Thank You Note From a Mother

Let me share a “thank you” from a mother whose son was provided hope: “I have a son who recently became a resident there, and am so gratified to know that he is there. I would like to do something to help and this Amy Grant/Vince Gill concert seems to be an event that our family would love to attend. I worked in this field in various places, some of which are now closed. I am very thankful that there is still a place like Charlotte Rescue Mission to help folks with the life-robbing problem of addiction. God bless all of you there and many thanks for helping my son.”

NRI Press Conference

What About the Spouse Who Never Goes to Church?

Recently, I wrote an article aimed at pastors which was the second in a series marking National Alcohol & Drug Addiction Recovery Month entitled "What about the Spouse Who Never Joins the Family at Church?"

Most of you pastors probably don't have parishioners coming to your Sunday morning service staggering in the aisle and hollering during the time of prayer. Instead, you may have a woman who comes to that Sunday service without her husband, while he "sobers up from tying one on" the night before.

Read the whole article here.

Rebound's Pre-Program

Most of our supporters know that our program beds stay full year round. Some wonder what happens when someone wants to be admitted to our program when we don't have the space. We have an area we call "pre-program". There are 13 beds in the pre-program area where men can wait for one of our 134 men's program beds to open up. When a person decides that they're ready to make a change in their life, it is imperative to get them off the streets and away from negative influences as soon as possible. Our pre-program area allows this to happen.

The other day, I walked by and saw five or six men huddled around a small table. I looked on and saw that they were playing Monopoly. I had to smile... just a day or two ago these men were on the streets and their only idea of entertainment was using drugs or alcohol. Now not only were they sober, but they were passionately enjoying something you or I might take for granted - a simple board game. This is the start of their new life - a life that doesn't depend on substances for fulfillment.

What Is Addiction?

Such a simple question, but it requires a complex answer. The American Heritage® Stedman’s Medical Dictionary states that addiction is Habitual psychological or physiological dependence on a substance or practice beyond one’s voluntary control. The American Medical Association’s definition of alcoholism and other drug addiction is “…an illness that is characterized by significant impairment in the emotional, psychological, spiritual, physical, and social areas that is directly associated with the persistent and excessive use of alcohol and drugs. Impairment may involve psychological or social dysfunction. Alcoholism and other drug addictions also are manifested as a type of drug dependence of pathological extant and pattern, which ordinarily interferes seriously with the patient’s mental and physical health and his adaptation to his environment”.

Many people believe that addiction is simply an inability to stop abusing alcohol and/or other drugs due to a lack of willpower and self-control. The reality is; addiction is a primary, chronic disease as evidenced by the presence of an onset, progression, and predictable outcome. The disease is considered primary since it affects all of life’s domains and must be treated to cease the progression. People with the disease of addiction often state they tried unsuccessfully to stop using on their own, continued using despite negative consequences, loss of social and family relationships, increased tolerance, withdrawal symptoms, and spending a great deal of time engaging in activities necessary to obtain their substance of choice. If willpower alone were enough, there would only be a fraction of the reported number of alcoholics and drug addicts.

There are many different philosophies regarding recovery from the disease of addiction, and here at the Charlotte Rescue Mission, we believe that recovery requires addressing the mind, body, and spirit. Participants of the Rebound Men’s Program are taught the process of the disease of addiction, are required to attend 12-Step fellowship meetings, obtain a sponsor, and begin working the 12 steps of Alcoholics Anonymous or Narcotics Anonymous. Admitting powerlessness and unmanageability (step one) allows a person to take ownership of the disease and begin the process of putting the disease in remission.

The simple answer to the initial question is: addiction is a primary disease, with proper treatment and a person’s ability to change, the disease can be arrested and a positive outcome is achievable.

- Thomas G. Strouse Admissions Supervisor