support system when the really tuff times come.

[sway1]

thank you for your response. the reason that i have made it through these 3 weeks after so many failures is because i have much support in play, not just this site, although i do love it. peace. sway

[sway1]

i am at 21. did i slip and reverse my numbers? what would freud think about that?

[mojorisin64]

am i dead?? is that why im soooo tired today?? sorry bad joke,like ive said i NEVER wanted to quit,thought it was just part of who i was...figured everybody did something you know? i hope i dont relapse,i have no cravings but i do think that celexa really helps me...no need for self medicating...and i cant even remember what it was like to be high on that **** anymore...and sway i cant believe you are only at 12 days...you sound so strong like youve been clean for years...

[kim715]

I know you addressed your question to Avisg,but I just wanted to share my opinion on what that means.To me it means whether you are 2 days clean or 2 years clean,you are still an addict.Don't ever let your guard down,no matter what.Relapse can be around the corner for each and everyone of us.Triggers and temptation surround us all at one point or another.We need to have the necessary tools,that after care affords us,in order to fight them off,walk away,know how and when to reach out.Don't think it can't happen to you.Don't think because we have a large amount of time under our belt that we can control it this time.Remember once bitten that drug can and will render us powerless.Keep your guard up and always have a plan in place.

[kim715]

I could not even count the amount of times I relapsed when I was abusing the vicodin.I was taking 4 at a time 5 times a day of the extra strength vikes.Looking back now I can say,and I'm only speaking about myself,those 'attempts' to quit were half hearted at best.When the time came that I decided I wanted off the methadone,it was different.The longest I ever lasted off the vikes was maybe 4 days,if I would have stuck it out another few days the worst of the physical stuff would have been over.When I jumped off the methadone at 25 mgs it took me 6 weeks to feel better physically,but I didn't quit that time.The difference for me was absolutely after care.Going to meetings and finding this forum.I wanted to quit for a long long time,but this time around instead of just physically putting the drug down I worked on the mental part so that the first time that something went wrong in my world,I wouldn't want to just automatically pick it back up.

[sway1]

this sounds ugly, but someone once told me it don't count til you're dead. until then you're just one who hasn't relapsed yet.   these are not my words and i feel sorry for those who think like that. do you think there is truth in that?

[avisg]

so far we have 1 out of ten

[mtgoat911]

i have spent time in recovery and then relasped, but i do not look at my relaspes as a waste of time
each time i gave into the temptation to use, i learned what i can get away with and stay clean
for example, when i got clean at 18, i spent a year in a 12step program, but i believed with all my heart that i could moke pot without returning to opiate use, now i know that i am alergic to all drugs, i did the same expiriment with pot
i also spent a long time trying different matience drugs, only to find that they brought me down as fast as the other drugs
sometimes my relasped followed a resentment or came after i placed an unrealistic expectation on myself or others
and the main pattern of relaspe for me has been this,, i get to a place where i think i no longer need a recovery program, and i am high again
people who relaspe including myself, can get to feeling like we are failures, and loose hope that we can get clean and stay that way, but i now see relaspe as being a learning lesson, each time i have screwed up my life, i take a long hard look at what happened, and what i can do the next time
but relapse can be deadly, my last relaspe put me in icu
the best material i have found on relaspe and recovery is this
http://www.12step.org/references/na-basic-text/na-chapter-7.html

[sway1]

now, now. lol

[refusingbondage]

I am clean now, but this is certainly NOT my first trip to the rodeo... It is my LAST though :) :)

[mojorisin64]

well i have never touched an opiate since 12/30/08...but how can i say,i do like natural herbal things.....

[avisg]

yup mine was only three weeks but it was still a relapse and the thing I changed the 2nd time around is that I got recovery care now so far so good its been a year and a half .I would not have been able to do it without recovery care

[lostdreams]

Was clean for 2yrs before i relapsed for a week....but never the less...i relapsed!