Drug Rehab
“Drug Rehab”
Houghton House is a professional and caring Rehabilitation Centre treating those suffering from substance abuse. Helping individuals fight addiction and aid long term recovery is our core focus and something that is close to our heart. Together we take the necessary steps to achieve a successful recovery. About Us: The Houghton House Addiction Recovery Centre.
One look in the mirror was all it took to lead me to the place where I had to be. I can honestly say that I will never look back. The help I received from Houghton House was exactly what I needed in order to find the right path in my life. When I left.
Addiction to Prescription Medication The Warning Signs of Addiction South African Drug Rehabs Long Term Addiction Treatment Drug Rehabs in Johannesburg
Cat or Kat refers to two types of drugs. The one comes in the form of leaves that are chewed and the user gets a high. The leaf contains Catherine which is a natural form of Amphetamine. This has been used for centuries in the Arab world and Central and East Africa. The second type.
I was the sort of guy who mothers are proud of and whose wife is the envy of her friends. But just because we hold good positions, don suits and ties every day and drive luxury cars doesn’t mean we’re Mr Clean Cut Nice Guy. I managed to conceal my cocaine use from family, friends.
Lead Into Addiction
I was the sort of guy who mothers are proud of and whose wife is the envy of her friends. But just because we hold good positions, don suits and ties every day and drive luxury cars doesn’t mean we’re Mr Clean Cut Nice Guy. I managed to conceal my cocaine use from family, friends and colleagues. I’m still trying to figure out how I got from there to where I am today. Sure, I have the excuses: and endless list of justifications, rationalisations, minimisations. It started with a line of coke to pick me up, to give me the edge, to help me keep up, drink for drink, with the customers without showing the effects. So how did it become two, then three, then four, until I lost count?
Naturally it didn’t happen overnight. I kept it together for about two years before the cracks started showing. The more lines I had, the less sleep I got – enter the sleeping pills. The more I needed, the more difficult it was to be up bright and early. Of course, my family was the first to suffer. They had to contend with my mood swings, my lack of responsibility and the lack of money. I started accusing my wife, Sheila, of spending too much; I even made the kids feel guilty when they got new clothes or computers – all the things I happily contributed to before the money went on cocaine, not only for myself but also for my so-called friends.
One evening, one of the guys suggested we go to a casino. I loved the vibe, the slots and, eventually, the tables. Action was the name of the game and I was getting plenty of it. With all the action, my priorities shifted. Family and the responsibility that goes with it – forgotten. Out came the credit cards and cheque book. Then the access bond, then the increased overdraft – hell, so what, I was having fun.
I now needed a line to start my day and another at around noon. I was getting worried but wouldn’t admit it. I was getting worried but wouldn’t admit it. The cash flow was dwindling, the debt increasing. My wife was begging, pleading, screaming but the treadmill kept turning.
Then the company directors called me in – my work had deteriorated. One of the guys noticed my sniffing and asked if I had a cold. No, I said, hay fever, a new cat in the house.
They told me to take time off, suggested that I take my wife away for a few days. I left the meeting feeling utterly exhausted and disgusted with myself. For once I went directly home. I found my wife crying. As I walked towards her, the expression of absolute despair on her face hit me in the pit of my stomach. Bank statements and bills lay everywhere. In a quiet voice she asked why I had done this. How could I? What was I going to do about it?
For once in my life I was at a loss for words but I knew the game was up. I was a wreck, Sheila was a wreck, our family was a wreck, our finances were a wreck, my job was a wreck.
“Where to from here?” I asked.
“Treatment” she replied.
At that point I would’ve agreed to anything as long as I could sleep. I slept the rest of the afternoon, through the night and woke at about 11am the next day. Sheila was waiting – she’d packed my case and made arrangements for rehab.
I walked through the front door of Houghton House Addiction Treatment Centre in Johannesburg, with no idea of how my life would change. Change was the name of the game. Change in thinking, attitude, behaviour. This may sound like heavy going but the support and care of a team of true professionals helped me make it. They gave me back my dignity and, today, I can own who and what I am: I’m Chris, an alcoholic, an addict and a compulsive gambler who, one day at a time, is staying clean and sober. I’m grateful to have my life and family back.
Developing a bad habit is easier than you might think
There is evidence to suggest that drug addictions an non-drug habits have much in common. “Addiction is most commonly defined as a pathological relationship with a substance,” says psychologist Dan Wolf. “That relationship becomes the primary relationship in the person’s life. So addiction can be about developing a particular relationship to food, sex, gambling, porn, shopping, even love. You won’t find the term ‘addiction’ in a diagnostic manual, instead you’ll see the word ‘dependent’. The antidote of that is independence. We are dependent on something to avoid dealing with independence and the fact that life can be a struggle. If we agree that we are all addicts dependent on something, it allows us to see recovery as a spiritual journey where some will make more progress than others.”
The Houghton House is a successful alcohol & drug treatment centre located in Johannesburg, South Africa. The treatment services that form the group specialise in drug and alcohol addiction problems and have been treating people to successfully beat their addictions for the past fifteen years.
