Who Is Your Master?

You're a slave and don't even know it.

According to Websters dictionary a slave has two prominent definitions. The first states the following: "A person held in servitude as the chattel of another. The second definitions goes even deeper. It states the following: " One that is completely subservient to a dominating influence."

Addiction does just that. It becomes your task master and you become its slave. Addiction requires that. Complete unadulterated devotion, worship, and servitude. It requires great sacrifice and even then it is not satisfied. It says that you must do everything and anything to feed its appetite. It's cravings are more fierce than the largest grizzly bear, or the mighty lion. Because of our servitude we abide by whatever addiction asks.

We never count the cost. We never think of what we are losing in order to feed this domineering force. I have seen mothers forsake their children and sacrifice that righteous bond for a needle in their arm. I have seen fathers sell everything they own including their very soul to keep the high for just a little longer. Addiction does not care. It says that there is nothing above it. It is no respecter of person. It wants to kill everyone the same. It holds you in its clutches until it takes your life. Even then it wants more. It will carry on to someone else seeking their souls as well.

Wow we are slaves and don't even know it! We don't see the condition that we are truly in. We have become N.U.M.B. This acronym stands for Not Understanding My Behavior. When we are locked into the grips of addiction we become desensitized by it. We don't understand what our behavior is doing to ourselves, or those around us. The drugs create a box that keeps just it and ourselves locked in and chained together. To begin the process of healing we need to come to terms with our condition. We need to own it. "Look at what my life has become, look at what I have done." When we recognize it, and own it, we can begin to change it.

Yet how do we get to that point of cognitively recognizing our condition? When do we become aware or awake. I have seen parents lose their children to the system. Even that would not trigger that light bulb of self-realization. That look at my world. Look at the reality I have created. I have made a mess of things. That didn't do it. I have seen several people overdose and thanks to the life saving Narcan administered by a police officer lived to see another day. Even then that would not do it. So what does? What brings a person to that point of self realization and the yearning to change? It takes brokenness.

Brokenness comes when you become sick and tired of being sick and tired. The unfortunate reality is that some never get that opportunity. My own uncle died from a drug overdose in 2015. He was only 39 at the time. According to toxicology he had tried Fentanyl for the first time that night he died. It was determined that he died from a toxic mixture of Morphin and Fentanyl. Since that time there has been thousands who have died nation wide from drug overdoses. Thousands who never found the victory that comes in brokenness. See when we are broken, it does not show that we are defeated. It shows that we are set for a comeback.

Everyone loves a good comeback story. A tale of someone beating the odds. Someone who has overcome adversity to find victory just on the other side. That can happen even when your locked in the bonds of slavery to addiction.

In 1831 there was the Nat Turner Rebellion. It was a slave rebellion that took place in Southampton County, Virginia. During this revolt the slaves led by Nat Turner turned on their masters and eventually killed from 55 to 65 people. The slaves had become tired of their condition and treatment and rose up against their masters. We must come to that point as well. See there is a righteous anger to be found within the arena of brokenness. It is that anger that motivates us to make the necessary changes to begin recovery. We can't just recognize the problem and leave it to sit and become like cancer. Malignant and continuing to spread. We must become equally as aggressive to beat our master as we were to serve him. It is important for us to remember to use our anger in positive and creative ways to overcome the task master of addiction. It is not an easy path to take but it is one that leads to absolute victory.

When we realize that our life has become unmanageable we have taken the great first step to lasting recovery and complete healing. Now you have called out your enemy. You see him for the first time clearly. Now it is time to break free, and say I'm not going back. Addiction though does not let go quietly. It puts up a fight. It runs after you. It stalks you around every corner waiting for just one moment of weakness. It is important to find those you can lean on while on the path to recovery.

Article Source: https://EzineArticles.com/expert/Jason_Salley/2410575

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/9693174
https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=992026690343897487#editor/target=post;postID=6765757097064063967

Are You Digitally Drunk?

Technology can help us if used correctly. But it can kill us when used unwisely. Some people report a delight in not being reachable. However, some people need to be reachable and feel a real high when they are available to others all the time.

The average person spends about twelve hours a day looking at a screen of some kind, whether it is a computer screen, cell phone, iPod or digital reader. The computer occupies more than five hours of our day, on average.

Addiction makes us reliant on something outside of ourselves from our fundamental well-being. This makes us feel vulnerable and disempowered when we are not connected or in touch with others in some way.

Addiction also causes us to regress emotionally and spiritually. Addiction shrinks our lives and us with it, even when the substance is something that has the capacity to expand life.

Technology then becomes a powerful drug, even more than we ever envisioned. We need to take an active role with our technology use and not become a society of addicts. In other words, we need to control our technology use.

If we don't take steps to control our use of technology, we will become technologically drunk.

Here are a few questions to ask yourself to determine if you are technologically drunk:

1. Are you unwilling to look at the truth of your behavior? Do you get defensive when someone remarks how much you are using technology? Can you admit to yourself that you have a problem putting down your technological devices?

2. Do you connect online as soon as you wake up? Do you check your text messages in the middle of the night? Do you text at night? Do you keep your cell phone in your bedroom at night?

3. Do you create any down time away from technology? Do you feel anxious when you are away from your devices?

4. Do you use technology as a way to escape from the here and now without awareness? Are you trying to escape something?

5. Do you chronically multi-task? Does technology become one more multi-tasking agent for you?

6. Do you allow technology get in the way with truly connecting with others? Do you text during dinner or lunch when you are sitting around with family and friends?

7. Can you disconnect for a pre-set time, say 6 hours or 12 hours? Can you make one day a week tech-free or does the thought make your stomach churn?

By answering these questions, you will be able to determine if you are addicted to your technology and whether you are digitally drunk as a result.

You can feel less drunk on technology. You just have to be ready to unplug, even if it is a few hours at a time. If you can do that, you will indeed break the addiction of technology and regain your life.

Irene S. Roth writes for teens, tweens, and kids about self-empowerment. She is the author of over forty books and e-books and over five hundred online articles. She also has over a thousand published book reviews both online and in print. In addition, she published an e-book on how not to scattered in our culture. Please double click on this link for more information. https://www.amazon.com/Scattered-Scattered-Mind-Twenty-First-Century-ebook/dp/B0193PC5L4?ie=UTF8&qid=1451453621&ref_=sr_1_1&s=digital-text&sr=1-1

Article Source: https://EzineArticles.com/expert/Irene_Roth/518661

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/9768750https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=992026690343897487#editor/target=post;postID=7671156114498283315

A Day in the Life of a Person Hooked on Drugs

Drug addiction is a chronic disease that feeds the receptors in the brain, giving a feeling of high. From the first smoke, the first snowball, and the first snort onwards, the individual experiences a roller coaster ride fueled by gigantic "highs" and devastating "falls." At times, the drug user could experience the feeling of going down the rabbit hole with no respite in sight from the barrage of hallucinations, negative feelings like self-doubt, withdrawal symptoms, etc.

From the time one wakes up until he or she finally rests for the day, a person addicted to drugs could be going through several emotional upheavals. A brief account of what he or she experiences is provided below.

• Feeding the beast: Drug addiction is a beast, an enormous beast that is always hungry. Hard to please. A person who has been drawn into the maze of drug use is constantly preoccupied with the task of obtaining drugs. From the time he or she wakes up, he is tasked by the "how," "when" and the "where" to obtain drug. While the rest worry about food, job, friends, family and kids, a person living with a drug habit worries about the dwindling supply of drugs, and how he or she would get by another day without his or her dose of Vicodin, OxyContin or crack. As explained by someone who has been into drugs, feeding the drug habit is a full-time job, and the possibility of a person tending to other responsibilities, such as family, friends and job, is remote.


• Fending off the withdrawal scare: Quitting drugs is not easy. Most drugs cause physical dependence and addiction. As a result, a person who has been hooked on a drug for long is loath to leave it. Whether it is physical or psychological dependence, the pangs of drug withdrawal cause a relapse or remission and force the user to act, think and feel in ways that might seem bizarre or irresponsible to others. The withdrawal pangs may range from mild to severe. Even ordinary sleeping aids, such as Ambien, when used for long, result in withdrawal pain. Stronger drugs like opioids and meth, on the other hand, are associated with excruciatingly severe withdrawal symptoms and if there is no timely intervention it may even result in an overdose death. While drugs like heroin and cocaine are associated with a physical dependence, others, such as speed or hallucinogens, cause dependence that is psychological in nature.


• Euphoria quickly fades away: One of the primary reasons why people use drugs is because it causes the feeling of euphoria. Drugs such as 3,4-methylenedioxy-methamphetamine (MDMA), Ritalin, Adderall, amphetamine, meth and cocaine trigger the release of neurotransmitters and make one feel good. Euphoria is a feeling of happiness and well-being. However, the euphoria quickly fades away and one is left feeling dazed, lonely and sad.


• Drawn into the endless circle of manipulations and lies: Those who have the drug habit are not born liars or manipulators. Unfortunately, drug abuse and addiction could cause them to use unethical means, such as manipulations or lies. Most teens resort to lying to coerce money out of their parents. Lying about pursuing a new hobby or hitchhiking trip or paying off a car loan while all they care about is buying the next day's supply of drugs could cause them to resent themselves in the long run.


• Losing friends and jobs: It is hard to keep a drug addiction a secret and employers are rarely sympathetic to people who have a drug habit. Inevitably, the pressure of employment and feeding a drug habit too soon spirals out of control and the individual loses his or her job, self-respect and friends.


• Fearing being found alone dead or overdosed: There is always the fear of being found alone overdosed and dead. Overdosing deaths have shown a dramatic upsurge and it is reported that in 2015 alone, nearly 52,000 Americans lost their lives to drug overdoses, which included 33,000 deaths related to heroin, fentanyl and other opioids. In order to stem the tide of deaths due to overdosing, certain groups have called for safe houses or places where one can smoke or inject drugs under medical supervision.

There is hope

According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), in 2014, 7 million people in America aged 12 and older lived with a drug use disorder. The drug endemic is expected to continue unabated in 2017 as well. Apart from marijuana and cocaine, many fatal concoctions, such as fentanyl, are being shipped by the Mexican drug cartels or are home grown in underground labs. Drug addiction changes every aspect of a person's life, not just his but also that of his or her friends, family and colleagues. It can cost a loved one his livelihood and even life if help is not found.

Thankfully, there is hope. Drug addictions are treatable, provided one reaches out to the right therapist or rehab center in time. To learn more about how you or your loved one can get the help you need for drug addiction, contact the Arizona Drug Addiction Helpline today. If you or your loved one is suffering from an addiction, our representatives can help you with the relevant information on drug rehabilitation centers. Call at our 24/7 helpline number 866-576-4147 to find out about the drug addiction treatment centers.

Article Source: https://EzineArticles.com/expert/Barbara_Odozi/2218626

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/9775692
https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=992026690343897487#editor/target=post;postID=5805451339791736969