How you can beat opiate addiction~a first step [infographic]

BE transparent. Opening up about problems is freeing to you and gives other courage to do the same. In addiction, this can be life-saving.

(The quote from the photo above is from Rachel Hollis).

Transparency+ God+Medical Assistance+Commitment=Freedom from addiction. This is the best formula to beat drug addiction.

This is actually a repost from a few years ago, but I’ve had several people want a copy of the poem at the end so I thought I’d repost.

Since I posted this in 2013, I think our United States has finally recognized the ongoing opiate problem we have and are trying to get laws into effect to prevent addiction. It’s way too late for some, but hopefully my children and grandchildren won’t ever have to face opiate addiction. It’s brutal.

I can’t even count the number of people I’ve known and heard of who have died of opiate addiction since I wrote this post in 2013. The statistics would blow you away. Also since I first wrote this, there is a new player in the illegal drug game…Carfentanyl. It’s a derivative of fentanyl which is used in hospitals fairly regularly. Carfentanyl, however, is 100 times more potent. The illegal drugs such as Heroin and Marijuana and are being laced with Carfentanyl, and the unknowing recipient is dead before the needle ever leaves their arm. Scary, huh!

I thought I’d include an infographic here that may make things more clear:

Drug Abuse, Opiate Addiction, How people become addicted to opiates

But…there is life after addiction! I never thought I’d feel normal again without opiates in my system, but I’m here to tell you I do. My life is incredible and filled with blessings.

If you are battling any type of drug addiction, you are not alone. Sadly, in some groups you could be in the majority. One of the best things you can do is talk to someone. Be transparent about it. A huge weight will be lifted from your shoulders and you’ll have someone supporting you or going through it with you. It’s amazing to watch when one person speaks up, it easily becomes a chain reaction…a reaction that can lead to healing.

Here’s the rest of the original post and the poem at the end. Please share and print the poem if you know anyone who might benefit from it!

Pills…pills…pills…are taking over our families! How have we come to this?  I remember seeing a video about the communist manifesto that discussed the best way to destroy America. From the inside-out. Look at the change in our values and laws over the last 50 years. Look at the infiltration of pornography on television and the internet. The availability of alcohol. The availability of drugs…prescriptions and the illegal ones. I can tell you if I know where to get marijuana, everyone does.

I didn’t know the boy who died of an overdose, but I don’t need to. All I need to know is that he was a son, brother, grandson, great-grandson, nephew, and friend. I pray that he also carried Jesus in his heart and is with him in Heaven right now. The alternative, though very real, is not one I like to think of.

Prescriptions drug overdoses are claiming more lives every day. People—often teenagers—taking them for recreational use have no idea what they can do to you. While their brain thinks it can handle the “high” dose, their lungs and heart cannot. In an instant, their life is over.

Parents are burying their children.

Friends are burying friends.

Brothers are burying brothers.

People who are addicted to prescription drugs as a result of medical reasons end up needing more and more to relieve their pain, withdrawals, or whatever the case may be. Again, their brain think the dose can is needed, but their  heart ceases to beat and their lungs cease to inhale.

Anyone abusing prescription pain medications—no matter what the reason—is fighting a battle in their mind. The classic battle between good and evil, Jesus and Satan. The battle being fought is both physical and spiritual To overcome addiction, I can tell you from experience physical assistance is just not enough. A divine intervention is needed.

A young girl, Ashley, who lost her battle to drugs wrote a poem describing life on drugs is like…the horror actually being offered to us when presented with the decision to use drugs. I took her poem, and added a “rebuttal,” if you will, to show the life than Jesus offers everyone. We must only accept.

Here’s the poem. Please read it slowly and share with anyone whom it might help. If you’d like to have a copy, you can upload a PDF version and print for free by clicking HERE.

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Jesus is the first step to beating drug addiction. Without Him, all other efforts are likely to fail. God is good and He wants you to beat this!
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My Story~Prescription for Addiction (On video!)

I’ve been awol for awhile now. Miranda got married in May and I spent about 9 months planning the wedding. I’ll show you some pictures in an upcoming blog post 🙂 I’m so proud of Miranda and Jamie and all they’ve accomplished. But it definitely takes a village!

We also spent quite a bit of time traveling this summer and I’ll be sure and send some pics from our trip as well. But in this post I’m getting back to the root of the reason I started this blog initially. Hopefully I can get back to a regular schedule but no promises. Getting back into the blogging/writing groove isn’t easy for me, but I need to do it now before Grandkids come along!

Okay so I’m about to celebrate the 6th anniversary of the miracle God gave me on September 10, 2010. Today, I’m still amazed. And so very thankful.

When He first healed me I couldn’t keep my mouth shut about it! My family got a little tired of hearing the same story over and over, but God gave me the story and I had to share it. No, we’re not in Bible times and don’t experience the miracles God did in the Bible, but miracles happen every day all around us. We just have to keep our eyes and ears open.

Once I began writing, everyone said I’d need to be able to tell my story in front of groups in order to promote my book. So I proceeded to take a much dreaded communicators conference.

I promised God I’d share my story when asked, and I’ve been asked three times to share it in public. The last time was in front of a group of high school kids at church. I’m a small group leader and the church wanted us to share our stories with the kids to allow them to get to know us better. So I actually recorded it, and though it’s not the most professional recording, it’s my story. Hope you enjoy watching and I pray that you get the message from it God would desire for you!

Just click on the link below and know that miracles do happen!

Prescription for Addiction

Not All is Lost! {Guest Post on Marriage and Addiction}

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Today I have a guest post on dealing with addiction in the marriage relationship from Saint Jude Retreats. Hope you enjoy!

Not all is lost!

By Annie Kochneva (Saint Jude Retreats)

When thinking about marriage, more often than not, people would first recall the beginning stages of how their family came to be. The proposal, the excitement, the wedding preparation, the vows, the respect and appreciation, the general care for the other person, their feelings and their well-being, the pure love that started it all.  Everyone and anyone would like to think at that beginning stage that people, feelings and things stay the same and they can live in that frozen moment in time, when everything was well… just perfect.wedding

In reality, people, feelings and things change. Sometimes these changes are for the better- people build loving relationships, stronger marriages, unbreakable bonds, mutual respect and understanding.

Sometimes, things don’t work out quite that way. It is an uncomfortable topic for many to discuss, but it is vital to share it with as many people as possible, because realizing that we are not alone sometimes might make the difference between “to repair” or “ to break” a marriage. There are so many factors in a marriage that can affect it in a way to make it more challenging for the people who are trying to make it work; however, substance use, whether it is alcohol or drug or both, is one of the top reasons for divorce in our society.

The reason behind this is perhaps because it is one of the few reasons that affect not only the couple, but the whole family- children and relatives included. It is completely understandable that the stronger the feelings between the spouses prior the substance use, the bigger impact can such an external factor have on their relationship. When that is the case, it is that much harder, because the bigger the expectations are- the bigger the disappointment is at the end. To make things even worse, usually the extended family and friends not only do not support, but sometimes even discourage the spouse, who is not involved in substance use, to continue the relationship and rebuild the marriage. And the loss of support in such a moment can be crucial for some couples, making it a tipping point in the direction of a divorce.shadow couple

Therefore, it is vital for spouses to understand that there are alternatives and there are support channels to help rebuilding relationships that have been affected by substance use, but most of all, that there is hope. Many couples manage not only to rebuild their marriages but to actually make them stronger. No matter which side of the equation you are on- the substance user or the spouse, you can actively participate in the process of saving your marriage, instead of silently observing its ruin. How can you do this?

–        Talk the talk

 In order to rebuild, you have to open up to each other first and that is valid for both sides. Let the other person know how you feel, share your fears and expectations and rebuild your trust.

–        Own up to it

To be able to move on, you first have to admit to your choices, decisions and actions that affected your marriage or your partner in a negative way. Then, you have to accept the consequences that come with them. That applies for both partners.

–        Seek support

Some couples manage to rebuild their lives together and avoid divorce on their own, so it is not impossible. However, there are many alcohol programs that can actively support you in that process and it will be that much easier to let them guide you through that process, there is no need to rediscover the wheel.

–        Put in the work-

After you talk the talk, this is the stage where you have to walk the walk. Nobody can do it for you, but many have done it before you.

And remember, nobody else can do it for you, but you can do it.

{Annie Kochneva is with St. Jude Retreats~ a non-12 step alternative program to conventional alcohol and drug rehab.}

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Habit vs. Addiction and the God-Sized Hole in Your Heart

 

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We are creatures of habit. And we LOVE our creature comforts. You know, those things that make us feel warm and fuzzy, cozy…give us a sense of well-being. Things that make us feel like everything is going to be okay.

And for the most part, they’re not a problem.

BUT…you knew it was coming…BUT Satan knows our weaknesses and insecurities. He knows how to use our creature comforts against us. And when those comforts become habits, we are in danger of them becoming addictions. And the enemy is sneaky. It’ll happen before we know it.

I’m battling one of my own right now. I’ve always loved a good television show—curling up on the sofa in my down comforter getting totally lost in another world. There was a time that I did this to escape my own depression. Thankfully, that’s not the case now. I just love a good show! But oh my gosh…NETFLIX IS THE DEVIL! You can get into a good show and you don’t have to wait a week to see what happens! You can watch one episode after another, after another…you get the picture. The only things that saves me from becoming a complete couch potato is my computer. I can carry it around the house with me and watch while I do laundry, dishes, clean out the closet, etc…and it actually makes those tasks much more bearable.

At least Netflix is better than Lortab, right?

But no matter what our “vice” is, Satan knows how to use it.

We all have a God sized hole in our heart. Satan loves for us to try to fill that hole with anything except God. But just like a puzzle piece, that hole is made for God and only God. No matter what else we try to cram in there, it won’t perfectly fit.

Don’t let Satan take those seemingly innocent creature comforts and turn them into addictions. (You can tweet this one Smile)  Check out this great graphic created by designer Adrienne Erin that explains how habits become addictions. She’s crammed LOTS of great info here to arm ourselves with…and some of it may shock you. Don’t be surprised if you see yourself somewhere in there–I know I did!  Arming ourselves with knowledge helps us to fight Satan’s craftiness. (You can tweet this one too! Wink) Click on the graphic itself to go to 12 Palms Rehab for a further explanation.

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Don’t give the enemy any satisfaction!

Replace rock music with Christian music.

Replace shopping with volunteer work.

Replace junkfood with healthy options.

Replace internet surfing with reading your Bible.

Replace Netflix…well, I’ll have to keep working on that one! Embarrassed

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The Anonymous People

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As I’ve been traveling lately, I haven’t had a chance to keep up with my posts. But I wanted to share the trailer for a new documentary coming out soon that will shed some light on addiction…hopefully giving courage to those who feel the need to remain anonymous. There is power in numbers people, and there are many recovering addicts. Unfortunately, according to statistics, there will be many more addicts (recovering or not) in the future. And if you’re a parent, don’t take this subject for granted. The very best cure is prevention. Take a second to watch it here:

God is omnipotent. {ALL powerful} Why do we put limits on Him? Believing that it’s just not possible?

That’s just it.

HE is strong enough.

Enough said.

{Besides the fact that we’re driving and I get sick if I look down too much Tongue Out}

 

P.S. I’m reading Heather Kopp’s book Sober Mercies and I saw this trailer on her blog if you’d like to view her post click HERE.

 

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The Experience of Addiction~Broken for Others (Graffiti Summer)

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I didn’t realize it at the time, but God allowed me to be broken for others…for seven years. At least it wasn’t forty years like Moses!

For fourteen years I filled prescriptions for people and while I could tell them side effects, interactions, instructions, etc., I could not understand the desperation they felt for these medications. Prescriptions for insomnia, pain, depression, and anxiety. And then of course the prescriptions to get OFF of those meds. Addiction. Desperation. I really didn’t think it could happen to me. But God allowed me to see things from a different perspective. From their shoes.

As I’ve said before, we stay so busy in our own shoes, we don’t think about what it might look like in somebody else’s.

As I’m joining in with Alene Snodgrass for Graffiti Summer, we are talking about being broken for others through the story of Moses. Just click on the link for a free download of the study, and be sure to check out amazon for her book she cowrote with a homeless man.

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(I’ll have an interesting post coming up soon about homelessness that my daughter will have input in…be sure to watch for it!)

So this week for my post I’m cheating a little because I’m posting something I’ve already written, but I’m taking a little risk in that it’s an excerpt from my book that I haven’t really let anyone see yet or even talked about much. But just like Moses, it’s God’s story, not mine. So here ya go…part of my own story of being broken for others…

There are plenty of movies depicting addicts in withdrawal, but I’ve never seen what happened to me. Besides the sweating, shaking, headache, and ears ringing, I started throwing up constantly. Literally. When there was nothing in my stomach to come up, up came green bile. Between bringing me warm washcloths for my mouth and cold washcloths for my head, my mom and David were persistently trying to find the best way to get help.

It was not easy.

Research into medical intervention revealed rehab “resorts” hundreds of miles and tens-of-thousands of dollars away, but the local, affordable options were few. Even if I had $30,000 to spend, there was no way I could physically make the trip. After about three days, I could barely hold my head up to vomit, much less pack and get on an airplane. As I camped out on the bathroom floor with my pillow, blanket, and pile of washcloths, I could hear the hush-hush talk about what to do with me. The shame and utter despair I felt for putting my family through this was as unbearable as my state of health.

We finally found a local physician with an outpatient clinic for drug addiction that was not a methadone clinic. Methadone clinics sprung up in the ‘90s when heroin addiction was at its highest. Methadone is a cheap drug that helps with addiction to certain drugs, but the problem is, it’s just as addictive as anything else. The clinic we found dispensed Suboxone, a fairly new drug on the market I’d only dispensed a few times which is used solely for narcotic addiction. It is a short-term substitute for the narcotic—the Lortab in my case—and greatly reduces the effects of withdrawal, and allows the receptors in the brain to dwindle back down to normal.

We immediately called his office. Of course, it just happened to be Friday morning; they said I could not be seen until after the weekend. I honestly didn’t think I would live that long (although now I know just how much a body can endure). They could admit me to Carolina Behavioral Hospital where they’d give me fluids and medicine for nausea, and begin Suboxone treatment there. That news was music to my ringing ears.

Now you have to remember how I grew up—only child, Christian School, very sheltered. You know…in my ivory tower. I heard “hospital” and “fluids” and I imagined a nice sterile, private hospital room with a television and nurses coming to check on me every few hours and give me medicine. I think Mom and David expected the same.

As David pulled us up to the front door, I lay across the back seat of our suburban with my puke bucket in the floor, continually filling it. The nausea and vomiting was relentless, and there must have been a hammer constantly pounding my head. David went inside to see how to get checked in, and what seemed like days later, he returned with a nurse and a wheelchair.  As they took me down hall after hall and through password required doors to the detox ward, I wanted to disappear. The pain and nausea combined with my shame and desperation took me to a place so low I could have just melted and become one with the floor. Though I wouldn’t have wanted that floor to be my final resting place.

My “hospital” expectations were not even close. As I sat in a wheelchair with my trusty bucket in my lap, David and Mom checked me in, and we proceeded to follow a nurse back to that area. My worst nightmare began to come true as I scanned my new environment. There was a common area with a small television and a few old sofas that looked like they’d been rescued off the street. The “hospital” room reminded me of the worst dorm room on a college campus. The other patients—men and women—were dressed like homeless people coming to a shelter for a warm meal.

As the nurse explained procedure, I could see my mom and David looking around the room in shock and fear at the thought of leaving me. After hearing a bit of conversation from a few of the male residents, they made the decision to take me home.

I was so desperate; I told them to leave me. I had to have some help and there was no other option.

Never had I seen my mom look so helpless. The thought of leaving her baby girl in such a place was more than she could bear. I’ve never asked because my heart couldn’t take it, but I’m sure her eyes were pouring tears as she drove home.

David has since shared with me that leaving me at there was one of only three times in his life he has sobbed from being heartbroken. No one expects or prepares for this type of heartbreak. When he left, he picked up the kids from his mom and took them to the beach. He needed some distance from the situation and the kids needed something to keep their minds occupied. They didn’t know the whole situation at the time, but they knew enough to know something was wrong, that I was very sick.

As a wife and mom, the words “burden” and “failure” don’t begin to describe how I felt. I had done damage to myself physically, but I had hurt my family emotionally and created injuries that would be much more difficult to heal. Scars that would last a lifetime.

Once I was left in the hands of the nurses, the process started. They went through every single pocket, page, bottle and seam of every item that came with me and left me with the bare minimum. No cosmetics, no liquids, no hairbrush, no razor, no earrings … the bare minimum. My environment was surreal. As I lay on the cardboard bed with the questionable blanket, throwing up in my puke bucket, which sat on the nasty blue carpet, I could not believe I actually told David to leave me. The promise of fluids and nursing care was empty. For twenty-four hours, I was left to throw up, unattended.

Other patients left and returned at the sound of the school bell for meals, group therapy, and smoking breaks. I ate nothing. Finally, a nurse came to get me for my appointment with the psychiatrist to begin my Suboxone treatment. He laid out a three-day plan to fix me.

Three days. Now that would be something.

Dr. Psychiatrist wrote orders to start me on the Suboxone and an injection of Phenergan for the nausea. The male nurse on duty proceeded to lead me to the lovely—and oh-so-sterile—plaid sofa to give me my injection. As he was preparing it, the school bell rang and he just sat back and looked at me.

“Is everything okay?” I asked.

“Yes,” he replied. “Aren’t you going to go out and smoke? Isn’t that what you people do?”

You people. Are you kidding me? “I’ve never once put a cigarette to my mouth and I have no intention of starting now.”

I was the only patient who did not go outside to smoke. As a matter of fact, most of the staff went with them. Mr. Nurse proceeded to give me the injection and go on his merry way. I remained in disbelief at the stereotypic category in which I was just dumped. I began to see a pattern, though, with most everyone there. When everyone walked back inside, one of the male patients plopped down on the sofa next to me and said, “So, what’s your drug of choice?”

Drug of choice?

I might as well have been staring at an alien. I was definitely in another world.

 

I definitely walked in some scary shoes. Shoes that gave me an entirely new perspective, which is what Graffiti summer is all about. We don’t realize how quickly our own situation can change, and we find ourselves where we never thought we’d be. Feel free to tweet that 🙂

Have you walked in any unexpected shoes that shifted your paradigm?

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A letter to moms whose dreams have been shattered by addiction~Time to reclaim your dream!

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This letter is to all of those moms who are hiding, imprisoned by their addiction to prescription drugs; longing for a freedom they don’t believe is possible.

Dear Friend,

Being a woman is hard. I believe we have Eve to thank for that! No one tells us all of the many hats we must wear as a woman. Let’s see if I can name a few:

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  • Friend
  • Daughter
  • Sister
  • Wife
  • Mother
  • Housekeeper
  • Cook
  • Chauffer
  • Launderer
  • Mediator
  • Room-mom
  • Home accountant
  • Tutor

That’s only the beginning of the list when a career is added.

 

As young, ambitious women, American Dreams in sight, we are invincible. Until the unthinkable happens.

  • Breast cancer or other serious disease
  • Death of a spouse or child
  • A pregnant teenager
  • Loss of a job
  • Infidelity of a spouse
  • Severe car accident, leaving injuries

You get the picture. Does anything sound familiar?

When things start going wrong in our life, and we get older, we often end up seeing our beloved physician more often that we ever thought we would. And visiting the pharmacy even more often than that.

Medications for insomnia, anxiety, depression, pain…they are a lifesaver. At first. Before you realize it, dependency becomes an issue, then addiction. That lifeline you thought you’d been thrown has now become your own personal prison.

The American Dream…shattered, right along with your soul.

I know how you feel. I’ve been there. Grand-mal seizures started the avalanche that turned into depression, insomnia, and prescription drug addiction to narcotics. And I’m a pharmacist! Genius. Satan can be sneaky, and he knows just how to use the suffering in our lives to get a stronghold.

But here’s the thing. Jesus says, In this world you will have trouble. But take heart, I have overcome the world. (John 16:33 NIV)

Think hard on those words for a minute. Jesus has already overcome the world. In our weakness, He is strong. He has a purpose and a plan for your life, and will use every experience, sin, tragedy and failure to shape you for that purpose.

To understand what it means to be free, you must first be imprisoned. To truly understand being whole, you must first understand being broken. 

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” (Jeremiah 29:11 NIV)

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have full effect, that  you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. (James 1:2-4ESV)

You are not alone. You may panic at the thought of not having that lifeline of pills you’ve been dependent on for so long, but now’s the time to reclaim your dream. Not the original American Dream you once had. God has shaped you for a much bigger dream now...a God-sized dream. 

Today is the day to begin claiming your God-sized dream of freedom. Freedom from addiction will give you freedom from everything. Through addiction, you’ve realized you aren’t perfect—though it may be hard to admit ;)— and you don’t have to be perfect anymore. You can be a weak, imperfect human saved by the mercy and grace of Jesus. 

I can promised letting go of the pills will not be easy. It will be the hardest thing you’ve ever done. You’ll feel like crap when you wake up in the mornings for awhile. But don’t lie in bed and wallow in your pity. Get up, get dressed, make up your bed, and go do something. And pray.

Go outside for a walk. Breathe in the beauty that God created.  And pray.

Cuddle up with your daughter and read a book. And thank God for your beautiful daughter.

Call a friend for coffee and share your struggles with them. Be real. What you think might push someone away will actually bring them closer. No matter how pretty we are on the outside, we all have some ugly on the inside. Transparency brings friends closer. Thank God for that friend.

Go take a hot shower…hot as you can stand it…letting the water flow over you like the peace of Jesus Christ. Literally imagine it. And pray.

Take one minute, one hour, one day at a time. When you want to take that pill as much as you want to take a breath when you’re stuck under water, just breathe. Go into your closet, lay down, and breathe. Watch your stomach rise and fall as you take deep, cleansing breaths. And pray. 

Go do something for someone else…an act of kindness. When you look outward to help someone else, you might just forget about your own problems long enough to get some relief. Pray and be blessed. 

Life is hard. Stereotypes cannot be avoided, but the stereotype of addiction must evolve. It’s not just for junkies anymore. Addiction happens to good, Christian moms just trying to get through life the best way they can. Prescriptions drugs aren’t illegal, and sometimes that’s the problem. Because they are “prescribed” they’re okay.

Be brave. Be honest. Be transparent. Seek God with everything you have to fill the void of leaving the pills behind.

God is ready to give you your God-sized dream of freedom from the pills that are keeping you imprisoned.

I’ve been where you are. And I know personally it’s a dream that God will deliver.

Because I’m free.

You can be too.

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Linking up with Holly over at God-sized dreams today. Check out all the other encouraging letters linked up. One might be written just for you! Just click on her button to hop on over there!

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Join Me Today at “Inspire-a-Fire” to read A Letter to my Enemy

Join me today over at Inspire a Fire to read “A Letter to My Enemy” if you haven’t read it before.

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Satan has so many tools at his disposal, and he is so sneaky in the way he uses them.

Don’t fall into the trap of prescription drug addiction like I did. Sure, I had grand-mal-siezures, broken bones, surgery…plenty of good reasons to need narcotics (Lortab) for pain. But even as a pharmacist, I didn’t realize the physical effect they have on the brain. The brain is physically changed…changed in such a way that is difficult to recover from. Since your brain controls every single part of your body and mind, your state of mind is altered. Addiction can literally transform you into a person you will not like very much. 

Only the grace of God can truly heal you completely. Physically and emotionally. (Click here to tweet!)

Click on the Inspire A fire photo above to read the article. Feel free to leave a comment! (Please?) Kiss

Thanks!

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A Letter to My Enemy

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Maybe having my wisdom teeth pulled was my first mistake. At only 16, the decision was made for me. There must be a reason God gave us “wisdom” teeth, regardless of who actually named them. The pain from that surgery was the first time I let you into my life. You did a good job. You took away my pain and only made me a little nauseous. After a few days, the pain was gone, and so were you. Good riddance. 

At twenty-five, my beautiful 6lb, 2oz baby Miranda arrived, feeling more like a baby moose being pushed through my body, so there you were to comfort me again. Oh, how I welcomed you. My 115lb body didn’t quite know what was in store with childbirth and nursing. I’d never really experienced much pain before. I did not like it. Especially when I wanted to focus on the joy of my new baby girl. Once again, you got me through the pain. I let you go. My Miranda was all I needed. 

Four years later, a bouncing 7lb, 7oz baby Trevor arrived. He was quite the popular baby. At one time there were seventeen visitors in my hospital room. I didn’t have time to deal with all those people and pain, so there you were…again. The nurses brought you to me every four hours like clockwork. Other than a little grogginess, I was able to enjoy our growing little family…and all of the extras. After a few days of rest at home, I was back to normal and you were gone again. 

Once again, four years later, little Marlee entered the world, exactly like her brother at 7lb, 7oz. My body was a pro at this baby thing by now, but no one saw the migraine train headed my way. The doctor said sometimes epidurals could cause headaches. The nurses, right on cue, brought you to me, as I needed you. Because of the headaches I guess, they sent me home with more of you. 

Epidural or not, those migraine headaches came to stay. You relieved the pain until I could see a neurologist who could get the headaches under control. After a few tries, he found a way to prevent the headaches, so I reluctantly let you go again. The ax constantly chopping away at one side of my brain made me hesitant to let you go, but a new medicine just for migraines did the trick.

 

barbiemirrorpillsUntil one day, happily painting with my kids at a birthday party, I had a grand-mal seizure, causing a gash in my head. Other seizures quickly followed, resulting in a broken tailbone, a broken eye socket, and a broken nose, lots of doctor appointments, and finally, sinus surgery.

I welcomed you back into my life with open arms and you helped me get through every day of the two months it took to get through my nasal nightmare. Finally, the day the doctor pulled the packing from my nose, my pain was gone. I said good-bye to you again. Away in the medicine cabinet you went. 

The next day, I felt horrible. I thought I had the stomach flu. I was feverish, had chills, my body was achy, and I was throwing up constantly. The achiness and headache were unbearable, so I reached up into the medicine cabinet and pulled you back out. I couldn’t believe the effect you had on me. I went from feeling like hell to perfectly normal within about thirty minutes. No more aching, no more chills, no more vomiting. It was that moment I realized it.

I was addicted to you. 

You don’t target just the teens, the homeless, the party animals, the celebrities, the politicians, the gangs, or even the leather-wearing Goths with multiple piercings. You target good moms too.

Despite having my wisdom teeth removed, I’m a little older, and a lot wiser now. You taught me the hard way, but you taught me well. A lesson I will never forget. Little by little, you worked your way into my life, making me need you more and more each time. Until one day, I couldn’t let you go. You invaded my brain to the point that it could not feel normal without you. And in the process, you shattered my soul. 

Thankfully, God is in the business of miracles and redeeming shattered souls.

Thankfully, God is in the business of tearing apart every tool that Satan tries to use to destroy his children, including you.

Thankfully, God empowers his children to do good works for Him. 

Thankfully, I am one of God’s children.  

So watch out. Together, we’re coming after you. 

 

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Can You Ever Feel Normal After Narcotic Addiction?

crossRXfinalCome visit me over at Addiction Blog today.

Can you really ever feel normal after narcotic addiction?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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The War on Drugs

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So much for Simple Saturdays, life has been anything but simple this week.

  • One of my closest friends learned that her mom committed suicide (pills) on the same day she learned she’s having a baby boy.
  • My short and oh-so-sassy 18-year-old daughter had her heart broken yesterday after attending a funeral for a boy her age who died of an accidental overdose.

Pills…pills…pills…are taking over our families! How have we come to this?  I remember seeing a video about the communist manifesto that discussed the best way to destroy America. From the inside-out. Look at the change in our values and laws over the last 50 years. Look at the infiltration of pornography on television and the internet. The availability of alcohol. The availability of drugs…prescriptions and the illegal ones. I can tell you if I know where to get marijuana, everyone does.

I didn’t know the boy who died of an overdose, but I don’t need to. All I need to know is that he was a son, brother, grandson, great-grandson, nephew, and friend. I pray that he also carried Jesus in his heart and is with him in Heaven right now. The alternative, though very real, is not one I like to think of.

Prescriptions drug overdoses are claiming more lives every day. People—often teenagers—taking them for recreational use have no idea what they can do to you. While their brain thinks it can handle the “high” dose, their lungs and heart cannot. In an instant, their life is over.

Parents are burying their children.

Friends are burying friends.

Brothers are burying brothers.

People who are addicted to prescription drugs as a result of medical reasons end up needing more and more to relieve their pain, withdrawals, or whatever the case may be. Again, their brain think the dose can is needed, but their  heart ceases to beat and their lungs cease to inhale.

Anyone abusing prescription pain medications—no matter what the reason—is fighting a battle in their mind. The classic battle between good and evil, Jesus and Satan. The battle being fought is both physical and spiritual To overcome addiction, I can tell you from experience physical assistance is just not enough. A divine intervention is needed.

A young girl, Ashley, who lost her battle to drugs wrote a poem describing life on drugs is like…the horror actually being offered to us when presented with the decision to use drugs. I took her poem, and added a “rebuttal,” if you will, to show the life than Jesus offers everyone. We must only accept.

Here’s the poem. Please read it slowly and share with anyone whom it might help. If you’d like to have a copy, you can upload a PDF version and print for free by clicking HERE.

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Christianity and Addiction~Guest Post at Addiction Blog

 

 

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I’m excited to be over at addiction blog today with an article and powerful poem on the spiritual warfare of addiction. Please visit me over there today and feel free to leave a comment! I’ll be posting the poem here on my blog in a few weeks. Please share it with anyone you know who might be battling with the hopelessness of addiction.

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Biblical help with drug addiction~Guest Post at addictionblog.org

Drug addiction…pure joy? Hardly.

Drug addiction often seems impossible to overcome. It cannot be done alone, yet it’s deemed so shameful it’s difficult to share with anyone to get help. So many people attempt to overcome it alone, which Satan just loves. Because the brain is affected so specifically in drug addiction, going it alone just gives Satan a welcome invitation to set up residence in your brain. He will justify all of the wrong decisions you make. Loneliness is one of Satan’s most powerful tools.

God, however, can take WHATEVER addiction you are dealing with and use it for his glory. Instead of pleading and whining to God, specifically ask him what his purpose is for you life. Genuinely seek his plan. He will gladly share that plan with you when you ask in humbleness and complete faith.

If you want to know what God wants you to do, ask him and he will gladly tell you, for he is always ready to give a bountiful supply of wisdom to all who ask him; he will not resent it. (James 1:5 TLB)

If you want to read more about getting help with drug addiction, read my article today at addiction blog. Please share with anyone you suspect may be struggling with prescription drug addiction.


The Trap of Addiction~Visit me today at www.addictionblog.org

Drugs do not discriminate when choosing their prey. Living in a society so dependent on pharmaceuticals, it’s easy to fall into Satan’s trap of addiction. Our human nature desires immediate gratification, which is one of the most powerful tools Satan uses.

I’m super excited today to have an article over at Addiction Blog today. Addiction Blog is a resource for all types of addiction, but is almost exclusively educational. I’ve been given the opportunity to share my knowledge as a pharmacist, and at the same time, share my experience of addiction as a Christian. As I stated in a recent blog post, I won’t be posting as often on here in order to writing on other sites and working on the book, but I’ll always let you know where I am!

From my heart,

Celeste