What's the first thing I should do if I am an addict?

What's the first thing I should do if I am an addict?

Drew Pinsky (Addictionologist) gives expert video advice on: How much of my addiction is hereditary?; Is overworking considered an addiction?; What's the first thing I should do if I am an addict?

Well, it depends. If you've been able to identify addiction, the easy thing - the free thing - is to put your ass in a seat in a 12-step meeting, take the cotton out of your ears and put it in your mouth, raise your hand as a newcomer, ask for a sponsor, and just do the work. It's very simple. People are glorious in their recoveries, but a lot of people don't want to do the work, they don't trust it, they don't understand it, it seems like a cult - whatever. Go see a doctor who has experience treating addiction, and the problem there is that there's lots of different philosophies about how to treat addicts. I would encourage people to stay with abstinence-based treatment. I'm not saying no medication, but no medication that has any potential for addiction, no psycho stimulants, no benzodiazepines, no opiates - abstinence.