Attending an NA meeting during finals was one of my smarter decisions, as I procrastinate my work until the very last minute this week. However, in my opinion, going to a meeting was a good type of procrastination compared to other things I could be doing. Instead of going with the same friend this time, I asked a friend who was struggling with a ________ addiction. Not knowing that I was aware of his addiction, I asked him to join so I didn’t have to go alone; and he was more than happy to join me. I was very happy he agreed to join, because hopefully it helps him with his personal addiction, and he continues to return to the meetings. Attending an additional meeting was more relaxing the second time around, because I knew what to expect. Believe it or not, the meeting was a stress reliever for me because, knowing others have bigger battles to fight compared to my mere test definitely puts perspective into my eyes. The meeting was very similar to the first one, however instead of an alcohol addiction, the meeting focused on narcotics. In my …show more content…
However, rather than treating an addiction like a disease, society treats addiction by stigmatizing the person like a failure, and criminal. Those who suffer with this disease, both the addict, and their friends and family, are usually isolated by judgment and embarrassment from others, who are unaware and ignorant to the issue. As a result, the disease sadly often goes unrecognized and untreated, especially among the poor, and those who are unable to get proper treatment. Once again, I am very happy after attending my second meeting, and it has an overall great experience. I wish more people were open to meetings to see how great and beneficial they are to all kinds of people, and this summer that is my goal to open others up to attending meetings that could help benefit
Before I attended an AA meeting, I did not realize the significance of AA and the twelve-step program. Now I understand how these group meetings were designed to influence an individual to remain sober, but also it was meant to use your voice and ask for help when needed. I was glad that I had the opportunity to attend an AA meeting because I was able to see first hand an alcoholic’s point of view. It helped me understand that the negative stereotype of an alcoholic is not true and that because of their disease, they are living in a world that they cannot mentally comprehend because of their inability to refrain from drinking.
...e or social group for being an addict if it is not fully understood that they are trying to recover from their addiction (Methadone Cons).
Alcoholism is as prevalent in my family, as blood is in our veins. When previously asked to observe 12-step groups, I ritualistically flocked to Alcoholics Anonymous, without consideration of the possibility that other groups had any potential to make an impact on me. I always pride myself in my ability to identify as an individual that is not ensnared in alcoholism, but unfortunately am an individual that was highly tormented by alcoholism. Through observation of the group and how it processed, as well as identifying how I felt as a new attendee, I was able to understand why self-help, support groups are so vital for individuals in recovery. I finally realized, I too am in recovery.
From interviewing celebrities such as actress Kristen Johnston and politician Bill White, the film identified substance abuse can happen to anyone. I found more sympathy to those once I learned the facts, not opinions, of substance abuse users. It was interesting to find how the physiology of ones’ brain may change over time, thus proving it is not always a person’s free will of choice to use. People of addiction are like anyone else who may have fallen down the wrong path. Some who have found substance abuse for coping, did not realize they were becoming addicts. Others have found the media and advertisement placing pressure on them because it looks entertaining and fun. With limited outreach programs, it is crucial to increase the awareness among young groups for prevention. With fear of being judged, the stigma and health disparities of addiction cause many to not seek help. Equal opportunity should be available to everyone. As a future nurse, I find an important role for me is to lead in educating and being opened minded to the struggles of each one of my patients. My job is to refrain from stereotyping and being an advocate. As healthcare is always evolving to provide the most adequate care, I look forward towards the future as more people are educating and trying to eliminate those struggling through addiction
At Community Boards, the skills and disciplines that I learned was that I was able to handle clients through phone calls more effectively and in a manner in which I can be neutral. I also learned to be very patient with some clients over the phone, where some phone calls had spent over an hour of the client’s time talking to me about their issues at their residence. I was able to cultivate the skill of being able to use different communication styles in order to deal with certain people and their styles, for often I would have to deal with people that very emotional, because of their situation, whether they be angry, sad, or hopeless, I had to alter my style of communication to accommodate their needs and try to calm them down. Although I
...meeting was one of awe and some relief. This meeting made me realize that I should really appreciate the things that I have in life because there are others out there who are way off worse. What I learned from the meeting is that the problem is not how much you drink; it’s what happens when you drink. Getting clean and sober is for those who want it, not those who need it. The key step for addicts is to maintain a motivated way of thinking once you start feeling good about yourself from making amends. I believe 12-step sober support groups can be extremely beneficial to the person attempting abstinence. The premise is that one addict can best help another and that by helping another you actually help yourself. AA is a fundamental example of how groups support sobriety in individuals as long as they are willing to follow a program and commit to changing their habits.
Substance addiction is becoming an epidemic. While some people can quit using a substance without any help, most people need help to their recovery. Narcotics anonymous is an important support group for our society. There are many different narcotic anonymous programs to join that have meetings throughout the week. The members of the support group all share one thing in common, they suffer from different types of chemical dependency. Members help each other because they have the same problems and worries that everyone in the room has. Though they may be struggling with different stages in their life, for the most part, they all relate to what each is going through. Just as AA, NA focuses on the 12-step program. The members of
This is a reflective essay based on my attendance at a multidisciplinary team (MDT) meeting whilst on my two-week placement at a local mental health day hospital. The aim of this essay is to discuss the importance of the multidisciplinary team within the mental health environment and discuss factors that can influence the success or failure of multidisciplinary teams.
One thing I admired about each of the individuals at the meeting was that all of them held their selves accountable to fight their addiction. Each one of these people could have been consumed with something else on that Wednesday night, but instead, they all choose to come together to become a better version of themselves. They stated that if they didn’t attend the meeting that night they would all feel more likely to fall back into their addictions. Many of them reported attending a meeting multiple times a week. Thus, I was impressed when learning how frequent NA meetings are held. One of the members had informed me that some groups will run every night of the week. Therefore, making it hard for someone to come up with an excuse to miss a
I attended a narcotics anonymous meeting on Thursday night. The meetings are held in a classroom in Still hall. There were ten people who attended this meeting and one councilor. The councilor that ran this meeting was an addict him self, he told us he was thirteen years clean. There were five addicts in the room, two girls were there for support and there were three others there to observe. During this meeting for the first ten minutes we went over laws and how the program works. Then each person there for counseling spoke and talked about what they struggle with and how they try to overcome it every day. Some of the stories that were told were very scary to listen to because you cannot imagine how life got that way.
Addicts suffering from alcoholism should make the effort to join an AA meeting. I believe meetings can truly help addicts become successful in their recovery. As evidenced by the members of the group I observed, meeting with fellow addicts who understand and has lived through the struggles of addiction, AA meeting is a great resource. Not too long ago, I had a hard time deciding my feelings of people with substance abuse. I strongly felt that this was a choice, however, at the same time, a small part of myself understood that this was a disease. As I have been learning more about substance use, I have been more on the side that substance abuse is a disease. After attending the AA meeting, it was confirmed for me that addiction is a disease. Although it may start out as a poor choice, it ultimately is a disease that affects that brain. Listening to the speakers, I felt really bad about my negative activities towards substance use. I know longer believe that addicts have the choice to completely stop their addiction. They need help from others to overcome the disease. Programs such as AA provides the fellowship that addicts need in recovering from
The group was focused on learning ways to recognize situations or things that could trigger to return to drug use, act violently, commit a crime, or do some kind of destructive act. PO had a moderate level of participation in a group discussion. PO identified that visiting places she used to buy/sell drugs, or talking/hanging out with old friends/acquaintances could be a high risk situation. PO stated going to NA meetings and talking to sober friends help her to stay clean and sober. PO appears to be in compliance with treatment.
From the beginning, where we were unfamiliar with each other and became a team, my team and I had started to learn each other name and getting to know each other. Throughout each meeting, we slowly start to feel more comfortable and open minded with each other. Not only are we getting familiar with each other, each meeting that was held we progress of becoming an effective team member, we learn our strengths and weaknesses of everyone. During the meetings, we learn many concepts from the textbook, “Communicating in Small Groups: Principles and Practices” by Steven A. Beebe and John T. Masterson. We were able to learn different types of concept in the textbook and utilized it as a team to complete certain tasks. The three concepts that impacted my team and I are human
Drug addiction is a very big problem in today’s society. Many people have had their lives ruined due to drug addiction. The people that use the drugs don’t even realize that they have an addiction. They continue to use the drug not even realizing that their whole world is crashing down around them. Drug addicts normally lose their family and friends due to drug addiction.
It is not everyday when you can say the majority of your college class is you talking and the teacher listening, this is seminar. Coming from a family where heated debates were present almost daily, I already know if I were passionate about a topic I would never pass up an opportunity to express my opinions. For me, seminar has allowed me to grow in this confidence of expressing my thoughts as well as learning from others opinions. Having come from a high school that stressed the importance of student participation, I was not surprised by the amount I would actually have to speak in this class, however I was surprised by the importance of disagreements and the proper way to analyze text through underlining, highlighting and questioning and how it could aid my overall understanding of a text. Being a psychology major and extremely interested in social justice issues, seminar also opened my eyes up to the interesting perspectives of the strength of human nature.