![]() Other facilities teach a series of postures that are simple enough for people who have never done yoga and who probably have not taken good care of their bodies. Some teach meditation, so that recovering addicts can learn to sit quietly and calm the body and mind with the breath, and experience feelings of peace and comfort. ![]() These days it’s difficult to find any private rehabilitation facility that doesn’t offer some form of yoga or mind-body awareness programming. ![]() With relapse rates higher than 40 percent, addiction specialists as well as those in recovery are turning to adjunct therapies such as yoga as a way to supplement traditional 12-step programs. Drug abuse not only causes emotional and financial suffering for addicts and their families but is a costly public health problem, one that the National Institute on Drug Abuse estimates at more than $484 billion a year. Department of Health and Human Services, D’Angelo is one of more than 22 million Americans who struggle with substance dependence or abuse. And it gave me a grip on my life, an inner strength that allowed me to accept who I am and where I am and be OK with that.” A Road to RecoveryĪccording to the U.S. I felt empowered by it-more spiritually sound. “It was an hour where I could relax with my thoughts. “I absolutely loved it,” says the 26-year-old, who has been sober for a year and a half. “But something inside of me told me this wasn’t how my life was supposed to be.”Įventually she moved into Hello House, a residential facility that offered a gentle yoga program. “I had low self-esteem and low self-worth,” she recalls. She started shooting heroin, and, after a few arrests-for possession, driving with a suspended license, and breaking and entering-a court-ordered stint at a Boston women’s rehabilitation facility helped her see she needed to make a change. That began a two-year struggle that included detox, rehab, and relapse. Of course, then I started using all the time.” “I thought I loved him, and on Ox圜ontin everything was fine. “I was too weak to leave him,” she recalls. Eventually she quit her job and moved in with her boyfriend, despite his infidelity and addictions. After a kidney operation, she had access to painkillers she moved on to drugs like Ox圜ontin and cocaine. Soon after, as she struggled to manage the stresses of her new job and a tumultuous relationship, she fell into smoking pot to get through the day. She received a BA in psychology and took a job as a caseworker for Youth Opportunities Upheld (YOU), a residential facility for kids with behavioral problems in Worcester, Massachusetts. In college, partying became more than a weekend indulgence. In high school, D’Angelo began experimenting with drugs, often spending her weekends smoking pot and drinking. Her addictive behaviors started gradually. But as she found herself increasingly dependent on drugs, she battled to find balance and stability. Her life looked enviable from the outside-she had a college degree, a loving family, a good job. Get full access to Outside Learn, our online education hub featuring in-depth yoga, fitness, & nutrition courses, when youĪt 22, Melissa D’Angelo was lost.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |