The relationship between social support and willingness to seek help with post traumatic growth among recovering addicts.

A sense of development and growth experienced after a traumatic or stressful event is known in the literature as Post Traumatic Growth, and was developed by Calhoun and Tedeschi (Tedeschi & Calhoun, 1996). Post Traumatic Growth is defined as a subjective experience of positive psychological changes in different areas of life, that can occur along with psychological distress. The process occurs because the person thinks and ruminates about the event, trying repeatedly to understand it, deal with it and give it meaning. When the meaning of the event is exposed, a "new reality" is created by the survivor, in which the trauma is built into a more complex cognitive framework.

            Studies suggest that during the process of drug and alcohol rehabilitation, recovering addicts learn to seek help from peers, while being forced to deal with difficult emotions and memories, without the numbing effect of drugs or alcohol. The social support they receive in treatment programs and in Narcotics Anonymous/ Alcoholics Anonymous (NA/AA) meetings, along with their ability to seek help while struggling with craving, are central themes in rehabilitation, when they recover from addiction and integrate into society. Although these processes are complex and continue long after the physical rehabilitation, recovering addicts report positive changes that have occurred in their lives following the addiction, or even due to it. They change their belief system, report significant changes in the way they see the world, learn about emotional connections with others and about their own emotional strength.

Based on the Post Traumatic Growth theory, this study examines the contribution of focal themes in the process of rehabilitation and recovery from addiction to Post Traumatic Growth related to the experience of addiction (Addiction Related Growth). It is hypothesized that there will be a positive direct connection between Post Traumatic Growth and social support, help seeking, participation in self-help meetings (NA/AA), frequency of participation in the meetings, working the "12 Steps", function as sponsor (mentor), recovering period and the intensity of the trauma.

            The research population included 104 recovering drugs and/ or alcohol addicts, who participated in one of the formal treatment programs offered by the Ministry of Welfare or participated in NA/AA activities. Data collection began in February 2012 and ended during July 2012. Questionnaires included a personal background questionnaire, addiction characteristics, willingness to seek help (Keith-Lucas, 1972), perceived social support (Zimet, Dahlem, Zimet & Farley, 1998) and a Post Traumatic Growth questionnaire (Tedeschi & Calhoun, 1996).

The findings support the hypothesis that recovering addicts go through the same processes as other trauma survivors who report growth experiences following traumatic events. Findings indicated that there is a strong positive correlation between social support and Addiction Related Growth and a moderate positive correlation between help seeking and Addiction Related Growth. In addition, the four variables related to participation in NA/AA organizations (participation in meetings, frequency of the participation in the meetings, working the "12 Steps" program and functioning as sponsor), are positively correlated with Addiction Related Growth. There was no evidence for correlations between the addiction characteristics, recovery period and intensity of the trauma to Addiction Related Growth. The discussion attempts to explain the lack of these correlations and the relatively high Addiction Related Growth rates among new recovering addicts.

The current study is novel, and will contribute to the few studies that have investigated the Addiction Related Growth phenomenon. The results presented here may have practical implementation in addiction intervention programs. Treatment programs that seek positive meaning of the addiction, and the struggle with craving, may help recovering addicts deal better with various difficulties throughout life, and support the process of rehabilitation in keeping this population drug free.