Many of us enter the rooms of Alcoholics or Narcotics Anonymous after putting ourselves through years of continuous abuse from ingesting a plethora of chemicals as often as we could. Eventually, we straggle into the rooms and have to learn how to practice the 12 steps and how to deal with ourselves- without drugs or alcohol. Cue the plot twist music and a few gasps and we have us a genuine nightmare right there. Yes, that doesn’t sound entirely enjoyable, but that’s still the lucky side of the coin toss. Teetering on the other side of that street are jails, misery, and death. Mhmm. So logically most of us end up picking the first of the two scenarios because there’s still that little piece of us deep down that cares about life.
Then we detox. We get clean. We start turning our life around in all areas. Everything becomes stupendous and we never want to look back at that past life again- or at least that’s what we convince ourselves. Unfortunately, for many of us addicts and alcoholics, we get clean and have all these promises start coming true, but there’s still some void we’re often trying to fill. It’s in our nature and we look for something, nay, anything to latch onto for comfort. This happens consciously and subconsciously. Using Kratom is just 1 of the many different ways that people choose to try and get out of themselves. Some people go for cutting or burning themselves and then some start chain smoking cigarettes and have a red bull glued to their hands at all times of the day. Codependency can be a large issue too. The concept here is that even unbeknownst to our own selves sometimes, we start trying to mentally replace that addiction part inside our heads with a substitute.
Trouble Brewing Along With the Tea
In many situations, Kratom is an herbal replacement that people in recovery gravitate toward. For the longest time, it has been a legal over the counter herb that you could buy in pharmacies or even purchase for consumption in tea houses. When enough of this aromatic plant is taken, it can produce effects of euphoria and that of making somebody feel high or intoxicated. It’s been socially acceptable for the better half of its debut, so in turn, many people use it in sobriety and rationalize their actions because of its mild effects and normalcy. Living like this is not working an entirely honest program of recovery though. In most cases, these people weed themselves out and back into active addiction as tolerance and obsession start rising again. Eventually, that person will wake the want for heroin or some other opiates that produce similar feelings of numbness.
However, that all being said, it’s been abused for years by addicts and alcoholics of all sorts because of its legality too. Mass quantities can be purchased by addicts and alcoholics and there is no system or repercussions in place to keep things in order. There is the sense that it is also a non-pharmaceutical competing herb that could replace a lot of pharmaceutical options. The soon to be drug has been reported to have soothed cases of depression, anxiety, and even replacing opiate addiction. Key word on that latter part being “replaced”. With it sharing many of the same numbing qualities like pain killers but without as many crucial side effects, it really makes you wonder what the real motive is behind it all. It has many same properties as marijuana but also that of opiates as well. You are a lot less likely to die on Kratom, although it is possible. One of the many problems is people constantly wanting to make drugs stronger than they are. Great, I get it, I really do. Yet when chemical extracting gets involved and people are making the plants 10-50 times stronger than their natural ability, I could see how this is an evolving problem. If people want to zombify themselves and stay active in their addiction, by all means, they can go right on ahead. On the other hand, when it becomes something individuals are selling to each other and causing problems with, such as death, sometimes it’s necessary to pump the breaks.
Even though it is safer in the regards of death, that doesn’t mean it won’t ruin somebody’s life still. The herb contains a lot of the same elements that opiates derived from poppy seeds do. It will bind to the same receptors in your brain that get somebody high off of heroin or painkillers. So what that means is that tolerance is thrown into the picture. Habits and active addiction are woken up. Withdrawal symptoms and detox are now also part of the equation. The sad truth is that a lot of addicts and alcoholics aren’t aware of these facts when they first start dancing around with this little beast.
When you step back and take a good look at the facts, it is a little seemingly silly that it is being categorized into the Schedule 1 substances. Despite that little excerpt, it makes complete sense for it to be made an illegal narcotic though. It has a high potential for addiction and different levels of abuse, which is why some other countries have banned it as well. Also, there aren’t any current medical examinations or treatment purposes being studied or observed in regards to plant. Maybe down the road, some things will be changed and some people will be able to use the benefits created from it. As for us addicts and alcoholics, illegal or not, it’s safe to say that we have no business dealing with this herbal supplement for now or the unforeseeable future.
Struggling With Other Schedule 1 Substances
Hey, it doesn’t have to be just Kratom taking over aspects of your life. Addiction and Alcoholism are a tag team disease that will hook you by your britches and never let you go. If you or a loved one is struggling with chemical dependency and are ready for help, please call 1-844-489-0836 or visit www.firststepsrecovery.com. We are ready to give you any suggestions possible and set you or your loved one on a path that we can all be proud of.
