HOW TO RECOVER FROM HEROIN. WHAT WORKS AND WHAT DOESN’T

March 19, 2023October 2, 2025CHRISTINA DITZEL Leave a comment

IS RECOVERY EVEN POSSIBLE?

Photo by RODNAE Productions on Pexels.com

Yes, you can recover from heroin! I know this because I did it and I did it without any other medications or rehab centers. I don’t know how long you have been down this rabbit hole, but I can tell you it is possible to dig yourself out! Recovery is always possible no matter what your addiction is. You just have to be willing to do the work that comes with overcoming the addiction. And you can’t pick up other habits in the process! When you quite something you quite with intention. Let me ask you this, “What is waiting on the other side of your recovery”? Think about that for a minute. You better make plans that are enticing enough to keep you from “Feenin”. Because if you do have something amazing to look forward to, you’ll fight harder. Please here me when I say, “I don’t mean a girl or guy” I don’t mean that great job you’ll have waiting for you, or any tangible or material things. All those things are temporary pleasures and if or when they fail, you will have reasons to go back to your spiral of addicted behavior. Think of achieving something for yourself when you recover. Be realistic! Think of things that won’t fail or leave you craving that “fix”. Quitting intentionally means doing this for yourself not for anyone or anything else. Changing your behavior patterns means that you don’t set yourself up for failure later. It means you don’t attach yourself to people or things that could potentially cause you harm later and cause you to relapse.

WHAT DOESN’T WORK FOR ADDICTS

I am so tired of the advice that is out there trying to help people “recover”. And here we see people who are in recovery forever! First, can I just say, “there is no one size fits all”! We don’t all heal the same. Remember that! So, what worked for me, may not work for you or your family member. You may hate my advice and it may seem completely out of the ordinary, but as someone who has overcome many different addictions, (sex, drugs, money, men, drinking, etc.) I can offer advice that worked for me. I love my own advice because I know it can work for those who have tried other programs without any success. I haven’t seen much success any other way. I honestly believe if rehab centers would change their ideas about addiction and recovery, they would have more success.

So, with all that said, let’s make one thing clear, you CAN NOT AND WILL NOT recover from anything if you keep freaking talking about it!!!! STOP CALLING YOURSELF AN ADDICT! STOP SAYING YOU’RE A “RECOVERED DRUG ADDICT or ALCOHOLIC” LOSE THE DAM LABELS! They called me an addict and an alcoholic, they called me bipolar, they said I was depressed, and put me on medications, and they were wrong! In fact, I have a full bar in my house and I have total control of myself. But if I want a dam glass of wine with my dinner, you better believe I am going to have a glass of wine with my dinner! I have never been happier, I stress less than the average human, and I am sitting here drinking a nice hot cup of tea by choice! Did you hear what I said? BY CHOICE! You have to learn how to make better choices! And to do that you must also know why you make the choices you do. I have learned to have control of my habits because I have lost the labels other people put on me. Why you do certain things has a lot to do with other people and the influence they have on you. I am not going to say it again, LOSE THE LABELS and lose the people who place labels on you.

Why don’t you just call your addiction, bad behavior patterns? Because that is all they are,” BAD HABITS”. Bad behavior patterns are learned behaviors. And we pick up behaviors due to circumstances in our life, people influencing us, trauma, and many other reasons. But if we can learn a behavior we can unlearn them too. Dah! Wouldn’t it be easier to quit a bad habit, vs staying in “recovery” and collecting your little coins month after month, year after year? “Yea let’s collect a jar of coins to remind me every freaking day how fucked up I am!!! That sounds like a grand-ol’ ldea!” That is ridiculous!! IT’S STUPID!

Is this why we go through those horrible withdraws? Just to struggle to stay sober, to go through depression, and to continue to be stressed about not being high? Why do we have to go through that for the rest of our life just because we picked up a bad habit that we can actually overcome with the right training. No instead we sit around and feel sorry for ourselves with counselors who are like “Oh let’s talk about your feelings today”. WHAT FEELINGS? I have been walking around numb for years you ass hole!!! I think I’d rather NOT!

WHAT ARE YOU REPLACING YOUR ADDICITON WITH?

Like let’s be real here, think about this for a second. Like “what kind of life are you replacing for your addiction”? Is it going to be worth it? Is it going to be amazing? Will you have something to look forward to when you wake up each morning and go to sleep at night? Because if you don’t decide to replace your old habits with a new life, the only life you will have waiting for you is the rollercoaster ride of being codependent, bipolar, and the constant struggle of trying to force yourself not to have a craving!!! Let me tell you this, the first week of withdraws from Heroin freaking sucks, and that is not even the worst part! So, you better have a dam good reason to jump on that recovery train if you ever want to get yourself on the other side of that!

Let’s not even talk about the depression from having to cope with life sober! HAHA That’s fun! You will have to learn how to cope with life differently. Learn to love yourself before you love others. Find new friends. Lose some people in your life. Replace bad habits by discovering new HOBBIES. Like, you have to learn to really love yourself and know what you want in and out of your life. You better get very clear, make a plan, and write it down, because your body will try to change your mind several times before this journey is over. Let me add one positive here before you jump off this blog scared to even try. One thing you can look forward to is a sober mind. There is nothing compared to being present with the people you love on a sober level. The mentality of people you meet and the conversations you have are incomparable. The connections you embrace will better than any high from extasy, special K, and heroin put together (and yes I have done all three and more in one night). I am just saying!!!! I won’t even mention how amazing sober sex is because you’re not there yet, but dam! Life lived sober, is so much clearer, and clarity is power my friend.

THE RIGHT AND WRONG WAY TO RECOVER

Okay so doing it on my own was probably stupid on my part! I almost died in my apartment alone. But thank God I had a few good people who looked out for me and when they didn’t hear from me for a day or two, they came looking for me. I didn’t want a rehab center, because I knew they would medicate me. I saw too many friends in rehab and watched them relapse repeatedly or die of an overdoses. That to me, was like torture! Let me tell some of you who are unaware (program directors, counselors, family members, friends, etc.), when you relapse, you are worse off than where you were before, because the high you feel after you get the drug out of your system, is amazing. Not to mention the antidepressant pills the rehab center gives its patients, mix very well with heroin and other substances.

Point being, I wanted nothing to do with that! So rehab was “out” for me! There was no way I was paying someone to put me in a casket. However, you do need a support group that won’t leave you but will push you harder than you push yourself. Again, rehab centers won’t support you when you are out of the program. Trust me I witnessed this myself. But I won’t throw out names on my blog. God will deal with those individuals. Let me be clear when I say the support group you choose must be willing to break into your apartment to make sure your alive! They must be distracting you with activities and things that are fun, educational, and stimulate your mind, body, and soul. You don’t need those friends or family members who only want to be around you, when they need something from you, or when they feel you’re doing something wrong! Don’t hang around people who want to make themselves feel better at the expense of hurting you! You can’t be around people who are a constant reminder of why you got high in the first place. “To numb out the noise!” Stop talking about shit that depresses you, makes you angry, or stresses you out! And don’t be around people who drag you down! I’m tired of saying this! LOSE THE DRAMA OR LOSE YOUR LIFE!!!! It’s really that simple!

Also, Lose the ego and the winning! Put your big boy/girl pants on and suck it up, because it’s not going to be easy! I’m sick of people in recovery winning! You got yourself into this mess, now you need to get yourself out of it. If you’re truly interested in recovering, you will do whatever it takes without the pity party!

Yes! Tough love!!! That is what helped me! Sugar coating is the new trend in this society and it’s exhausting! Sugar coating doesn’t help people recover; it just pushes them off the deep end! I’ve lost too many people to “sugar coat recovery”! If you ever want to recover from Heroin (or any addiction), you have to become the hero of your own story! No one is coming to save you. You probably shit on too many people when you got high, and they don’t trust you now. Unfortunately, that’s on you! Own it and move on. Addicts are liars and that is what they tell you in rehab centers. So basically, they are telling you they don’t trust you. So, they will always question your motives. keep that in mind! You must change your own motives and forget what other people say about you and your motives. Because trust me when I say, “everyone has an opinion! And people will have a lot to say about you behind your back”.

Remember this, every Hero has a traumatic event occur before they had the power and energy to beat the villain. Think of Heroin as your Villain! It may be destroying you now; it may steal all your energy, it may be your kryptonite and consume you, but you have the power inside you to go up against this and win the battle of dependance! Don’t have expectations for people to support you when you’re too weak to support yourself, and don’t ever give up on yourself when you feel unstable. You only have yourself to encourage or to blame for your thoughts and actions. Choose to encourage yourself to keep going and continue to build a life you can look forward to. Stay strong in your mind and force your body to follow. That is the only way to overcome any addiction.

I wish you the best of luck, feel free to message me if you have any questions, or just go to christinaditzel.blog for more reading material or podcast. Follow me on YouTube and watch for new and upcoming videos on Cleaning, Clarity, Girl Talk and Vlogs.

Much love and prayers to all who have suffered and died from addiction. May we beat this together and overcome the bad habits that consume us!

HOW TO OVERCOME ADDICTION (Part 2)

August 7, 2019October 5, 2025CHRISTINA DITZEL Leave a comment

Photo by Ike louie Natividad on Pexels.com

Check out part one if you missed it!

For the rest of you, welcome back to part 2 of “Overcoming addiction”. Hopefully in part one, you learned a little about yourself and realized that mindset is everything. The words we use to label ourselves and others, has a huge impact on how we think, feel, and act daily. We can’t go around calling people addicts just because they drink too much, use drugs, or take advantage of other substance abuse, but the truth is, many of us are addicted to something, we just use different names for it. Until you realize it is just a really “bad habit” like, being on the phone too dam much, serial dating, hyper-sexuality, and anything else that becomes an OBSESSION. Basically, you should have realized that addiction is nothing more than an infatuation when we are preoccupied with an object or activity, that consumes our attention! You just have to change these habits to overcome the addiction to it! It really is that simple!

OKAY HOW? HOW DO WE CHANGE THESE HABITS?

So, I am going to give everyone 12 steps to overcoming addiction in a minute, but first let me get you on the right mindset. Because the truth is, if you continue on your path with an “addict” mentality, you will stay in the “addiction” or remain a “recovered addict” forever! As long as you stay in the past mentally you’re staying in that addiction physically! So, are you really ready for change? Are you ready to overcome this once and for all? Well, if you really are, you must first get a grip on your mindset! We have to change our thinking! We must think of our “habit” (not addiction) as something we love to do because for a moment it makes us feel a sense of satisfaction, love, passion, or whatever we FEEL we are missing in our everyday, ordinary life. Furthermore, we must realize the fact that we have a sense of lack somewhere, or we are trying to numb ourselves from some reality we don’t want to face. Well, your gonna’ have to “suck it up” and face it! Sorry! Unfortunately, until we face our pain, we will never understand what or where the pain is generating from. We have to figure out what your trying to numb. And while we are in this phase we need to work on US, without the opinions of the people in our life. Like let’s be real here, they have their own demons they have to face.

Listen, if we can focus our mindset and become more aware of the things “we” think about and be more concerned with our “own life”, we can easily break much of the bad habits (or addictions) we acquire throughout life. The only way to change our life, is to change ourselves. However, by continuing to use the word, “Addiction” and being in “recovery” and listening to the belief systems of other people, you ARE maintaining that state of mind, you keep doing and living the same life, and therefore you will never overcome it! You really have to focus on “you and your unique self” in order to understand where your pain generates and feed your pleasures by building a life that feels good to your inner being. Right now, you must seek the true essence that is YOU! Nothing can change because you’re not changing it! If you continue listening and doing the things the people around you do, you will always feel out of control, and you will live out of control! The same concept applies to the words, obsession, infatuation, compulsive, dependency, and whatever other habit words you use. To overcome it, you have to face it, and realize you’re allowed to just be….

(This is where you figure out who you really are. What you want to “be” when you grow up. What you like and don’t like. Who you like and who you really don’t like. You’re allowed to have an opinion and you are allowed to be yourself.)

TRANSFORMATION AND CLARITY

When people begin to realize their addictions are just compulsive dependency’s that began due to some “lack” in one area of life, or an “escape” to some trauma that happened to them, it becomes so easy to recognize why we began these habits in the first place. In fact, it becomes much easier to focus our mind on self growth, and move forward when we get clarity. Transformation and clarity of who we are suppose to be in life, becomes abundantly clear. We begin to change our thinking and our actions to reflect our purpose driven life! And this is where amazing things begin to happen!

As humans we want to be independent and we don’t want to be treated like a child. And, we definitely don’t want to be undermined by the people who we are around, that have their own challenges! No one is perfect, and everyone has something they are “addicted” to! Don’t undercut yourself no matter what side your standing on! The addicts family and friends have to make changes too! That is, if they want to be a part of your new life. Because truth is, everyone has issues and we can’t expect others to change if we are not willing to change. If you are a friend or family member of an addict, don’t become a dictator! Don’t tell someone they have to change, if you’re not willing to change. (Now I placed a label on the family, “Dictator” and I bet that made you feel uncomfortable)

I never did like the fact that everyone puts all this pressure on the “addict” while everyone else just sits around in their own addictions like eating disorders, sex, social media, mental and physical abuse, and whatever other things people do to compensate for their own stress induced life. It makes me crazy! I dislike labels very much and “addiction” is no exception!

Also, another thing you should acknowledge is, “things were not always okay” in the home of those with “addiction”. The family has to talk about the underlining cause whether you like it or not! If you really want to help EVERYONE, than everyone has to make changes. Stop leaving all the responsibility on the addict! Funny, how they are the one with the problem, yet some people go as far as pushing the blame on them for all their problems and stress. (Giggles), How does that work?

Look, I can give you a foundation with the steps I promised, but you have to be the one that takes the steps to get the results you want. And this is not just for the so called “addict”! As the family member/loved one, you have to participate if you want to be in their new life! So, if you really want to OVERCOME ADDICTION, First, lose the label all together! Call it a bad habit, because we all know “habits can be broken”! Then follow the “12 steps for the addict” or the “12 steps for family and friends of addicts” below…

12 steps for The Addict

Own your part (take responsibility for your thoughts and actions)
Stop feeling sorry for yourself (do something to better yourself)
Stop talking about the past and use your mind to think of ideas that will move you into your future
Forgive, Appreciate and Have gratitude (Let go & let GOD)
Stop looking for other people (relationships), places, and things to make you happy. (Happiness comes from WITHIN)
Get grounded (body, mind, soul)
Get in your own way so you can get out of your own head, and into a new understanding
Change your Perspectives (use thoughts, words, and actions to reflect those perspectives)
Do what you say and say what you do (DON’T TALK ABOUT IT, BE ABOUT IT)
Wake up with purpose (have a plan when you get out of bed)
Go to sleep with thanks (appreciate the experiences of each day)
Be excited about the journey! (Embrace the unknown, and be excited about the unexpected things that will happen each day)

Hello! Hold on a minute…..Don’t discount yourself if your family member or loved one of an Addict. You have 12 steps too in this transition! If you think people with bad habits need help, then maybe you should learn what habits you need to adjust.

12 steps for family & friends of addicts

Live and be the example of the 12 steps above first before you judge!
Own your part (take responsibility for how YOU affect those around you)
No more Pity Party’s (stop feeling sorry for yourself and for them)
Do something different (Think and talk about something different and you’ll get different results. Your thoughts, words, and actions affect them too)
Be Better not Bitter (Stop expecting them to change, while you stay the same. BE THE CHANGE)
Be happy (stop being miserable with your own life. Find new people, places and things in your own life that are happy and good for you and for them. Be the example of what happy looks like)
Get grounded (Are you grounded? Again, what example are you giving and living out in your own life)
Stepping stone vs. Roadblock (Stop enabling them! Are you a stepping stone moving them forward into NEW LIFE, or are you a road block holding them back into their OLD LIFE?)
Are you Reliable (Can they depend on you to keep your word, or do you break your promises? What are you getting busy with and with whom?)
Reminiscing (Stop talking about the past! Move forward with new thoughts, new feelings, and new actions)
Lose the negative words like Guilt, shame, doubt, & fear (begin with using words like forgiveness, acceptance, grace, and love)
Words hold power and actions are the influence of that power! (Do the words you use reflect the actions you take in your own life)

There are a million different people who I am sure have a million different versions of “The 12 Steps to recovery” and it doesn’t matter what form you take, as long as the steps you take are moving EVERYONE FORWARD into their purpose! We all have a purpose in life, and Addicts, or people with really bad habits are no exception. EVERYONE should be doing something different every day! Every single person should be doing something to move themselves forward in this beautiful thing we call life.

However, if you are around people who are just going through the motions, doing the same thing day in and day out, your no better than an addict yourself. What are you doing that is so special? Habits are just something that is hard to give up. It’s just an obsession or infatuation! It’s doing the same thing over and over again. It’s a pattern or a custom, a fixation or we can just call it a bad habit, or keep calling it an addiction. But we all have something we do continuously that we are obsessed with doing! So, why do we call addiction a disease? It’s just a habit, and habits can be broken! You just have to change the routine and depend on something healthier and better for your life moving forward. Take the steps above and begin to restore your true inner being by improving the way you think and act. And be mindful of those thoughts and actions everyday. It really is that simple. Yes, it’s hard, but its really simple! Just start!

If you desire more guidance in other areas of your life, please comment below, ask a question, speak your heart and help another. You can also join me across social media or just grab my book “Hot mess to totally blessed” on Amazon Today. This just may be the help you’ve been looking for. Begin your journey into an abundant life by making better choices and taking action today!! Living in abundance is a choice…

If you need more advice in other areas of your life, please comment below, subscribe and don’t forget to join my podcast.

Discover a calmer, cleaner, safer home with Christina

"Because peace begins at home – and within"

Tag addiction recovery