Date: Thu, 11 Dec 1997 00:17:41 EST
From: HSL123@aol.com
To: Multiple recipients of list <ibogaine@ibogaine.org>
Subject: Important recovery tips

This is from http://www.cures-not-wars.org/junkie/

IMPORTANT RECOVERY TIPS that can help you stay clean
Many drug users have problems with depression or/and anxiety, panic attacks
etc. Particularly heroin is used
to self-medicate these problems. When you finally decide that you want to
quit using and you go through the
process of detoxing, there is a good chance these symptoms may resurface.
However, most detoxes, rehabs
and support groups are based on the philosophy of NA. Here you are, you're
finally clean, but you're often
bummed out, anxious and you have a lot of trouble sleeping. Service providers
involved with many of these
NA-based institutions most often do not tell you what to do about your
situation besides talk therapy, but we
will provide you with some very helpful, and most possibly life-saving
options:
When you are addicted, particularly to opiates like heroin and you frequently
go through the cycles of
kicking and relapsing, kicking and relapsing etc., etc. you really screw up
your chemical household in your
brain. Supplies of endorphins, dopamine's, serotonen and other functions of
neurotransmitters are totally
de-regulated and out of whack. If you weren't depressed already when you
first started doing dope/hard
drugs, you have now caused this depression yourself by these very chemical
imbalances. The word
"depression" in the field of mental health is really meant to describe a
series of symptoms besides just being
bummed out. DSM-IV, the manual for mental disorders describes these other
symptoms; problems with
sleeping, fatigue, irritability, anxiety, feelings of guilt and
worthlessness, lack of concentration, weight
problems, thoughts of death and suicide, etc. Sounds familiar?
In the last couple of years there are some new anti-depressants on the market
that are particularly helpful for
people in recovery and that don't have side effects like the older ones.
These medications are designed to
resolve the symptoms I just described. Don't worry, you don't have to take
these meds forever, they actually
help restore your natural chemical balance in your brain when taken over an
extended period of time. There
is a lot of media-hype around the anti-depressant herb called St. Johnsworth.
However, that is definitely not
strong enough for recovering addicts.
Most anti-depressants take two weeks to be effective and you will have to
find the dose that is right for you
together with your mental health provider. How do you know the dose is right?
When you wake up in the
morning after a good night of sleep, your cravings for dope are out the
window and you feel like kicking ass.
There are two specific anti-depressants especially effective for detox and
recovery. They have no side effects,
like decrease in libido and other shit that the older anti-depressants
have.The first one is called SERZONE
(Nefazodone). -might make you slightly drowsy for a short while-The second
one is called WELLBUTRIN
(Buproprion ). -might make you a little speedy the first couple of days-
What to do if you still have symptoms of anxiety, even though you're on one
of these anti-depressants?
There is a new anti-anxiety medication on the market, that is non-addictive,
called BUSPAR (Buspirone). If,
after taking Serzone or Wellbutrin in combination with Buspar, you are still
anxious and you have to resort
to tranquilizers; take the lowest dose possible -you don't want to get hooked
on pills-. Recovering addicts on
the East Coast of the States should not use Ativan for these problems,
because Ativan is known to be used in
the cut of the heroin and can therefore bring on cravings for dope!Taking
anti-depressants while you're still
on dope has proven not be very helpful, because chemical processes in your
brain cannot be restored while
you use dope/hard drugs. That covers your mental health. You will find that
using these medications can
put you in a state of mind where PSYCHO-THERAPY can make a difference.
Other tips that are very helpful;
Try WORKING OUT minimally three times a week for at least an hour each time.
Not only do you help
your muscles and your central nervous system get back in to shape, it also
releases those endorphins that you
need so badly and that make you feel good in your body -hot baths also help
release endorphins-.
Do you have hypoglycemia? That is a blood sugar problem caused by a poor diet
over extended periods of
time. Symptoms of hypoglycemia are; the sudden urge to eat and having to
respond immediately to that
urge, dizziness, thinking you're going to faint if you don't get something to
eat, when you do eat you feel an
unpleasant "rush" in your head, gaining weight because of your constant
eating etc.? There is a solution that
makes that condition go away; working out minimally three times a week for at
least an hour each time!
And how about EATING RIGHT? Many people in recovery do not know, or have
forgotten how to eat
healthy. Eating healthy doesn't mean you have to spend a lot of money. Try to
eat a lot of fruit and
vegetables and cut out all fried foods. Stay away from fast foods, foods and
drinks with chemicals like
coloring and preservatives and do not drink sodas from a can but from
glass/plastic. Are you constantly
craving fatty foods? That's because you're body craves nutrients! That brings
us to just about the last point;
VITAMINS
To be taking daily; Vitamin A, B-complex 50, C (500mgs minimum), D, E,
Silica, Selenium, Zinc and
Acidopholus.
If you have ongoing diarrhea, take products that provide not only Acidopholus
and Bifidus, but also lots of
fiber. When you're clean for over 18 months, consider a fast.
Make sure you get a lot of REST, take naps if possible, to help your body
restore, especially when you work
out.
Our last suggestion is going to the SAUNA once or twice a week. That helps
you sweat out all the toxins that
linger in your body. The heat also brings on a lot of endorphines. Slowly
build up the time you spend in the
hot room. Steam rooms are just the best