LaCresha's Lens Focuses On...page 135...Addicts

Since July 2014 I have been working for a doctor who is a psychologist.  In the 1990’s her specialty was based on individuals who were facing gender issues, she currently specializes in addiction.  Majority of the patients which that office sees are addicts.  Where the role of secretary remains the same and I am proud I was able to establish some order in the midst of her chaos, people do remain people, but addicts are a different.

Just about every patient who came in as an addict was seeking help and assistance.  Majority of them were truly seeking help, where others were just working the system or not ready to find their way to sobriety and recovery.  One thing I was able to learn working in this environment is an addict is broken inside.  All at different levels, most don’t know why, but there within lies heartache, strain, abuse, hurt, anger, frustration and stress. 
As the first person a patient interacts with for their appointment I would see and experience just about everything.  There were patients who came in who were scared, nervous and anxious.  Once in a while a patient would come in who was a little scary and because I never knew what I could expect, I kept a letter opener at my desk for any need for self defense.
The thing about addiction comes to a path of many things.  There could be something incomplete in that person’s life.  Maybe they have experienced a level of stress, strain or abuse and to escape the monsters in their past or in their head, they turn to drugs.  Some of us cannot quite understand addiction or addictive behavior in a person.  Yet, if you look around at any given restaurant, stop light, bar any public setting and you will see addiction in action.  The advancement of technology in cell phones has taken a person who struggles with sitting alone in a restaurant in touch with the world.  Where we would once be forced to deal with the voices in our heads, or an uncomfortable ten minute wait, we now often seek the comfort of others in a cell phone.

The life of an addict can take a person down some dark and lonely places.  It is the path of trying to find an escape from the pain that is in their life, in their reality.  I do believe if someone who is an addict is given the right tools they can find themselves on the road to recovery.  However, it is that person’s individual choice and only their choice and actions which will get them to that place in their life.  When I would take a call from a parent or a spouse, one of my first questions would be, “do they know you are calling?”  Even when they said yes, I would wonder if that was the truth.
My heart goes out those who struggle with addiction.  It is not always a choice in their life which they understand.  Sometimes people get on the wrong path and they face challenges to get themselves straight.  However, I firmly believe once we turn 18, it is our place as adults to make the right decisions.   We can no longer blame our parents.  It is not right to point the finger at anyone else.  Once we are 18 we are in the position to be an adult and make adult decisions.  It then becomes our personal responsibility to take ownership of our actions and choices.

Actions have consequences, and if we make the wrong choice then we may not be happy with the end result.  However, if we are open to learning from our mistakes then we can hopefully find ourselves on a path to having peace and harmony in our lives. 
If you do struggle with addiction or know someone who does, take heart, and seek help.  You are not alone and there are good people out there who care and want to help you make better decisions in your life.