When you think of solving an addiction, you probably envision treatment programs, meetings, therapy, and medications. You may think that addiction is a lifelong problem or illness and that people are forever recovering and always in imminent danger of relapse. You may have accepted this belief system without questioning it- even though you probably know at least one person who once was a heavy substance user and simply stopped. Perhaps that person is you, a parent, sibling, or close friend. You may have thought, well, they clearly weren’t a “real alcoholic” or “real addict” but the truth is, they stopped the way most heavy substance users do – by deciding they want to stop and doing just that. Yes, 9 out of 10 people who once qualified as being “addicted” to alcohol and/or drugs get over the problem, and only about 20% attend treatment, therapy, or meetings. Furthermore, the data has shown that those who take on the identity of the powerless addict or alcoholic as prescribed in treatment and recovery support groups struggle longer and are more likely to cycle in and out of periods of heavy binge usage. The Freedom Model for Addictions has compiled all of the research on alcoholism and addiction that has been done over the past several decades. It also incorporates the authors’ firsthand experiences helping tens of thousands of people to solve their addictions as well as their personal experiences resolving their substance use problems. They’ve put it all together in a comprehensive self-help guide that has already circled the globe helping people to break free from both addiction and perpetual recovery. In Episode 81 of The Addiction Solution Podcast, Freedom Model co-developers, Mark Scheeren, and Michelle Dunbar discuss how people can resolve their addictions without the trappings of perpetual recovery. |