{"id":10770,"date":"2022-11-30T11:04:44","date_gmt":"2022-11-30T11:04:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/?p=10770"},"modified":"2022-12-01T19:16:07","modified_gmt":"2022-12-01T19:16:07","slug":"changing-your-addicted-mind","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/dependency-addiction\/changing-your-addicted-mind","title":{"rendered":"Changing Your Addicted Mind"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h3>Hard drugs are called \u2018hard\u2019 because they change the physical brain, not only the ephemeral mind. Then, how to durably change a mind addicted to hard drugs?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote\"><p>In 2019, 70.000 people died from drug overdose in the US; 1.6 million had an opioid use disorder; 2 million used methamphetamine (crystal meth).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Brain = mind<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>More or less \u2015 for our present purpose, close enough to reality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Therefore, there is no essential difference between hard and soft drugs. They all change the mind and the brain because these are <a href=\"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog?p=4552\">(two views of) the same thing<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Moreover, addiction is never just superficially present in the mindscape. This makes the <a href=\"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog?p=10767\">challenge of changing one thought<\/a> relevant to the challenge of changing an addicted mind. As big as this challenge may be in perception, it may be incomprehensibly bigger.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>It is challenging, not impossible.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To make it possible, knowing which direction may help and which may not is a good start. Considerable efforts in the wrong direction will not attain the goal, meanwhile emboldening the conviction that it is eventually impossible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The direction that works is the one from the inside out. This is mental growth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>You can only grow out of an addiction.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>By other means, you might dampen it temporarily. The addiction itself stays put, ready to jump forward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This is because the mind\/brain remains changed in the deeper layers, which only growth can reach in a congruent, therefore durable way. This should be clear from the start to the end.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Of course, growth is a huge challenge.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But it is a <em>fundamentally<\/em> <em>different<\/em> challenge from the one that aims for change from the outside. Therefore, its accomplishment is easier and more difficult in <em>fundamentally<\/em> <em>different<\/em> ways. The idea that growth cannot principally be effective \u2013 since \u2018not hard enough\u2019 \u2013 stems from the lack of appreciation of this fundamental difference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Indeed, with the usual means \u2013 for instance, using a simple token economy, one way or another \u2013 one will not reach far into the growth domain as relevant to any addiction. One needs to be able to profoundly appreciate the <a href=\"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog?p=10662\">difference in mental paradigm<\/a>. If not, it\u2019s like searching for a solution on one plane while the solution principally can only be found on another plane altogether. Not more searching is needed, but one of an essentially different kind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>More searching for growth on the wrong plane only heightens the conviction that it can be found nowhere \u2015 especially if this wrong plane is the only one in sight. In other words, to take the growth path means that the care provider \u2013 also in the case of self-care \u2013 starts at least with this specific insight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Close communications of a different kind<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Everything about it starts with <a href=\"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog?p=1862\">deep listening<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It goes further with deep communication in two directions <a href=\"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog?p=2395\">in search of deeper meaning<\/a> behind addictive behavior.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I have also described <a href=\"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog?p=856\">six steps every drug addict could\/should take<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Much support can be given to all this from an effective plane, from within an effective paradigm. I point to <a href=\"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/category\/coaching\">AURELIS coaching<\/a>, where there is very much at one\u2019s disposal. Yet, all this is not straightforward while still turning rounds in the present, \u2018old\u2019 paradigm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To make things easier, starting from any paradigm, we are building the A.I.-driven coach-bot <a href=\"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/category\/lisa\">Lisa<\/a>. If you are interested, please let us know.<\/p>\n<div data-object_id=\"10770\" class=\"cbxwpbkmarkwrap cbxwpbkmarkwrap_no_cat cbxwpbkmarkwrap-post \"><a  data-redirect-url=\"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10770\"  data-display-label=\"0\" data-show-count=\"0\" data-bookmark-label=\" \"  data-bookmarked-label=\" \"  data-loggedin=\"0\" data-type=\"post\" data-object_id=\"10770\" class=\"cbxwpbkmarktrig  cbxwpbkmarktrig-button-addto\" title=\"Bookmark This\" href=\"#\"><span class=\"cbxwpbkmarktrig-label\"  style=\"display:none;\" > <\/span><\/a> <div  data-type=\"post\" data-object_id=\"10770\" class=\"cbxwpbkmarkguestwrap\" id=\"cbxwpbkmarkguestwrap-10770\"><div class=\"cbxwpbkmarkguest-message\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"cbxwpbkmarkguesttrig_close\"><\/a><h3 class=\"cbxwpbookmark-title cbxwpbookmark-title-login\">Please login to bookmark<\/h3>\n\t\t<form name=\"loginform\" id=\"loginform\" action=\"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-login.php\" method=\"post\">\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<p class=\"login-username\">\n\t\t\t\t<label for=\"user_login\">Username or Email Address<\/label>\n\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"log\" id=\"user_login\" class=\"input\" value=\"\" size=\"20\" \/>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p class=\"login-password\">\n\t\t\t\t<label for=\"user_pass\">Password<\/label>\n\t\t\t\t<input type=\"password\" name=\"pwd\" id=\"user_pass\" class=\"input\" value=\"\" size=\"20\" \/>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<p class=\"login-remember\"><label><input name=\"rememberme\" type=\"checkbox\" id=\"rememberme\" value=\"forever\" \/> Remember Me<\/label><\/p>\n\t\t\t<p class=\"login-submit\">\n\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" name=\"wp-submit\" id=\"wp-submit\" class=\"button button-primary\" value=\"Log In\" \/>\n\t\t\t\t<input type=\"hidden\" name=\"redirect_to\" value=\"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10770\" \/>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/form><\/div><\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Hard drugs are called \u2018hard\u2019 because they change the physical brain, not only the ephemeral mind. Then, how to durably change a mind addicted to hard drugs? In 2019, 70.000 people died from drug overdose in the US; 1.6 million had an opioid use disorder; 2 million used methamphetamine (crystal meth). Brain = mind More <a class=\"moretag\" href=\"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/dependency-addiction\/changing-your-addicted-mind\">Read the full article&#8230;<\/a><\/p>\n<div data-object_id=\"10770\" class=\"cbxwpbkmarkwrap cbxwpbkmarkwrap_no_cat cbxwpbkmarkwrap-post \"><a  data-redirect-url=\"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10770\"  data-display-label=\"0\" data-show-count=\"0\" data-bookmark-label=\" \"  data-bookmarked-label=\" \"  data-loggedin=\"0\" data-type=\"post\" data-object_id=\"10770\" class=\"cbxwpbkmarktrig  cbxwpbkmarktrig-button-addto\" title=\"Bookmark This\" href=\"#\"><span class=\"cbxwpbkmarktrig-label\"  style=\"display:none;\" > <\/span><\/a> <div  data-type=\"post\" data-object_id=\"10770\" class=\"cbxwpbkmarkguestwrap\" id=\"cbxwpbkmarkguestwrap-10770\"><div class=\"cbxwpbkmarkguest-message\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"cbxwpbkmarkguesttrig_close\"><\/a><h3 class=\"cbxwpbookmark-title cbxwpbookmark-title-login\">Please login to bookmark<\/h3>\n\t\t<form name=\"loginform\" id=\"loginform\" action=\"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-login.php\" method=\"post\">\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<p class=\"login-username\">\n\t\t\t\t<label for=\"user_login\">Username or Email Address<\/label>\n\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"log\" id=\"user_login\" class=\"input\" value=\"\" size=\"20\" \/>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t<p class=\"login-password\">\n\t\t\t\t<label for=\"user_pass\">Password<\/label>\n\t\t\t\t<input type=\"password\" name=\"pwd\" id=\"user_pass\" class=\"input\" value=\"\" size=\"20\" \/>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<p class=\"login-remember\"><label><input name=\"rememberme\" type=\"checkbox\" id=\"rememberme\" value=\"forever\" \/> Remember Me<\/label><\/p>\n\t\t\t<p class=\"login-submit\">\n\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" name=\"wp-submit\" id=\"wp-submit\" class=\"button button-primary\" value=\"Log In\" \/>\n\t\t\t\t<input type=\"hidden\" name=\"redirect_to\" value=\"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10770\" \/>\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/form><\/div><\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":10771,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":""},"categories":[46],"tags":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/1845.jpg?fit=960%2C560&ssl=1","jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9Fdiq-2NI","jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10770"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10770"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10770\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10937,"href":"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10770\/revisions\/10937"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10771"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10770"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10770"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aurelis.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10770"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}