Grief in Recovery

This week at South Orange County Detox and Treatment we will be highlighting “GRIEF”, the focus of our ongoing Word of the Week’s series. As anyone who has experienced loss while in the pangs of addiction can tell you, the combination of grief and active use can be a detrimental, if not deadly, combination. The process of grieving in and of itself, even while in a solid state of recovery, can be a formidable process to endure. As individuals, we deal with grief in many ways, and often in accordance with Kubler-Ross’s conception of the 5 stages that are denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. Because everyone has different experiences throughout life, each person has learned different methods of coping; some which are advantageous to healing and personal growth, and some that just exacerbate the already existing disease that is steering the wheel that we ought to be at the helm of.

Here at South Orange County Detox and Treatment, we have experienced our fair share of loss of friends, family members, and unfortunately, people who we have met on their journey to recovery. When someone passes due to addiction, it serves a reminder to those still battling addiction, to not be complacent. The disease does not take breaks, nor do the dark forces that drive these addictions whereby their end goal is to destroy our will, energy, drive, independence, and ultimately our spirit. When working with clients who have experienced loss, our goal at South Orange County Detox and Treatment is to process grief and loss in a healthy manner, with the goal of discovering ways of communicating, understanding, and dealing with loss in ways that promote nourishment, restoration, healing and sobriety. We believe that with the right perspective, knowledge, compassion, and respect, we can aid in the process of grieving in order to foster meaningful recovery that facilitates a rebirth of spirit and an enhancement of the individual’s quality of life. Please do not hesitate to call us here at South Orange County Detox and Treatment if you or someone you love is in need of help and/or is struggling with grief related to addiction.