Reborn Out of a Life of Heroin Addiction
Heroin addiction destroys the mind, the body, the very soul of the addict. This dangerously addictive drug has destroyed many lives, causing illness, emotional desperation and many times death to the user. Mitch was a heroin addict and was quite familiar with the horrors of addiction. He said, “When I was addicted to heroin I was living on the streets. I was stealing from my family to get the drug. I was always sick as I was coming down from heroin. Finally I was doing drugs just so I could be well. It was terrible. My life was totally terrible.”
Finding the Narconon Arrowhead drug and alcohol rehabilitation program was his first step towards sobriety. He knew he was done with drugs and just wanted to get off them. He had tried a lot of other rehabs but Narconon seemed the best one for him. He said, “When I first got to Narconon, I was really nervous and kind of scared. But the staff treated me great. They made me feel like I didn’t have a ‘disease.’ They made it really easy to come off the drugs. It was a great withdrawal. It was the easiest withdrawal I ever had.”
The Narconon treatment is a holistic way of addressing the aspects of dependency. With a drugless withdrawal and without using any addictive substitute drugs in any part of the program, the recovering addict has a better chance at recovery because one addiction is not being traded for another. After withdrawal, the participant does the Narconon New Life Detoxification. This effective detox flushes out toxic drug residues by having the individual take part in moderate daily exercise, take plenty of vitamin and minerals supplements and spend time in a low-heat sauna.
This was one of the turning points for Mitch. He described his experience with this innovative detox: “I saw the biggest change in myself after I got out of the sauna. I didn’t have any more drug dreams or any more cravings. I felt really healthy. I was sleeping and eating well and looked healthy. I would call my parents on the phone and they told me I sounded so much better. I suddenly had a good outlook for my future. I finally had hope that my life could be worth something.”
The last step of the Narconon program is unique life skills training. Here the recovering addict looks back on his past actions and analyses his mistakes, learns how to repair damaged areas of his life and gains knowledge on how to live a new life without drugs.
Mitch said, “Now that I’m finished with the Narconon program, I see a big future for myself. I don’t have to worry about going back and using the drugs because I have no desire to use them anymore. I can’t begin to tell you what I got out of this program. It has totally changed my life for the better. I’m ready to take on the world again. I feel like I’ve been reborn.”