What’s the Opposite of Addiction?

I’m so bored, bored, bored I think I’ll eat that huge chunk of cheese and drink some heroin laced water…

You are thinking “sober” right? In an incredible article in the Huffington Post by Johann Hari, he posits, “So the opposite of addiction is not sobriety. It is human connection.”

The article goes on to list scenarios in which users choose a happy, full, “normal” life over addiction; where community is a stronger motivator than chemicals. Soldiers in Viet Nam who stopped heroin use when they returned to real-life and family,  hospital patients who cease drug use as soon as they are physically able, and my favorite – rats who choose fresh water instead of drug laced water when they have a communal “rat park” to play in, instead of a boring, empty cage.

I picture these happy rats playing hide-and-seek in Habittrails set on artificial turf knolls, getting a good night’s sleep, eschewing cocaine and heroin water, because they are too busy and fulfilled.

After a long day in the rat park…

I got a comment yesterday from David who said, “One of the biggest mistakes people make, is not redesigning their lives to where said life is impossible if a relapse occurs.” God help me I’m back on the subject of Relapse, but isn’t this the key to staying sober?

So many of the warning signs of relapse (and addiction in general) include isolation, boredom and a sense of worthlessness. It is why those of us who intend to stay sober find something interesting to do, give back, get out of the house, answer the phone and attend meetings. We recognize, and bank on the fact, that community and purpose and human kindness (received and given) are key to recovery.

And now I feel badly about the rat traps I set in the Bristol Place house, but the rat was eating the insulation and the wiring and everything in the pantry, and leaving droppings on my vanity (where he ate the soap) and no one could figure out how to catch him because he was smarter than the exterminator (and me if the truth be told) and that is another good drinking story…