When I was seventeen I learned a thing or two about life. My parents had enough. I was confronted head on by family, about my addiction to booze and meth. I foolishly thought I was hiding it well. But that mistake comes with being young, dumb, and addicted to drugs. Fortunately I had parents who cared enough to pay attention to me and who I was hanging around. My parents are also both recovering narcotic users who know the brain scrambling effects of abusing your body and mind for too many years. They wanted me to have a real shot at life.
They knew me well enough to know that a standard twelve step program would not be enough to solve the issues I was facing. They had each been in and out of several programs with only limited results. After some research they had checked themselves into a rehab center that focused on alternative methods of treatment and have since never looked back. So when it came the sad time in their lives to put their only son into a detox program, they had no hesitation about what to do. They enrolled me in a form of unconventional rehabilitation that focused on holistic healing. In other words, this alternative rehab focused on me as a whole, as one with the earth and the universe. Sounds hokey right? Well it worked. And it’s been working for two decades.
For anyone who has tried a standard twelve step program and gone into relapse, I highly recommend checking out an alternative treatment center. After looking into a few of my own, I’ve discovered many that may be suitable for all walks of life. There are centers strictly for men, women, gay/lesbian/bi/tran, faith-based, and holistic. And since I’ve followed the holistic style of alternative drug rehab, please allow me to tell you a little about it and the outcome of it for me.
First of all they focus on your diet and what you take into your body. They believe that improving the things you take into the body, the more it improves the mind and spirit. By removing additives and empty substances from the diet, the holistic approach intends to move the brain to its highest levels of functioning.
The holistic approach also includes massage, meditation, and relaxation treatments, in order to cleanse the mind of all negative thought. We feel that removing negative thinking and negative influences, will create a positive and enlightened, free path to follow. Tai Chi and Yoga also play a large role in healing the strength of mind and body in order for it to take care of itself and shut out any dependence on toxins.
These are just a few of the things that the holistic approach to alternative drug rehab has to offer. After completing 6 short months in the program, I saw that my life had turned a new leaf. I wrote to my parents and let them know that I was going to train to become a holistic drug counselor and help others just like me. Holistic healing had changed my life and made a faithful believer out of me. I urge anyone who may have a problem to seek help. But I want to show that there are nontraditional treatment programs out there if a 12 step program isn’t working out.
