What do you believe in? A question which enters our mind since the time of adolescence, since the time we start using our thoughts to direct our actions towards bigger goals. Beliefs drive our behavior and emotional reactions to situations and are a lens through which we see the world. Now, in many situations beliefs are useful in adapting our responses to circumstances, but sometimes the circumstances are not aligned with our beliefs and that causes us distress. For instance, if we believe that our partner should respond in a certain way when we tell them some grievance and they do not do so, it can cause emotional reactions such as anger and behavioral reactions such as blaming or avoiding the person. Hence belief systems are ingrained patterns of thought which are relatively fixed and dictate our lives.
When we talk about addiction, there are very fixed patterns of behavior which are governed by certain thoughts and beliefs about the substance. Many people, when they try a substance for the first time, have an enjoyable experience in which they feel relaxed, more cheerful and have lower inhibitions. It shows us that an alternate state of mind (of intoxication) is possible and frees us from our normal state. Overtime, this belief becomes stronger that the alcohol or drugs are an escape: either from the monotony or boredom of everyday life, from stress and from coping with situations and emotional baggage. Even those who view the substance as a reward for a hard day’s work still are wishing for an escape from the normal state of mind and eventually may not find other rewards as pleasurable as this one. This is when the abuse of a substance can begin, which may progress into dependence.
There are two main types of beliefs which sustain one’s dependence on the substance:
Positive beliefs about the substance
These are beliefs which drive us towards the substance and glorify the effects of the substance in our minds. They are also culturally propagated and are a huge influence in our continued dependence on the substance. Some of the common ones are:
- “The high is so amazing, there is nothing like it.”
- “I just drink or use to relax after a long day.”
- “There is nothing wrong with alcohol or drugs. The whole world does it.”
- “The substance helps me function/concentrate/perform better at work/in family functions/ stress.”
- “It helps me cope with stress/ anxiety/ emotional distress.”
- “There is no better companion then the alcohol or drug.”
- “A little bit of indulgence is fine once in a while, even healthy.”
Negative beliefs about sobriety
These are beliefs which drive us away from being sober and result in a negative attitude towards life without substance. These, in essence obviously push us towards more substance abuse and eventual dependence.
Some of the common negative beliefs about sobriety are:
- “Life will be boring if I’m sober all the time.”
- “I will have no way to celebrate the good times or achievements in my life.”
- “There won’t be a way to relax if I’m stressed.”
- “I don’t want to live like a hermit.”
- ” If I don’t drink when others around me are, then it would be awkward.”
- “it is unimaginable to me that I have had the last drink or drug of my life.”
- “Life in sobriety is not worth the effort. It is very tough and the rewards are not worth it.”
These beliefs form a system of beliefs which sustain one’s addicted behavior. These beliefs may be conscious or unconscious, which runs that one may or may not be aware of the underlying beliefs for their actions. These belief systems can be activated very strongly in certain situations where one faces their triggers. These triggers could be external, such as, work issues, fights with loved ones, financial loss, etc. or internal, such as, boredom, anxiety, loneliness, etc. Once activated, many of emotional and behavioral responses are influenced by these beliefs.
Changing belief systems
In order to adopt and sustain a life of recovery, it is imperative to change the lens with which we view the world, which is the belief systems that we follow. Through counselling, we can learn to identify dysfunctional belief systems which have kept the addiction alive. Once we get better at identifying, we can start to change them using various individual and group therapy techniques and inculcate these techniques in our daily life. Gradually, not only can we prevent relapse, we can also learn to enjoy recovery and live in the present moment more fully we can also learn to process our emotions and not be a slave to our dysfunctional negative beliefs.
In a rehab centre like Zorbacare, the process of rehabilitation focuses on modifying the outlook towards recovery and working on modifying our mental blocks and barriers to recovery. Zorbacare aims to integrate people with addiction back into society as functional, stable and contributing members of their community. The treatment program targets deep rooted beliefs, automatic thoughts resulting from the beliefs, the emotional distressful responses related to those beliefs and maladaptive behavior resulting from these beliefs. As we change our lens, the whole worldview changes and we can adopt a new, healthier perspective towards life!