HJNO Sep/Oct 2022

DRUG ADDICTION 26 SEP / OCT 2022 I  HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF NEW ORLEANS   and an addict can become successful in recovery with a quality of life that includes emotional sobriety with abstinence from substance abuse. Over time, sobriety itself enables a stronger foundation to reopen the neurological pathways for an emotional foundation to believe and accomplish the impossible: lifelong abstinence from the drug of choice. 7 Hope can be an emotional driver that brings someone to recovery, and that emo- tion needs tangible supports to be effective and sustainable. For the purpose of this article, we will examine the four essential pillars/quadrants needed in order to build a solid foundation for emotional sobriety and recovery within addiction. The four quadrants for emotional sobriety as well as recovery from the disease of addiction are multifaceted and individual. The quad- rants are mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual health. As these quadrants are reestablished in recovery toward long- term health, then reinforced and solidified, a platform of sobriety and hope for a bet- ter future are possible. As more successes are experienced, classical conditioning can take place due to finding rewards and grati- fication from other experiences rather than from the disease of addiction. As the mind moves away from its historically normalized neuropathways, a balanced life can start to happen, allowing an addict in recovery the capacity to strive and to thrive while step- ping into the unknown with the hope for a higher quality of life. To build, or rebuild, this foundation of emotional sobriety within an addict, each one of these quadrants needs to be reviewed, assessed, and manipulated to bring integrated balance, allowing the brain to override neurological impulsivity, which strives for instant gratification rather than long-term rewards and quality of life. Even though each person’s recovery founda- tion may be individualized, there are cer- tain aspects that give a commonality to be explored. Breaking down these quadrants can also help the brain compartmentalize “The emotional aspect of sobriety and relapse prevention is an essential ingredient of the hope of sobriety and a higher quality of life. The more a person becomes conscious of their emotional triggers and what depletes their internal serenity, the more they can keep an emotional balance, or equilibrium.” the ideas and actions being examined and respond with a higher level of clarity rather than, once again, being overwhelmed with a sense of futility and hopelessness. THE FOUR QUADRANTS OF EMOTIONAL SOBRIETY In “The Book of Hope,” Jane Goodall states, “... without hope, all is lost.” 8 Hope, however, requires trust, and trust in recov- ery is a leap of faith into the unknown with a passion for something that in that moment may not seem plausible. To have this trust, a platform must be built with an extraor- dinarily strong foundation that is sustain- able through thick and thin. The founda- tion has to be multifaceted in case one section is weakened. With a multifaceted foundation, when one section is weakened, the rest of the pillars are able to withstand the imbalance until the weakened pillar is rebuilt or replaced. A quality of life for any human being demands that the essen- tial four quadrants are sturdily in place to enable the construction and sustainability of emotional sobriety. Emotional sobriety allows the prefrontal cortex of the brain to be the more dominant thinking system of the brain that drives sobriety and disables relapse. As a reminder, the four quadrants of a strong platform are: emotional, physical, mental, and spiritual. Let us examine each of these quadrants in more detail. Emotional The emotional aspect of sobriety and relapse prevention is an essential ingre- dient of the hope of sobriety and a higher quality of life. The more a person becomes conscious of their emotional triggers and what depletes their internal serenity, the more they can keep an emotional balance, or equilibrium. 9 Shame, guilt, unresolved grief and trauma, environmental pres- sures, expected and unexpected stressors, as well as enjoyable experiences can cause emotions to become dysregulated, causing the brain to try to regulate and bring back homeostasis, in which the limbic system