In a recent interview with Parade magazine Drew Barrymore confessed that she's not completely sober after spending the majority of her childhood and teenage years struggling with drugs and alcohol."No, I'm not [completely sober]. And I don't claim to be — quite the opposite. I've tried to find the balance. I hope it's balanced."
Drew's issues with addiction reportedly began at age 9 when she first tasted alcohol and began smoking. A regular at Studio 54, Drew soon graduated to harder drugs, smoking marijuana at 12 and snorting cocaine at 13. Drew first entered rehab at the tender age of 12. After discharge Drew attempted suicide and entered rehab again at age 13.
I find this interesting because most rehabilitation and treatment centers discourage continued use of alcohol and drugs after treatment and provide tools to recovering addicts to help them resist partaking in substance use. There are maintenance/harm reduction focused programs which exist such as Moderation Management and DrinkWise that do not require addicts to completely abstain following treatment.
A 2002 American follow-up study of alcohol-dependant individuals conducted by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) revealed that 17.7% of individuals diagnosed as alcohol dependent more than one year prior returned to low-risk drinking. However, this group showed fewer initial symptoms of dependency. A follow-up study, using the same NESARC subjects that were judged to be in remission in 2001-2002, examined the rates of return to problem drinking in 2004-2005. The major conclusion made by the authors of this NIAAA study was "Abstinence represents the most stable form of remission for most recovering alcoholics".
So the question is, can recovering addicts ever return to moderate substance use or are most bound to relapse?
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