Addiction Recovery

Gambling addiction does not get as much media coverage as drug or alcohol addiction does, but it can be absolutely devastating to anyone caught up in it.  It can quickly destroy your finances, your career, your marriage, your family and even your health.  Due to the extreme financial problems it can cause it can literally take years to recover from the effects of gambling addiction even after the compulsion is broken.

Recent research reveals that approxiamtely 2.5 million adults in the United States are pathological gamblers and another 3 million adults should be considered problem gamblers.  Well over 500 billion dollars is spent on gambling each year in the United States.  That is a massive amount of money. 

Gambling has become big business in the United States, and the gambling industry is creating a massive number of gambling addicts as the following statistics show:

*The gambling industry has grown tenfold in the United States since 1975.

*Two-thirds of the adult population placed some kind of bet last year.

*Gambling profits in casinos are more than 30 billion dollars each year while lotteries make profits of about 17 billion dollars annually.

*In 1973 state lotteries had about 2 billion dollars in sales.  By 1997, the revenues of state lotteries reached 34 billion dollars.

*The average rate of divorce for problem gamblers is nearly double that of non-gamblers.

*The suicide rate for pathological gamblers is twenty times higher than for non-gamblers (one in five pathological gamblers attempts suicide).

*65 percent of pathological gamblers commit crimes to support their gambling habit.

As those statistics show, a gambling addiction can be absolutely devastating.

So how do you know if you are addicted to gambling?  The following are some of the common symptoms of gambling addiction:

-The feeling that you can’t get through the day without gambling.

-You are not able to control your gambling. Once you start you find it very hard to stop.

-You find yourself always thinking about your next poker game or your next trip to the casino.

-You experience repeated failure when you try to quit gambling.

-You hide your gambling from your family and friends.

-You may find yourself stealing money or committing crimes to obtain money for gambling.

-You may experience increased outbursts of irritability and anger, and you may find yourself resorting to violence much more easily.

-You gamble as a way to deal with your problems.

-You may have many unexplained absences from work and have difficulty sleeping.

So how can you overcome gambling addiction?

There are basically four key steps that you need to take.

#1) Admit You Have A Problem

Most addicts refuse to admit that they are addicts. They ignore the problem and so they never get any treatment for it. If you are going to beat this, then at some point the first step is to admit to yourself and others that you do indeed have a problem.

#2) Decide That You Want To Change

Many addicts are perfectly content to stay in their addicted state. It is comfortable for many of them. But in order to change you have to decide that is what you want, and you aren’t going to accept the pain and suffering that your addiction is causing you any longer.

#3) Reach Out For Help

Talk to someone that you trust and ask for help. This involves swallowing your pride. Often a good first step is to reach out to a trusted family member. After that, reaching out to a professional who works in the field of your addiction or reaching out to a spiritual advisor can be extremely helpful. You are likely to need help in overcoming your addiction, and family, friends and licensed professionals are there to be that help.

#4) Turn To God

Ultimately this is the most important step. Many have found that they did not have the power in themselves to beat an addiction, but that when they turned to God they found all the power that they ever needed. The truth is that we all need God whether we are addicts or not. We are all messed up in some way and we have all sinned. But the good news is that Jesus Christ came to this earth to die for our sins on the cross. We urge you to invite Jesus Christ into your life today, because He will not only help you overcome your addiction - He will forgive your sins and give you eternal life, and nothing is more important than that.

To learn more about how you can become a Christian, we would encourage you to read this…..

http://www.chick.com/reading/tracts/1049/1049_01.asp

Ever since illegal drugs burst onto the national scene in the 1960's, drug addiction has been an epidemic in the United States and in many other western nations. A drug addiction can easily destroy your life and can take from you almost everything that you value - your family, your friends, your money, your job, your health and your self respect.

Drug addiction is very serious. More than 19,000 people a year die from using illegal drugs and it is estimated that over 16 million Americans have a drug addiction problem.

The kinds of illegal drugs that people get addicted to are many, but they are all very dangerous. Some of the most common drugs that Americans get addicted to include marijuana, cocaine, crystal meth, ecstasy, heroin, LSD, PCP and ketamine (special K).

While there are many types of illegal drugs they have one thing in common. They are destroying lives.

The following statistics come from US NO DRUGS.....

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*In one research study, approximately 1 in 5 people between the ages of 16 and 59 said that they had taken at least one of the drugs mentioned in the study.

*People ages 18 to 21 were most likely to admit having taken drugs with almost half (46%) claiming to have taken them.

*More men than women said that they had taken drugs. 24% of men and 16% of women had taken at least one kind of drug in their lives.

*Amongst those ages 18-21; 51% of men and 38% of women had taken drugs.

*More men than women had experienced taking more than one drug at a time. 52% of men but only 36% of women who had taken drugs had taken more than one type.

*Marijuana was the most commonly used drug, experienced by 12% of all participants and 24% of those ages 18 to 25.

*19.5 million people over the age of 12 use illegal drugs in the United States (Mayo Clinic).

*There were 601,776 estimated drug-related emergency department episodes in 2000. Among these, there were 1,100,539 drug mentions. Keep in mind, more than one drug may be in a person's system at the time of admission.

*Alcohol in combination with other drugs was the most frequently mentioned drug at time of emergency department admission (204,524), followed by cocaine (174,896), heroin/morphine (97,287), and marijuana (96,446).

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So how do you know if you are addicted to an illegal drug? The following are some of the common symptoms:

-The feeling that you can't get through the day without the drug.

-You are not able to control your drug use. In other words, “one hit” is never enough.

-The feeling that you must always have a supply of the drug.

-Repeated failure in trying to stop using the drug.

-You may find yourself driving under the influence of the drug even though intellectually you know that it is wrong.

-You may find yourself stealing money or committing crimes to obtain the drug.

-You may experience increased irritability and anger, and you may find yourself resorting to violence much more easily.

-The feeling that you must have the drug to deal with your problems.

-You may have many unexplained absences from work and have difficulty sleeping.

If you are addicted to an illegal drug, there is good news. You can get free if you are willing to fight to do so. 

There are basically four key steps that you need to take.

#1) Admit You Have A Problem

Most addicts refuse to admit that they are addicts. They ignore the problem and so they never get any treatment for it. If you are going to beat this, then at some point the first step is to admit to yourself and others that you do indeed have a problem.

#2) Decide That You Want To Change

Many addicts are perfectly content to stay in their addicted state. It is comfortable for many of them. But in order to change you have to decide that is what you want, and you aren’t going to accept the pain and suffering that your addiction is causing you any longer.

#3) Reach Out For Help

Talk to someone that you trust and ask for help. This involves swallowing your pride. Often a good first step is to reach out to a trusted family member. After that, reaching out to a professional who works in the field of your addiction or reaching out to a spiritual advisor can be extremely helpful. You are likely to need help in overcoming your addiction, and family, friends and licensed professionals are there to be that help.

#4) Turn To God

Ultimately this is the most important step. Many have found that they did not have the power in themselves to beat an addiction, but that when they turned to God they found all the power that they ever needed. The truth is that we all need God whether we are addicts or not. We are all messed up in some way and we have all sinned. But the good news is that Jesus Christ came to this earth to die for our sins on the cross. We urge you to invite Jesus Christ into your life today, because He will not only help you overcome your addiction - He will forgive your sins and give you eternal life, and nothing is more important than that.

To learn more about how you can become a Christian, we would encourage you to read this.....

http://www.chick.com/reading/tracts/1049/1049_01.asp

Alcohol addiction can kind of sneak up on a person. After all, those of us who live in western countries are constantly bombarded with advertisements for beer, wine and other forms of alcohol. Movies and television make it seem like drinking is the thing to do. It is perfectly legal almost everywhere, and in fact about 90 percent of the adults in the United States drink.

So what's the problem? The problem is that alcohol addiction can absolutely destroy lives. It destroyed the lives of my grandparents, although my grandmother was able to eventually turn her life around. Alcohol addiction can rob a person of his or her job, family, friendships, health, wealth and self-respect.

But alcohol addiction can also be beat - and that is the good news.

Alcohol addiction is a bigger problem among men than among women for whatever reason. About 7 percent of men are addicted to alcohol, while only about 2.5 percent of women are. Why such a difference? Nobody knows for sure, but from a very young age drinking beer and getting drunk are behaviors that are glorified to young men, so perhaps cultural factors play a key role.

In any event, the truth is that there are millions of Americans who are addicted to alcohol, but only about 700,000 of them have been treated for alcoholism.

So how do you know if you are addicted to alcohol? The following are some of the warning signs.....

*You experience slurred speech, dizziness and extreme clumsiness when you are drunk.
*You experience increasingly frequent blackouts.
*Alcohol addiction can sometimes be accompanied by significant weight loss.
*You have a painful or upset stomach that doesn't seem to ever go away.
*You notice increased redness in the face or cheeks.
*You experience numbness or tingling in the hands and feet.
*You are not able to control your drinking. In other words, "one drink" is never enough.
*You may find yourself driving while drunk on a regular basis even though intellectually you know that it is wrong.
*You may experience increased irritability and anger, and you may find yourself resorting to violence much more easily.
*You may find yourself avoiding activities that do not involve the opportunity to get drunk.
*You may find yourself crying more often or exploding in irrational emotional outbursts.
*Those addicted to alcohol often have many unexplained absences from work and have difficulty sleeping.

So does that sound like you?

If it does do not panic.

It is important to face up to where you are at and what will happen to you if you do not quit.

The following are some of the effects of alcohol addiction if you do not quit:

-Permanent damage to vital organs such as the brain and liver.
-Mothers may give birth to infants with fetal alcohol syndrome.
-The children of alcoholic parents are at a significantly greater risk than other children of becoming alcohol addicts themselves.
-The destruction of huge numbers of brain cells, possibly leading to brain damage.
-Massive damage to the central nervous system, hindering the ability to retrieve, consolidate, and process information.
-Alcohol abuse seriously reduces the oxygen supply of the brain, therefore making the possibility of a blackout much more likely.
-Inflammation of the mouth, esophagus, and stomach. Ultimately this could lead to cancer in these areas, especially in drinkers who also smoke.
-Many alcohol addicts also experience irregular heartbeats, high-blood pressure, heart attacks, and other heart damage.
-Alcoholism also can seriously harm vision and damage sexual function.

So if you are addicted to alcohol, what should you do?

There are basically four key steps that you need to take.

#1) Admit You Have A Problem

Most addicts refuse to admit that they are addicts. They ignore the problem and so they never get any treatment for it. If you are going to beat this, then at some point the first step is to admit to yourself and others that you do indeed have a problem.

#2) Decide That You Want To Change

Many addicts are perfectly content to stay in their addicted state. It is comfortable for many of them. But in order to change you have to decide that is what you want, and you aren't going to accept the pain and suffering that your addiction is causing you any longer.

#3) Reach Out For Help

Talk to someone that you trust and ask for help. This involves swallowing your pride. Often a good first step is to reach out to a trusted family member. After that, reaching out to a professional who works in the field of your addiction or reaching out to a spiritual advisor can be extremely helpful. You are likely to need help in overcoming your addiction, and family, friends and licensed professionals are there to be that help.

#4) Turn To God

Ultimately this is the most important step. Many have found that they did not have the power in themselves to beat an addiction, but that when they turned to God they found all the power that they ever needed. The truth is that we all need God whether we are addicts or not. We are all messed up in some way and we have all sinned. But the good news is that Jesus Christ came to this earth to die for our sins on the cross. We urge you to invite Jesus Christ into your life today, because He will not only help you overcome your addiction - He will forgive your sins and give you eternal life, and nothing is more important than that.

Today people in the industrialized nations have a higher standard of living than ever before, but it seems as though people are less happy.  The modern world has seemed to leave a void in people, and many people seek to fill that void through addictive behavior.

Well, one of the goals of this site is to give people real solutions to their real problems so that they can break free of the addictions that are holding them back and free them up to live the kind of lives that they were meant to live.  Addiction recovery is possible if you are willing to fight for it.  Hopefully the information on this site will help you in that fight.