Drug addiction is a mental disorder where the body is dependent on substance use. Drug addicts are unable to control their urge and craving for drug making them go back to the drug no matter how much they try to stay away from it. The drug could be illegal as in marijuana, cocaine, heroin, or legal as with prescriptions.

With drug addiction, the brain is used to functioning with the substance, and the body also depends on the drug for functionality.

This dependence of the body and brain makes it difficult and for some impossible to resist the urge for the drug even when they sincerely wish to stop. Drug addicts feel physical, mental, and emotional pains when they don’t use their drugs, making them go back to their old habits even when they attempt to quit. With addicts, the road to recovery is a long journey that could take months or sometimes years to achieve depending on their determination and the substance they are addicted to. Many factors can help escape from drug fiend, friends, and family play an essential role as well as lifestyle and sometimes medication. The following steps can help you fight that addiction if you are sincere about being drug-free:

Detoxify

The first most important step is to get rid of the drug in the body and desist from the use.

Counseling

You will need a lot of help on the road to recovery and seeing a counselor is the first, talk to your counselor and get advice on the way forward.

Medication

See a doctor to establish if there is any drug or treatment that can help your course.

Get help from family and friends

The people who can help the most are those you see and relate with every day. Talk to your family and friends, and they can significantly help in the recovery process.

Build a drug-free network

Away from home now, make sure those you relate and hang out with every day are drug-free, hanging out with drug addicts will only help you go back to your old ways.

 Change prescription

In the case of being addicted to a prescriptive drug, talk to your doctor, and look at alternative drugs that can help your condition.

Avoid clubs and pubs

Going to places like clubs and bars can disrupt your recovery plans. You are more likely to take ‘just one’ pint or smoke that will drag you back into your addiction.

Exercise regularly

There is a long list of the benefits of exercise. Exercising regularly will keep you away from drugs and improve your health as a consequence.

Treat the underlying disease

Most people fall into addiction because of a disease or conditions. Depression, anxiety, anger, and insomnia are some of the many reasons people do drug, fighting drug addiction without fighting the underlying problem might not yield a fruitful result. Get help with your problem as well as the addiction.

Live healthily

A healthy lifestyle includes regular exercise, a good diet, and of course, staying away from alcohol and other substances. A healthy lifestyle will not only improve your life, it will help fight the addiction as well as the problems associated with it while also changing your outlook about life.

Fight relapse

Drug addicts are likely to fall back to their old habits even after months or years of treatment, this is known as relapse, remember this and fight the relapse by following all the steps that helped you achieve sobriety in the first place.

Pamper yourself

Do not wait for people to shower you with love, spoil yourself. Go out to movies alone, go shopping, buy yourself some good gifts that can make you happy. Being happy keeps you away from addiction and relapse.

Save

Even after making all the quitting decisions, the urge to go back might be sometimes irresistible due to the physical and mental pains that comes with quitting. Start saving the money you spend on addiction daily or weekly and see how much you get. The money you are able to save could be an extra motivation for you to stop your addiction.

Get you a pet

Many people are addicted to the drug because of loneliness, getting a pet might help alleviate the feeling of loneliness as you can at least communicate with something and feel the presence of an animal with you.

 

Get a healthy addiction

The best way of fighting one addiction is to replace it with another. Get yourself healthy addictions like sports or even video games, you will be consumed by these addictions that you won’t even have time to think or crave for drugs.

Change your environment 

Environmental factor plays a huge role in addiction, it could be the people surrounding you in the environment or the proximity to get your drug. Consider changing your environment if the environment makes it hard for you to be drug-free.

Fill every day with activities

Fighting drug addiction is tough, and fighting relapse is even tougher. Fill every day with activities that you have no time for drugs at all. Map out weekly activities by the weekend and fill all your spare times with activities. Go to movies, play sports, play games, go to the museum, travel, or just enjoy nature anything but being idle and falling for your old habits again.

Volunteer

Be busy, and when you have a problem filling your day with activities, volunteer for a cause, work in your community and help people. You will realize you are helping yourself by helping people in the long run.

 Consider rehab center

Many drug addicts are unable to fight addiction, no matter how they try. Rehab centers are designed for people fighting different addictions be it alcohol, nicotine, marijuana or cocaine addiction, being confined to a rehab where there’s no availability of drugs, but adequate treatment and support have helped a lot of people fight their addictions. Rehab time could be weeks or months, depending on the drug and the level of addiction.

Fighting addiction is complicated, the body and brain are used to the drug, and their way of reacting to you quitting is to make you feel unwell until you give them their daily dose of the drug. Living a healthy lifestyle is the most important tool in fighting addiction. Other useful tools include getting a pet, filling every day with activities, and seeking the help of family and friends as well as that of a doctor and counselor. Going to rehab might be helpful when all those mentioned above have failed to help you achieve sobriety.