Most people are familiar with the trope from movies, TV, or books. Unfortunately, in truth, it is all too real. After days or weeks on a bender, a person using drugs or alcohol will find themselves holed up in a hotel with bottles, spoons, and whatever else strewn around carelessly. They barely remember what has transpired in that room. Their most lucid moments focus on trying to get the next dose of the drug. So why do addicts end up in hotels that, by definition, burn up their own drug money with unnecessary boarding fees? Unfortunately, hotels and motels offer the ideal environment for enabling addictive behavior indefinitely.
Perhaps you’ve found yourself living out the scenario above. If so, it may be time to seek out a drug detox center, such as the one at New Start Recovery. With the help of our treatment programs, drug addicts are able to find help and healing. For more information about this treatment option, please contact New Start Recovery at [Direct] today.
How Addiction and Hotel Stays Are Connected
There are a variety of reasons those using drugs may go to a hotel.
Hotels Provide Convenience
Hotels offer a great deal of convenience. It’s no surprise that owners strategically strew vending machines in high-traffic hallways and lobby areas. In many upscale hotels, there is a minifridge in the room, allowing inhabitants to have access to food without even leaving the room. If there isn’t a minifridge available, the hotel restaurant is just a few floors away.
In many cases, dealers view hotels in the same way. All too often, dealers will book a room in their client’s hotel to set up shop. They’re far away enough to preserve privacy but convenient enough to sell their wares at a moment’s notice. That way, their supply becomes an on-demand vending machine that fuels the user’s dependency. Regardless of the ethics and legality of the situation, hotels thrive on no vacancy. Furthermore, to make matters worse, they cater to and can potentially enable both parties with no-questions-asked room service.
Hotels Offer Room Service and Other Amenities
Room service perks are another answer to the question, “Why do addicts end up in hotels?” Having someone else to clean up your messes on the regular is one of the reasons hotels stay in business. The convenience factor acts as a huge draw across the board. But this service takes on an insidious role when it enables drug users to continue using substances without any semblance of consequence. They have access to hot meals on-demand, fresh towels, and maid service daily. These room service perks keep drug addicts focused on their substance use.
There Is Less Accountability
Living in a hotel offers a way to avoid pressure in some respects. It offers an escape from responsibilities at home, although it usually makes the situation worse in the long term. But in the meantime, drug addicts ostensibly pay hotels to suspend their personal accountability at home.
When staying at a hotel, parents, significant others, and dependents seem farther away. No one is around to ask what you’re up to. No one will get home early to stop you from using the substances. Furthermore, you no longer have to hide your drug-using behaviors. But these factors all result in a potentially fatal risk.
Going to a Hotel May Lead to a Higher Risk of Overdose
The enabling environment hotels provide also poses a life-threatening risk of overdose. Today, news reports of celebrities dying of drug overdoses in hotel rooms occur yearly. However, the news doesn’t report on the countless times this happens to people who aren’t famous.
So what triggers this phenomenon of overdosing in hotel rooms? Why do addicts end up in hotels where they are at such high risk? It’s a combination of overzealous escapism and a dangerous lack of oversight. Overdose can be reversed if another person catches the problem in time. But when a person holes themselves up in a hotel, the likelihood of being saved before it’s too late is next to zero. But in the midst of addiction, it’s a risk many people become willing to take.
The Importance of Seeking Drug Addiction Treatment
In the end, hotels offer the ideal environment for people suffering from substance abuse. With dealers on demand, no accountability, and pretty much free reign to make mistakes, hotels can be breeding grounds for self-destructive behavior. However, there is hope. Eventually, most drug addicts and those who abuse alcohol reach a point where their disease becomes unmanageable. After chasing that first high for years, the novelty wears off, and the consequences seem to stack higher and higher. Somewhere down the line, they can take the first steps toward recovery by seeking treatment
Begin a Drug Detox Program Today at New Start Recovery
If you or someone you love is battling an addiction to drugs or alcohol, please don’t put off treatment. A drug addiction treatment program like the one at New Start Recovery is here to help you. We offer a drug detox program and treatment for many substance use disorders, including:
- Heroin addiction
- Cocaine addiction
- Benzo addiction
- Prescription drug addiction
- Opioid addiction
If you or someone you love is ready to seek help for a substance abuse problem, our addiction counselors offer free case consultations. Contact us 24/7 by phone at [Direct] or use our convenient online form today.