Breaking free from addiction is a complex journey that involves more than just willpower. Discover how long it takes to rewire your brain and the steps you can take towards lasting recovery.
Overcoming addiction is a complex, multifaceted process. It isn’t simply a matter of swearing off a substance or behaviour and never looking back. If it were that straightforward, addiction wouldn’t be the widespread problem that ruins tens of thousands of lives every year.
We now understand that addiction isn’t solely a physiological issue related to physical dependence. It takes root deep in the human psyche, reworking the brain to prioritise chasing its drug of choice above all else.
Thankfully, with therapy, abstinence, and the right support network, even the most severely addicted individuals can work to rewire their brains from addiction. It’s not an easy process, by any means. Getting over addiction takes time and effort. How much time, exactly? That depends on a number of factors, which we’ll explore in this article.
What Impact Does Addiction Have on the Human Brain?
As a person becomes addicted to something, their brain “rewires” itself to rely heavily on the source of their addiction. Over time, it will need to satisfy these cravings to function normally, not just to experience a “high.” As the addict becomes heavily dependent, nothing else in their life will provide them with the same surge of dopamine as their drug of choice, even if that was the case prior to the addiction.
Researchers and medical professionals are still examining addiction, trying to uncover all of its underlying mechanisms. With that said, addiction seems to affect the brain in two primary ways, which are responsible for its “rewiring” as the person falls deeper into their destructive habit.
How Does the Brain’s Reward System Play a Role?
Our brains have a natural reward system ingrained into them, which motivates us to chase achievements, compete with others for prizes, and many other things. When you first start using a substance, it floods your brain with dopamine, even if you only take a small dose at first.
Just like winning a sports tournament or eating a particularly delicious lasagne, your brain interprets it as an experience that makes you feel good, and is therefore worth seeking out more frequently.
Artificial substances are much easier to obtain and release a lot more dopamine than training to do well in a sports event or getting a promotion at work. This leads your brain to the “logical” conclusion that chasing the drug is more worthwhile — you’ll get more dopamine for less effort.
What Role Does Tolerance Play in Addiction?
As an addict continues to ingest their substance of choice, they will quickly develop a higher tolerance for it, which leads to the need for taking in larger doses at shorter time intervals. That’s usually when life tends to spiral out of control for most people.
It’s because of the rapid tolerance build-up that individuals lose themselves in their addiction. They start pursuing drugs not just to experience a “high,” but simply to feel normal and able to go about their day without experiencing severe withdrawal symptoms.
How Do Substances Affect Your Brain?
Addiction is not merely a psychological problem. Contrary to popular belief, most cases of severe addiction cannot be resolved merely with strong willpower. It’s an ailment that physically changes the human brain, altering how it processes information in the long term. Addiction primarily affects the three following areas of the brain:
- Limbic system: responsible for survival mechanisms, e.g., reproduction, feeding, fight or flight
- Cerebral cortex: governs higher-level processes, including memory, language processing, decision making, and emotional responses, among others
- Brain stem: controls vital functions of life, i.e., sleep, breathing, heart rate, and blood pressure
As you can see, addiction doesn’t just hijack your brain’s reward mechanisms. It also completely rewires some of its most important parts to centre around the addiction and satisfying cravings.
What Are the 5 Steps to Rewire Your Brain From Addiction?
In most studies that compared the brains of non-addicts to those of individuals who suffered from severe addiction, the addicts’ brains reverted back to normal after a full year of abstinence. Of course, this can vary depending on how long a person was addicted, what substance they were using, and a myriad of other, highly individualised factors.
While long and unpleasant, the recovery process and the road to rewiring one’s brain from addiction consists of a few simple steps. By “simple,” we mean that they’re only uncomplicated on paper. In reality, addiction recovery is one of the hardest journeys a person can embark upon.
1. Overcome Withdrawals
The very first step towards breaking free from addiction is getting through the withdrawal period. It is definitely the most difficult aspect of quitting any drug. It’s also when most relapses happen — the withdrawal symptoms can be too strong to handle.
In order to have the best shot at success, addicts should commit themselves to a safe and supervised detox programme. Under the watchful eye of medical professionals at a high-quality residential rehab facility, the road to recovery becomes much more straightforward.
2. Total Abstinence
We know — it’s easier said than done. Once a person gets over the initial, most painful withdrawal period, they can slowly get back to their daily routines, as well as professional and personal responsibilities.
However, this is also when their addict brain can kick in and begin rationalising falling back into old habits. It’s important to realise that overcoming withdrawals is just the first step. The addicted brain will continue to try and come up with new ways to get back into using, which is why psychological and community support are so important when it comes to getting back on track in one’s daily life.
3. Find New Interests and Hobbies
Replacing an old addiction with a new one is never a good idea, but in order to make recovery possible, you need something to occupy your mind in your free time. Otherwise, the intrusive thoughts and rationalisations may prove to be too strong to resist.
It doesn’t matter what it is that you find a passion for, as long as it doesn’t involve substance use. You should also steer clear of activities that have a high potential for addiction, such as competitive online gaming. Usually, creative hobbies such as painting or writing, as well as sports are great activities to direct your energy towards.
4. Celebrate Victories, Even the Smallest Ones
Recovering addicts also need to put in the work to get their brain’s reward system back on the right track. The feeling of succeeding at something releases endorphins and dopamine hits, which is why it’s important to try and find reasons to feel successful and celebrate those successes regularly.
Many addiction treatment programmes make it a point to treat each passing day of sobriety as a reason to celebrate. It’s a good start. Coming up with small goals you can achieve in short timeframes is an effective way to get used to the “normal” dopamine flow.
5. Stay Busy
The brain’s prefrontal and cerebral cortexes are responsible for long-term planning, decision-making, and problem-solving. For an addict, these parts of the brain were preoccupied with obtaining drugs and continuing to feed their addiction.
After quitting, you need to get busy with other tasks that require lots of planning and high-level thinking. Whether it’s a new job, setting up events or get-togethers with family and friends, or planning your next holiday, all of these things will engage your brain and distract it from the addiction.
How Can The Dawn Rehab Thailand Help You Reclaim Your Life?
At The Dawn Wellness Centre and Rehab, we understand that breaking free from addiction is a lengthy, challenging process. We also realise the importance of brain chemistry and behavioural therapy in overcoming this condition. This is why we utilise a holistic approach guided by our specially designed Treatment Roadmap, which combines medical care, psychological help, and wellness activities. At our facilities, located in Chiang Mai, Thailand, you can count on:
- Private accommodation
- Highly experienced, certified addiction therapists
- Wellness therapy with yoga, sound bath and mindfulness meditation
- Weekly excursions to to Chiang Mai’s renowned natural and cultural landmarks to show you that there are other ways to find joy in life, stimulating dopamine production, besides drugs
- Free lifetime aftercare support, ensuring continued guidance and assistance long after you return home
The Dawn is also Asia’s only CARF-accredited rehab, ensuring that our addiction treatment programmes are tailored to meet the individual needs of each client. We offer a supportive, non-judgmental environment where you can focus entirely on your recovery.
Call us now to learn more about our personalised addiction treatment programmes and start your journey to recovery in the serene surroundings of Thailand.
