stopping substance abuse

[Guest guest]

Hi all,

I hope someone can give me some help with this problem.

I have a friend who has been using drugs for a couple of years and now wants

to quit. She has done some hard drugs and tons of marijuana. She has also

used a little alcohol, but marijuana is the big thing with her.

She also struggles with depression and major anxiety.

She wants to stop using the marijuana, but when she stops, she feels unable

to deal with her life. She becomes so depressed that she goes back out for

more pot.

Her dit is terrible. I went grocery shopping with her a couple of weeks ago

and she bought more sweets than food. And what food she buys tends to be

" fast " prepackaged.

I am encouraging her to change her diet, but I think that, possibly, at this

point she may only be able to change one thing at a time. So my question is,

are there herbs or herbal formulas which will help her to get through the

difficulties of giving up the drugs? Both the craving and the extreme

anxiety?

Any ideas will be much appreciated.

Terri Lynne

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

I thought you might be able to help me, and I look forward to any information you can share with me.

My friend is married and has four children. She does mostly pot, almost exclusively,, although she has done other things from time to time.

I guess that when she is using pot, she does it every day from morning to night.

She isn't working. She is having a hard time being a mom, and couldn't handle being both a mom and a breadwinner. Luckily, her husband makes good money, so she sin't on the streets.

TerriLynne

From:

Hi Terri

I don't have a moment to speak to this in depth right now, but having been in that spot, feel I have something to say. I will get back to you hopefully later tonight to tomarrow morning. Feel free to email me off line if you like.

Some quick questions off the cuff: what drugs, how often, how taken. Single or with someone? Kids? Working?

As I said, I will post more later. PLEASE DON'T LET ME FORGET!!!

Terri Lynne Pomeroy <terri_lynne@...> wrote:

Hi all,I hope someone can give me some help with this problem.I have a friend who has been using drugs for a couple of years and now wants to quit. She has done some hard drugs and tons of marijuana. She has also used a little alcohol, but marijuana is the big thing with her.She also struggles with depression and major anxiety.She wants to stop using the marijuana, but when she stops, she feels unable to deal with her life. She becomes so depressed that she goes back out for more pot.Her dit is terrible. I went grocery shopping with her a couple of weeks ago and she bought more sweets than food. And what food she buys tends to be "fast" prepackaged.I am encouraging her to change her diet, but I think that, possibly, at this point she may only be able to change one thing at a time. So my question is, are there herbs or herbal formulas which will help her to get through the difficulties of giving up the drugs? Both the craving and the extreme anxiety?Any ideas will be much appreciated.Terri Lynne

__________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

Terri,

I guess you know a total cleanse is in order here... Have her start with a 3 day...

Lobelia comes to mind first.. See message 5222 for more info on it.

SuziTerri Lynne Pomeroy <terri_lynne@...> wrote:

Hi all,I hope someone can give me some help with this problem.I have a friend who has been using drugs for a couple of years and now wants to quit. She has done some hard drugs and tons of marijuana. She has also used a little alcohol, but marijuana is the big thing with her.She also struggles with depression and major anxiety.She wants to stop using the marijuana, but when she stops, she feels unable to deal with her life. She becomes so depressed that she goes back out for more pot.Her dit is terrible. I went grocery shopping with her a couple of weeks ago and she bought more sweets than food. And what food she buys tends to be "fast" prepackaged.I am encouraging her to change her diet, but I think that, possibly, at this point she may only be able to change one thing at a time. So my question is, are there

herbs or herbal formulas which will help her to get through the difficulties of giving up the drugs? Both the craving and the extreme anxiety?Any ideas will be much appreciated.Terri Lynne

[Guest guest]

Terri Lynne Pomeroy wrote:

> Hi ,

> I thought you might be able to help me, and I look forward to any

> information you can share with me.

>

> My friend is married and has four children. She does mostly pot,

> almost exclusively,, although she has done other things from time to

> time.

>

> I guess that when she is using pot, she does it every day from morning

> to night.

>

> She isn't working. She is having a hard time being a mom, and couldn't

> handle being both a mom and a breadwinner. Luckily, her husband makes

> good money, so she sin't on the streets.

>

> TerriLynne

I would reccomend the following:

1)Locate local AA and/or NA support groups, goto 90 meeting in 90 days,

or as many as possible.

2)get at least 2 temporary (same gender) sponsors immediately find

permanant sponsors as time progressess & utilize them whenever you need to.

3)Stay out of slippery places and away from slippery people.

The sponsors and group members can fill in the rest.

-

Peace!!

-

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[Guest guest]

Bach remedies were developed to deal with the emotional component of

illness. That is where they do their work. Here's a link to learn

more about them. You can get them at most health food stores.

http://www.bachshop.com/customer/home.php

For the herbs the measurement is by weight. If you dont have them

already when you buy them they are sold by weight so you can just

divide each into equal poartions depending on the amout you buy.

As far as a scale goes you can get a kitchen scale at most department

stores. I like to cruise my local Goodwill and I see them there. I

grabbed one for the unbelievably low price of $.99. The castor oil

pack is something just seemed to be good for her as well because it

seemed that it would help her physically and emotionally.

Waymon

[Guest guest]

Terri Lynne Pomeroy wrote:

> Hi Waymon,

> I really appreciate your messages, and I have lots of questions.

>

> What are the bach remedies and where can I find them?

>

> For your suggested formula, is 1/2 ounce by weight or volume? If it is

> by weight, do you have any idea what the volumes would be? I don't

> have a kitchen scale or any way to weigh them.

>

> Not sure about the castor oil pack. I don't know if she will do it.

> But I'll see.

>

> Terri Lynne

>

==========================

Hi Terri Lynne,

Waymon gave you some really good adivce here. The castor oil packs will

only do her good and will help speed up the removal of the toxins that

are in her liver from all the drugs. I do believe the above herbal

formula would be by weight. I also believe that you could go by volume

and it would be alright in this instance. Just go equal parts.

Bach remedies are flower essences and are truly wonderful. They work and

they work very well. Try your HFS or check online. They should not be

too difficult to locate.

She really needs to change her diet badly. She will have a very hard

time climbing out of the drug rut if she doesn't. Her body is starving

for nutrients. Lots of fresh vegetables and fruits would be in order.

Lots of fresh vegetable juice and fruit juices too. She needs to stay

away from anything processed period.

Hot epsom salt baths will help her detox. A total body cleanse is a must

but she needs to stabilize first and do a bowel cleanse. Then I would

suggest several 3 day juice cleanses to get her mentally and

emotionally, as well as physically, prepared for a total body cleanse.

--

Peace, love and light,

Don Quai

" Spirit sleeps in the mineral, breathes in the vegetable, dreams in the animal

and wakes in man. "

[Guest guest]

Okay, here I go. Probably not too much help, but maybe a little insight.

As for giving up/getting off of drugs, the best bet is diet and cleansing. Even a three day juice cleanse would be great! But a total cleanse would be better. Target the liver and gall bladder! We have some cleanses like that in the files, and I can find out what is in the tincture I make (can't remember it off the top of my head) for my liver. Heavy drugs can really play havok on the liver!

Lobelia is great for the cravings!!

As far as pot is concerned, I understand that too much can have a detrimental effect on the mind, on relationships, etc. Even though I am a Christian, I see nothing inherently wrong with marijuana, if done with responsibility. The law says otherwise, yet allows alcohol and cigarettes. Go figure! It is better than Prozac and Zoloft for depression and anxiety with none of the life threatening side effects. I am not advocating it's use, nor suggesting it. Merely sharing my opinion. There are other herbal ways of dealing with stress and depression, as I am sure you have already heard.

One thing I will say that I am sure I will catch flak for, I am against 12-step programs in general. I have seen them fail more than succeed. And the devastation for those that fail is sometimes fatal. I am not saying that they have not helped some, as I am sure that they have. I am just stating that from experience, and from study, I do not see them as all that effective for the majority.

Alcohol has got to go! That is a tough one, I know! Be a friend to this person. Be there as often, as intrusively or inclusevily as you can. Friendship is one of the best anti-drug/alcohol deterents there is!

As for changing "one thing at a time", start with something like sugars. Encourage her to cut out the extra sugars in her diet. Sugar seems to "prolong" the detox from drugs and alcohol for many I've known, inculding myself. And LOTS of water, all of the time!

Probably didn't help much, sorry. But anything I can do to help, any questions about how I dealt with "this" or "that" during my cleanup, I'd be more than happy to share with you!

Terri Lynne Pomeroy <terri_lynne@...> wrote:

Hi all,I hope someone can give me some help with this problem.I have a friend who has been using drugs for a couple of years and now wants to quit. She has done some hard drugs and tons of marijuana. She has also used a little alcohol, but marijuana is the big thing with her.She also struggles with depression and major anxiety.She wants to stop using the marijuana, but when she stops, she feels unable to deal with her life. She becomes so depressed that she goes back out for more pot.Her dit is terrible. I went grocery shopping with her a couple of weeks ago and she bought more sweets than food. And what food she buys tends to be "fast" prepackaged.I am encouraging her to change her diet, but I think that, possibly, at this point she may only be able to change one thing at a time. So my question is, are there

herbs or herbal formulas which will help her to get through the difficulties of giving up the drugs? Both the craving and the extreme anxiety?Any ideas will be much appreciated.Terri Lynne__________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

wrote:

> One thing I will say that I am sure I will catch flak for, I am

> against 12-step programs in general. I have seen them fail more than

> succeed. And the devastation for those that fail is sometimes fatal. I

> am not saying that they have not helped some, as I am sure that they

> have. I am just stating that from experience, and from study, I do not

> see them as all that effective for the majority.

>

>

>

, I won't give you any flak but I suggest you have some bias and/or

need to check your facts. Though the results are not that high, there

is no program for recovery with more success than the two programs AA

and NA. No, 12 step programs are not a cure all, but when dealing with

substance abuse and addictions we are talking life and death situations

and I believe one should use all available tools. It works - if you let

it. It's worked for me for over 15years continuously and various

lengths of time prior to that.

The odds are against an addict, for sure. The stats as I know them, of

persons entering a professional recovery counciling program for the

first time, about one third will succeed the first time, one third will

abuse substances again shortly when they leave and sometime return to

recovery, and one third will leave, return to their chemicals and not

recover, they will die.

Alcohol is the number one substance killing substance abusers/addicts.

An addict has three options. Recovery, insanity, death.

Also remember that substance abuse/addiction is a symptom of an

underlying problem, not the whole problem in itself. Simply corking the

bottle doesn't solve anything.

--

Peace!!

-

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[Guest guest]

Terri Lynne Pomeroy wrote:

> Another interesting recovery program is rational recovery. It is used

> for a

> number of difficulties, not just addictions. It is the program my

> friend is

> looking into.

>

> Terri Lynne

>

>

They charge for their " program " . I did a quick check into them and I'm

not impressed. The program is also only a couple years old. If I were

about to gamble my life on something I think I'd go for something tried

and tested.

To quote their website:

" AVRT is not a professional tool and may not lawfully be provided by any

professional person as a service to clientele. Some of the language of

AVRT is protected under copyright and trademark laws. "

Yet they charge a subscription price (starts at $29 a month) and I

suppose the copyright are to secure their catchy slogans, and of course

their online bookstore. They spend way too much time ranting on about

other peoples programs specifically 12 step programs, called them evil,

while they make claims of being non religious themsleves yet religion

friendly.

Having been in and around addictions and recovery for a couple decades

I'll declare this program/web site BS.

I wish your friend well. I do believe there are better options however.

--

Peace!!

-

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[Guest guest]

ok_fine@... wrote:

> wrote:

>

> > One thing I will say that I am sure I will catch flak for, I am

> > against 12-step programs in general. I have seen them fail more than

> > succeed. And the devastation for those that fail is sometimes fatal. I

> > am not saying that they have not helped some, as I am sure that they

> > have. I am just stating that from experience, and from study, I do not

> > see them as all that effective for the majority.

> >

> >

> >

>

> , I won't give you any flak but I suggest you have some bias and/or

> need to check your facts. Though the results are not that high, there

> is no program for recovery with more success than the two programs AA

> and NA. No, 12 step programs are not a cure all, but when dealing with

> substance abuse and addictions we are talking life and death situations

> and I believe one should use all available tools. It works - if you let

> it. It's worked for me for over 15years continuously and various

> lengths of time prior to that.

>

> The odds are against an addict, for sure. The stats as I know them, of

> persons entering a professional recovery counciling program for the

> first time, about one third will succeed the first time, one third will

> abuse substances again shortly when they leave and sometime return to

> recovery, and one third will leave, return to their chemicals and not

> recover, they will die.

>

> Alcohol is the number one substance killing substance abusers/addicts.

> An addict has three options. Recovery, insanity, death.

>

> Also remember that substance abuse/addiction is a symptom of an

> underlying problem, not the whole problem in itself. Simply corking the

> bottle doesn't solve anything.

>

> --

> Peace!!

>

> -

============================

From my humble perspective, any program is only as effective as the

desire within the individual to overcome. We all choose whether we wish

to overcome or not. AA and NA are not the cure all but many have been

helped through their systems. Many haven't too and that is because they

weren't ready to change or didn't wish to change or just plain didn't

like AA or NA's approach. It has nothing to do with AA or NA being

effective or not, it only has to do with each individuals choices. This

goes for any form of therapy that exists.

Just my humble opinion.

--

Peace, love and light,

Don Quai

" Spirit sleeps in the mineral, breathes in the vegetable, dreams in the animal

and wakes in man. "

[Guest guest]

the scary thing is that *we* are in bad shape when we find some sort

of help. it is up to the people who run their progam to support in

any sort of way. i know that that is almost impossible when the

program worked for a bunch of folks and say that others are ok too

when they didn't work for them. i have noticed that if you can grab

a bit of this and a bit of that, just what works for you is the

right way. i hate it when folks swear by just one thing, just

because they feel good about it. we are all different. i have tried

to talk about healty food and vitamines, juicing, exersise. there

was just one gentleman who responded to me and was doing the same

thing i was doing, the rest didn't want to listen............it is

tough, but it can be done (O: and that makes me happy. i know i can

do it and i do believe in myself......... it just took me a while

(O; ha ha.

have a good one guys, rik

> Yes, I am biased. I have had friends that were convinced that the

only avenue of help was a 12 step program, that failed, and

committed suicide because they felt that the only thing that was

supposed to help them couldn't help them. That is when I started

digging into the statistic, etc, and came away mortified.

>

> And I think it all ties into your closing statement. The abuse is

a symptom, not the problem itself. If people are only addressing the

symptoms, the underlying problem may subside, but will not go

away/be healed.

>

> I know a great many people that have been helped by these types of

programs, and I am greatly encouraged by them! However, I don't

believe in it in general as the " fix all " that it is hyped to be.

>

> Peace to you as well, my brother!

>

>

[Guest guest]

Terri Lynne Pomeroy wrote:

> In earlier posts, it was recommended to use Lobelia tincture to help

> the craving for tobacco. Will this do anything to stop the physical

> part of the craving for other drugs?

>

> TerriLynne

========================

Hi Terri Lynne,

Lobeline, the main constituent found in Lobelia is structurally very

similar to nicotine. This is why lobelia is good for folks trying to

quit smoking. The best part is that it does not have the same addictive

effects as nicotine. As for drug cravings, well I think Suzi sent you

some good info there. Of course one of the best ways to handle drug

cravings is to fast and clean out the body of the drug residues. This

will handle the physical cravings.

--

Peace, love and light,

Don Quai

" Spirit sleeps in the mineral, breathes in the vegetable, dreams in the animal

and wakes in man. "