Quote Originally Posted by recycling goddess
actually that's not always the case. the reality is... when they are high or jonesin for a fix... they don't want to get clean... but once they get all the drugs out of their system and have trained professionals to assist them to see just how bad their life was and how great it has the potential of becoming... many choose to stay clean.

but making that decision when they are addicted... isn't something they can all do.

that's the whole point of rehab. to get them clean and sober and seeing reality.
I think what joyful is saying is that it can take YEARS or even decades for someone to come to wits end and finally want to get off of drugs. I think the actually percentage of people who stay clean is only like 8% from what I remember. It takes atleast 3-5 relapses (if youre lucky) before some addicts see the light. Most never do, nor do they even care to see what they themselves are, or have become.