Modern Day Lepers
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The Sickness
The routine for individuals that suffer from opiate addiction can be excruciating. Upon waking each day, the first thought that goes into the mind of the addict is “I’m sick” and “what am I going to do?”
There is a darkness that overcomes the being followed by obsessed thoughts that play through like an orchestra of multiple characters, all chanting different things, none of which are pleasant to the conscious.
On the way to the bathroom, panic starts to set in, and magnified fear grips the torso, squeezing the chest and elevating the heart rate. “Oh no, it's happening!” The sickness!
A three-dimensional glance into the mirror observes the purplish-gray spots on the skin which resemble something reptilian or modern-day leprosy.
“Oh no! I promised myself I was going to quit today!” A promise which has been over and over by the individual, yet this sickness is possessive of a person’s mind, body, and spirit.
Forget dinner with the family! This is an emergency!
Having to make that call one more time, this time with the belief of rationing portions for their fix and using it to taper, the individual reestablishes their commitment to one last time.
“I promise this time will be the last”, which has been said every single time, followed by “Please! God help me! I can’t go through this again…”, the sickness. “Our stories are more similar than different” a recovering addict stated.
The individual eventually folds because their minds aren’t arrested. “OK, I’m going to call him … this will be the last time I swear!”
The call is followed by no reply from the holder because he’s out until Thursday. Time to buckle up and get ready for the ride of a lifetime. Withdrawal. The sickness.
More panic, more thin skin, now sweat, now teeth, now cold, now cramps, more purple, now freezing, more sweat, and can’t sleep because of more cramping…
When Jesus healed the Leper, he stated “go and be clean!” (Matthew 8:2, NIV). How does a person suffering from opiate withdrawal simply pick up their bed and walk? There is the word “if” before the sentence “IF I could just touch the hem of his garment…” (Mark 5:28 reference) but then what?
Narcotics Anonymous World Services, Inc. (NAWS, 2008) explains the recovery process starts with abstinence from all mind-altering, mood-changing substances. So, recovery isn’t possible until the user has completely stopped using drugs.
This is typically the buffer zone between stopping, realizing self still exists and all the character traits that existed in active addiction, and the other side of the fence which is the recovery process.
Recovery is defined as “an active change in … ideas and attitudes.” This process stems throughout a person's lifetime, however, this is not a bad concept. It means the individual has a chance to continuously grow into their purpose and experience value in their life. It also allows them to be an example to others who may need to look at their experience before they have their own. This example of trust grows the using addict's faith that they can do it too.
In a sense, if the individual is open-minded and willing enough, they can pursue life change beyond anyone's wildest imagination, rendering any stigma powerless.
The stigma attached to drug addiction is a longtime issue for those struggling with both substance abuse and mental health issues. The lifetime of attempts to bury these issues and pretend they didn’t exist still create extreme hesitancy in individuals attempting recovery and overcoming non-adherence to medical protocols (Abrams, 2019).
Too often, individuals are afraid to seek the help they need with drug addiction and mental health challenges. The truth is, it would be much easier for a person to detox if they had a comfortable environment similar to hospice for individuals at end-of-life stages.
Having a support network of loving individuals, holding their hands, and loving on them in such drastic circumstances is compassionate and can set a precedence for others that might be afraid to come forward and would rather risk death.
Getting clean off drugs faces another obstacle. The same individuals, that create stigmatic perceptions of the addict, slap another label on them that they cannot get clean without maintenance drugs (and for some this may be true). The issue is that substituting one opiate for another is asking for that nightmare to continuously show up. More importantly, it also hinders the individual's belief in themselves that they can do it.
We are modern-day lepers. Wearing the same scars and stigma of the leper community. The same dismissal from the public eye and heart. The same isolation. The same cold distance.
If I could speak for the lepers and addicts, I would state to society to pick up their beds and walk. Jesus amazed the audience with his ability, as a man, to forgive sin… not because he cured a paralyzed man, giving him the ability to walk, but his example of forgiveness, love, and compassion to another human being despite their differences.
Clean and Serene
WordReference (n.d.) gives an extensive list of terms that describe what clean can be defined as. Clean, which addicts in recovery refer to themselves as (as opposed to sober which is constrained specifically to alcoholism) can be defined as graceful, serene, morally pure, and innocent.
Recovering addicts that seek a spiritual path have opportunities in life others may never have the chance to witness. “When the drugs go and the addict works the program, wonderful things happen. Lost dreams awaken and new possibilities arise”, birthing spiritual growth and cultivating buoyancy (NAWS, 2008).
There is no cap a person should hinder themselves with. This goes for all human beings. The false narrative tells us we cannot. It tells us what others say about us is what is truth.
Recovery programs have unveiled individuals who were serving life sentences (some on death row) and have become prominent members of society becoming judges, public officials, and much more. This isn’t just a small percentage, there are thousands of these stories. It’s a matter of, shedding the stigma, just as the leper had their markings, and they just simply walked in belief.
There is no miracle too large for God. But first, we need not short our perception and belief in our capabilities. We can have the mountaintop or the curb top.
References
Abrams, Z. (2019, June 1). The stigma that undermines care. Monitor on Psychology, 50(6). https://www.apa.org/monitor/2019/06/cover-opioids-stigma
Narcotics Anonymous World Services, Inc. (2008). Narcotics Anonymous. Sixth Edition. Van Nuys, CA.
WordReference. (n.d.). Clean. https://www.wordreference.com/definition/clean
