Make no mistake about it, the mind is a very powerful thing. With respect to addiction, it can make you justify your aberrant behavior for many, many years, but it also can help you stop using drugs and alcohol.
A recent Chinese study reported by myjoyonline.com, revealed that manipulating memories of drug use may help reformed addicts avoid a return to a life of drug abuse.
It has long been believed that memories linking "cues" - such as needles or cigarettes - and the pleasurable effects of drugs caused cravings and relapsing.
The study claims to have rewritten people’s memories. How is that possible?
Re-Writing Your Memories
The researchers at Peking University tried to rewrite the original memory so that it would be as if the link between cue and the craving never existed. The work relies on the idea that a memory can become malleable after it is accessed, creating a brief window during which the memory can be "rewritten".
The memory procedure decreased cue-induced drug craving and perhaps could reduce the likelihood of cue-induced relapse during prolonged abstinence periods.
This is a fascinating subject that I hope to read more about in the future. In the meantime, drug classes and counseling and complete abstinence are the keys to staying clean and sober.