The term “quitter” can be defined as someone who gives up easily or cannot seem to follow through or make commitments. It has many negative connotations, in general. So, it is interesting that the word is often used when concerning addiction. Some may use the expression, “I quit smoking,” or “After 10 years of drinking, he finally quit.”
Recovery is an amazingly wonderful thing, though, and the continued use of the word “quit” in regards to recovery does not make sense. We instead should focus on the fact that recovery implies the conquering of a struggle with mental illness. Overcomer – this is a word worthy of describing the recovery experience.
Here at Renaissance Ranch, we can provide you with the opportunity to grow and heal. Learning to conquer this chapter of your life requires patience, support, and guidance, whether that be through the Twelve Steps or a belief in your Higher Power. You are not a quitter, you are an overcomer.
Quitting vs Overcoming
People experience any number of bad habits throughout their lives. Biting your nails, picking at scabs, or even the more unrecognized habits like fidgeting or drinking too much coffee are all common bad habits. These are behaviors that you may consider quitting. In this context though, quitting still does not seem like the most appropriate word. Learning to stop biting your nails is generally a really good thing and something that you may want to follow through with and not give up on. Although it is on a much more intense level, the same concept can be applied to substances.
The word “overcomer” can be described as someone who grapples with or takes control of a particularly difficult thing or situation. Quitting is easy: quitting a task that has become too hard, quitting a job we hate, or quitting on a relationship when your heart is not in it. These can often be situations that are all too easy to quit, whereas recovery is no easy feat. It takes a commendable amount of courage, humility, and perseverance to enter into and maintain recovery. This is not like quitting a bad job, it is like David overcoming Goliath.
Overcoming the Power of Substance
Similar to how terms like quitter and overcomer can be misconstrued and misused, you may often misconstrue fighting the substance and fighting against the power the substance has. There are many reasons why certain substances should be avoided at all costs, including the long-term physical effects they can have on your body. However, when you are fighting addiction, you are not fighting the substance, you are fighting the power that substance has over you. That is not something you can quit, but it is most certainly something you can overcome.
Individuals who “quit” a substance often experience a transference of that emotional frustration in another unhealthy outlet. Those who quit smoking may turn to food. People who quit drinking may develop unhealthy behavioral habits. Quitting the substance may cause you to forget to discern the root cause of your dependency, which opens the door for tempting addiction to enter. It is essential to learn to overcome the reason why you are dependent on a substance, not just the substance you are dependent on.
How Treatment Can Help
The goal of treatment is to help you in overcoming your addiction. Our program not only allows you the time and space to detox and get healthy, but it can also help you enter into your journey fully in a way that helps you get to the root cause of your addiction.
Step one is reaching out for help. After time in our on-site detoxification site, or in a referred detox facility, your path to recovery can begin. Within the residential program at Renaissance Ranch, you will be exposed to individual, group, and service work therapy, all of which are orchestrated with therapeutic living surroundings in a therapeutic community model. It is through these therapies and services that you can begin to understand what inner demons have manifested into this addiction and why.
Once you have made these discoveries and learned more about the deeper cause of your addiction, it will be time to put those tools to use. Life outside of treatment will be hard. The world moves fast and there may not always seem like there is time to focus on healing, but that time must be made. Post-treatment struggles can be conquered with the help of family, loved ones, and faith. The word quitting also implies you may never be tempted again. That is sadly not true. However, learning to overcome means that you can continue to prevail.
You have battles to face in your everyday lives. For some, that is the battle with addiction. You may think that throwing all your energy into quitting substance use is the best thing you can do, but that’s just a bandaid. The true cause of addiction is not the substance itself, but the power the substance has on you and the reason you feel the need to depend on it. If you turn that dependence onto your family or your faith to get you through, that substance virtually loses all control over you. Addiction is not something to quit, it’s something to overcome, and once you have, there’s almost nothing you can’t do. The goal here at Renaissance Ranch is to provide individuals with a safe place to heal, learn, and provide guidance on the path to recovery. To learn more, reach out to us at (801) 308-8898. The first step to overcoming must start with you.