Question by vicious_betrayal: Typical time-spans to recover mentally from drugs and alcohol abuse?
I’ve used Marijuana since I was 14 years old. I’m almost 17 right now (19th of June). I quit smoking weed January 18th of 2009.
And when I was smoking weed I started smoking really crappy stuff. After being an regular smoker of marijuana i still experimented with crap weed a lot of the time. though i smoked a lot of good stuff I just want you to have the picture that bad stuff could effect me even worse.
While being a super manic depressive person I was drinking about 4-5 bottles of Malt Liquor (32,s and 40 Oz’s) daily for months.
same here, I drank really bad stuff for a long time like King Cobras.
Bud lights and w/s… Sometimes really good stuff like New Castle.
I quit that too. During drunken days. I also tried and smoked meth once. I decided I wasn’t ready for anything like that so I picked up the strength to resist ever doing that again.
It’s been really hard. I have some close friends counseling me and they say the first few months will be the hardest.
I don’t need rehab and I have recently tried out for bands around town to play music with as an activity that’s more positive than drugs and alcohol.
Listed will be what Iv’e tried since I was 14.
Salvia Hallucinate smoked many times
Marijuana many times
Meth once
Alcohol many times
I just want to know anyone with similar experiences.. I have read in some websites (that i cant find now) about long-term use and such and people do get there full or almost full brain back.
please give me some insights.. It would be greatly appreciated.. and I’ll be staying sober.
Best answer:
Answer by Gretchen
Sounds like self medicating. Its okay, you arent the first to do it. Im not holier than thou, or guiltless myself, but let me tell you from experience. It takes three years for your mind to recover from drug and alcohol abuse……… this is just basic mental and physical. It can take longer! Be patient, pray a LOT, and go to any AA or NA meeting. See a good counsler who understands your complete situation. It’s a dual diagonosis, very common. Please, please don’t fall into the drug and drinKing habit……it will kill you and those u love. U are too young. I used drugs for all my teenage yrs….my brain is still somewhat damaged. Memory is BAD.
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I know someone who was addicted to drugs and alcohol from age 15 to present (age 43). He was in and out of rehabs over 15 times. What I noticed from his life was that he never got completely over drugs and alcohol. He just eventually learned that you have to stop doing them and letting them ruin your life and the lives of those he loved. He still drinks alcohol but not as much as he used to. He takes medicine for anxiety and depression and that helps take care of some of the negative feelings that made him begin using in the first place. To answer your question, my friend is not the same person he was when I met him in his twenties. He now has liver damage and is not as quick mentally as when we met. He does not think things through as clearly as he used to. But, he is still able to make decisions and has the capacity to think clearly when he really puts his mind to it. Prolonged usage of drugs and alcohol really took their toll on him. But, thankfully, he is no longer doing the serious drugs he was doing and is slowly getting his life back. He said thaat he just had to make a choice not to entertain the desire to use and replace it with something else. Maybe you could try a hobby or music like you said you enjoyed. Good luck.