Arrivng June 13th, anyone else?

[Taylor D]

Hi everyone,

I am new to this group and new to the idea of group recovery but am
ready to commit to a new life free of escapes filled with substances.

I am female, in my 20s and will arrive on June 13th and will stay 11
days. Will anyone else be there at this time? Just curious, as if you
will be there then it would be cool to talk maybe before going to get
to know each other.

Please let me know.

Cheers,

TD

[Ggar...@aol.com]

Hi new to this group also and recovery& new life aswell

I am male 32 also arriving sometime in June not sure what date yet but was thinking of staying 21 days.

It would also be cool to talk also by the way from aberdeen scotland name gary 

cheers look forward to speaking to you as was thinking exact same thing

--
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[Audrey Delaney]

Hi Taylor,

I was there 5 years ago and still going strong though life not without its
emotional difficulties. No ones is. I wish you luck, love and peace of
mind. You will meet many over there and you will find this forum very useful
to both vent and contribute when you get back.

Always ask for help and advice and know once you have discovered this forum
you are not alone.

Take care and let us know how you are doing

Warmest thoughts Audrey

[Jay]

Hi Taylor
My names Jay and I fly out tomorrow and I'm really scarred. Im there
for 14 days so will be there when you arrive I will look out for you.
Good luck Jay

[William Callaway]

Hello Taylor and Jay.  Please, there's nothing to be scared of there.  Yes, it will be different and most of the people there speak Thai, but there are some foreigner monks there also who speak English.  I live at a different temple, I'm an American monk, but I have met several of the foreigner monks, German, Dutch, and they are really nice people.  This is not a Marine Corps boot camp.  It's a facility to help you get rid of your addictions.  If you'll just give it a shot, I think you will see it's ok.  It's ok to be scared, just don't get delusional.  Take it one day at a time.  Best of luck
Phra Bill

 

--
The OFFICIAL Thamkrabok Monastery website is http://www.thamkrabok-monastery.org
 INDEPENDENT information can be found at http://www.thamkrabok.net
 To post to this group, send email to Friends-of-Tham...@googlegroups.com
 To unsubscribe from this group, send email to Friends-of-Thamkrabok...@googlegroups.com
 For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/Friends-of-Thamkrabok-Monastery

--

www.watkhaolang.blogspot.com

 

[jermaine derren]

Thank you for your kind word's.
I will em bras this with all I have, It's my last chance.
Kind Regard's
Jay

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Date: Sun, 27 May 2012 07:20:55 -0700
Subject: Re: [FOTM:3197] Re: Arrivng June 13th, anyone else?
From: wlcal...@gmail.com
To: friends-of-tham...@googlegroups.com

[Fiona Ngoh]

Dear Phra Bill,

I was liaising with Mae Shee Rambhai for awhile on behalf of my alcoholic husband. I was desperately to get him into Thamkrabok for the longest time and he finally relented after losing his job for the 2nd time after just a month! Mae Shee Rambai wanted my husband, Mano, to email her directly and they exchanged a couple of emails. Then he told me few days later that he could not be admitted into the monastery because he's on high blood medication and the monastery would not want to interfere in that. I fully understand the situation but nonetheless was devastated. I don't know how to explain to the monastery that Mano does not take his medication regularly (I caught him few times skipping them!). He could on on without any of his medication for weeks, sometimes up to a month! 

We have 2 teenage kids and our funds are running very low at the moment (he has been out of job for the past 6 months) therefore enrolling him in an expensive rehab is totally out of the question. We are both Malaysian (no welfare from government!) and currently residing in Macau for the past 5 years. Mano managed to secure a job but would only start work in early August so I thought it's very crucial for him to get well in order to be able to hang on to his future job because mi kids' future really depend on his well-being.

'Desperate Housewife'

Fiona

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Date: Sun, 27 May 2012 07:20:55 -0700
Subject: Re: [FOTM:3197] Re: Arrivng June 13th, anyone else?
From: wlcal...@gmail.com
To: friends-of-tham...@googlegroups.com

[William Callaway]

I'm not sure that taking high blood medication would hinder his being able to stay at Wat Thamkrabok.  Are you sure your husband is not making up this story?

[Audrey Delaney]

Hi Fiona,

 

Detoxing from alcohol can cause heart attack.  That’s the first thing especially if doing it in a cold turkey situation.  High blood pressure leaves him vulnerable to this.  Part of the programme in Thamkrabok is to completely detox from all medication.  Though there has been exceptions for medical reasons in extreme cases.  It may not be about the medication as much as his risk of heart attack.  Especially if he is not sober to date.  Therefore could go into shock.  If they where allowing him his medication and he is unreliable for taking it then they cannot carry that risk.  They are not a clinic and have no medical attendants. 

 

Things happen for a reason and perhaps your husband is just not ready in himself to detox and feels pressured from external forces, be it feeling guilty for what its doing to you and your children.  Or his latest loss of employment.  These are not coming from inside him and that is the first thing he needs, a total commitment in himself for any treatment to be successful.  My advice would be to talk to Mae Shee again for her reasons and then surrender to your faith and beliefs that this is the way it should be.  What will happen when you surrender will come to pass.  Its hard I know.  But maybe the cost of the flight would be a waste at this present time. 

 

All my warmest love and I will pray for you and your family.

 

Audrey

 

 

 

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[Fiona Ngoh]

Dear William.

I read the email too so there's no way he's making these all up. I was very disheartened but maybe it's his 'karma' like what I told Mae Shee Rambai. Sigh....guess I just have to find another alternative for Mano and I just stumbled upon a place in Chiang Mai, 'The Cabin' (hopefully not "The Cabin in The Woods!" LOLOLOLOL!!!) and would read up more about them.

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Date: Mon, 28 May 2012 07:46:51 -0700
Subject: Re: [FOTM:3202] Re: Arrivng June 13th, anyone else?

[Fiona Ngoh]

Dear Audrey,

Thank you for your kind words and advice, they are really comforting especially now that I'm on a roller-coaster ride most of the time! 

Been wanting to throw in the towel a couple of times but when he finally agreed to go for treatment, I just didn't have the heart to leave 

him dead. I definitely believe in fate and destiny so am ready to face any situation or consequences that might come in my way......

Deeply Touched,

Fiona

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From: audrey...@eircom.net
To: friends-of-tham...@googlegroups.com
Subject: RE: [FOTM:3203] Re: Arrivng June 13th, anyone else?
Date: Mon, 28 May 2012 16:13:28 +0100

[Audrey Delaney]

Hi again Fiona,

 

You sound tremendously strong.  You are carrying the weight of your family on your shoulders alone.  Please take a deep breath for yourself.  Love him enough to give him the time for healing. Love yourself and your children enough to keep your lives going in the meantime.  That means de-stress and relaxation.  Try and detach yourself from the alcoholism.  I know its over whelming.  Dominates everything.  If you could carry on your life in such a way that you are not depending on whether your husband is drinking or not.  For instance act like he is away, even when he is there so your happiness is not beholden to it.  Do things like you would if he was away.  Arrange your life that you can enjoy it and should he drink that it is set up that it does not spoil plans etc.  It is hard to explain but I will try.  To put it another way, right now your husband is a slave to the drink therefore he is not in the role of a husband.  No blame, no judgment.  That is how it is for you.  So rather than trying to be the wife of an alcoholic.  Just be you.  Redesign your life, be independent. Find interests and hobbies for yourself.  Try and change perspective in your situation.  If you keep catching them when they fall, they will never feel the full impact.  Nor will they take a decision completely to change as there is always someone there to pick up the slack.   I am not saying give up. The opposite.  Run your own life, stay compassionate, step back away as you cannot control him and let your husband deal with the ups and downs.  Be there for him when he is making right choices.  Be empathetic when he makes the wrong ones, but step into your own space and life and build it up that his mistakes have less power over you as you have protected yourself from them and can carry on.  You are still living with him, you are just in a different mind frame.  You would be surprised at how this can shift his thinking and self motivation naturally.  You are living like a single parent as it is.  Take the steps you need to become less emotionally and physically dependent on your husband.  This does not mean you are turning your back on your husband at all.  It means you are loving yourself and your children.  You are also loving your husband enough to allow him to find his right time without the outside pressure.  You are in love with the spirit of him, his essence, not the alcohol and distorted life it has given you.   I know financially this is extremely hard to do.  How worse can it get if he keeps losing his job?  The stronger you are the happier you be and all will benefit.  If you can do all this and still keep hugging your husband, you are not doing it in spite of him, you will find so much peace and stability.  So when he falls again, you will not feel the thump so hard.  When his spirit comes back to you stripped of his addiction, he will have one amazing woman. Because you are.  Drop your fears and surrender, it will come right.    

 

Regarding finding anywhere else, I would also advise that you hand him the name of the place and contact details and let him do it for himself.  If you are doing it all he is just following.  The more he takes part in his recovery the bigger the commitment and enthusiasm to become well will only benefit him.  If he is showing no signs of this and is leaving you to do all the work, research his self-control and determination is still weak and will respond accordingly.  Like anything, the more we exercise the better we get at what we are training for.  We develop a hunger for our goal.  You cannot train for a marathon and then another runs it.  Support his recovery, but hand him the tools to do it himself.

 

I wish you so much in this life, keep the faith.  As Mae Shee Rambhais said to me, we come into this world alone, we go out alone, do not depend on anyone.  You should enjoy and experience it, give what you can, just make sure that you are not giving so much that your husband does not learn and you get drained.  I hope you understood.  If it takes a bit longer for him to take steps, all the better perhaps as he will be mentally ready.  If he is pushed now, it may go on longer than the bit of extra time you may have to wait now.  I believe his higher self wants him to do this from his own thinking to be successful.  You will be so relieved when you see him taking the steps himself rather than agreeing to them.  He will also feel more proud and encouraged to keep clean. 

 

Remember this is just my opinion and you need to do whats right for you.  Its just a feeling I am getting.  If this does not sit well with you, that’s perfectly alright.  On here you just get different options and you will find one that suits.

 

Tonight I will pray for you all. 

 

So nice to have spoke to you

 

Warmest thoughts

[bennie]

Hello everyone,

Can someone please help me on this. I am from Penang, Malaysia. how do I contact the Monastery..
My nephew 21 years old is addicted to Ketamin (K) , please furnish me more details of how I could
bring him there to rehabilate.

Thank you

Bennie

---

From: "Audrey Delaney" <audrey...@eircom.net>
Sent: Monday, May 28, 2012 11:07 PM

To: friends-of-tham...@googlegroups.com
Subject: RE: [FOTM:3203] Re: Arrivng June 13th, anyone else?

[Vince Cullen]

Dear Bennie,

My name is Vince Cullen.  I live in the U.K. but I have been associated with Wat Thamkrabok in Thailand since 1998. 

You should contact the Thai nun - Mae Shee Rambhai - who will answer your email (see www.thamkrabok-monastery.org for full details). However, if there are any questions about visiting Thamkrabok that you think I might be able to answer, please feel free to call me at any reasonable (U.K.) time.

In my opinion and experience, the physical detox provided by Thamkrabok Monastery in Thailand does actually work but this is only the first baby-step on the very long road to recovery.  The physical detox at Thamkrabok on it’s own works for a number of people who are already determined to change their life… but for many it simply does not... it is not enough.

I have set out some ideas of what might be needed to secure a comfortable, long-lasting and happy recovery at http://www.5th-precept.org/html/foundations.html which goes beyond the physical detox at Wat Thamkrabok.

WARNING: It is generally accepted that when Mothers, Fathers, Brothers, Sisters, Boyfriends, Girlfriends, or anyone other than the addict make arrangements for their treatment at Thamkrabok then there is a far greater risk of relapse including the obvious chance of overdose and death.  As the late Abbot Luang Por Charoen would frequently say to addicts "Nobody can do it for you... you must do it for yourself". 

Having said that, the following information about Thamkrabok (and New Life Foundation) may be useful to your nephew.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You should not go to Thamkrabok until you are ABSOLUTELY certain that you truly wish to be free from your addictions and that you are 100 per cent committed to being drug and alcohol free.

IMPORTANT NOTE for anyone suffering from ALCOHOL DEPENDENCY : It is a requirement of the Thamkrabok monastery that alcoholics stop drinking, ideally under medical supervision, before travelling to Thailand for treatment.

Before you decide to travel to Thailand you must ask yourself 2 questions: -

(1) Do I want to travel to Thamkrabok voluntarily, completely of my own choice?

(2) Do I really want to stop using drugs and alcohol?

If you cannot honestly say ”YES” without hesitation to both questions, then it is better that you wait until you are serious about getting well.  As one monk famously said “We want only warriors… victims need not apply”.

If you decide to go ahead with the journey to Thamkrabok to take a lifetime Sajja (vow) for drugs and alcohol, this is will be a very 'black or white' decision.

On the dark side - if you break your Sajja (vow) bad things will continue to happen in your life.  The longer you use, the more negative consequences of your addiction will manifest.  You will continue to harm your self and those around you that you love. Of course, it may be possible to stabilise your continued use of drugs, if this is the way you want to live, but you will never be truly happy or free of craving.  By indulging in drugs and/or alcohol we invariably hurt those whom we love. We cause them harm in many ways including emotionally, financially and sometimes physically. If we continue on our downward spiral into our addictions, our journey to our own personal hell, the realm of the 'Hungry Ghosts', we are not only damaging those arounds, we are putting our very existence, our very own life, at increasing risk.

On the bright side - if you keep your Sajja (vow), good things will start to happen in your life and you will be better prepared to deal with any bad things.  If you adopt the Five Precepts (see www.5th-precept.org) and/or the 12-Steps (NA or AA), then you can further reduce the stress and suffering of your past, present and future.  The longer you keep your Sajja, the better your life will become.  There is life without drugs and alcohol, and it can be a very good life.

===================== CUT THIS OUT & TAKE WITH YOU ===================

It is my experience that after 5 or 6 days of treatment at Thamkrabok, you or more correctly the addict-within-you, may say "I'm cured… It's a miracle… I'm checking-out to spend a couple of weeks on the beach". This is the first test of your Sajja and your commitment to a new life.  You should stay at Thamkrabok for the full duration.  Sit with your loneliness, make friends with your boredom and face your demons.

===================================================================

When you are at Thamkrabok make sure that someone, preferably one of the monks, gives meditation lessons as often as possible; ideally every day.  If not, then ask Mae Shee Kanticha - (the English nun) - if she can do anything for you.

I would also recommend that you attend the monk's chanting every night.  This is not only a lovely thing to do, it also gets you out of 'The Hey' (treatment centre) and breaks up your evening.

Don't forget that before, during or after your stay in Thailand you can contact the FOTM online support group at: http://groups.google.com/group/friends-of-thamkrabok-monastery/ where you can get no-holds-barred answers to questions or just share your experiences... but that's up to you.

As ex-addict and ex-monk Peter says on the Friends-of-Thamkrabok online forum: "... if you want it, keep asking, keep smiling, stop complaining, and above all...Sweep the goddamn leaves like everyone else!"

No one would call Thamkrabok a 'Holiday Camp' but neither should you think of it as a prison.  Whenever I'm at Thamkrabok – that's at least once every year – I take the opportunity to renew my Sajja, take the medicine a few times, enjoy the hot herbal steam baths and attend 'chanting' every night.  I like to think of Thamkrabok as the most exclusive health club in the world; perfect for mind, body and spirit.

The answers to some common questions are below but you will also find a lot of helpful information and advice on the www.thamkrabok.net website.

(1) Join the FOTM support group to connect with ex-addicts who have already made the journey. Also, you may get some help and support from your local Buddhist centers.

(2) You should contact her nearest Thai Consulate about VISA requirements depending upon how long you intend to stay in Thailand. You will need your own passport with at least 6-months before expiry but it might be better to just get a new passport that won't run out while you are away.

(3) You should ask your local health center or search the internet for travel vaccination information (this one is for British travellers www.fitfortravel.nhs.uk/destinations/asia-%28east%29/thailand.aspx ).  Remember, Heb-B vaccination would probably be worth considering.

(4) Thamkrabok closes every year from March 15th to May 1st so you can't get treatment during those dates.

(5) There is no waiting list, just let the monastery know that you are coming (particularly if you want the Monastery to send a car to collect you from Bangkok Airport which costs about 2,500 thb).

(6) The cost of staying at Thamkrabok is 200thb per day therefore 28 days x 200thb = 5600thb (about US$190) but you might spend less. See item (7) below.

(7) This is how the money works at Thamkrabok:

For each day of treatment you will give the monastery 200thb (thai baht) in cash when you check-in. Each day the monastery will give you back coupons - "Thamkrabok Money" - worth 200thb so that you can buy your meals, drinks etc.  If you do not use all of the coupons you can save them up and change them back into cash at the end of your stay or leave it as a donation... that's up to you.

(8) While in treatment your passport, money, cellphone and other valuables will be kept in the office.

(9) Sometimes it is possible to stay at Thamkrabok after treatment, maybe to even ordain as a monk/nun for a while but I would recommend travelling to Chiang Rai to the New Life Foundation recovery community. See www.newlifethaifoundation.com where you can stay for up to 6-months.  NLF were asking for 600thb (US$20) per day to cover food etc. but that may not be the case any more.  You may want to contact them direct in advance.  Once you feel fit and well, you may then want to visit Thamkrabok again before you travel home.

The treatment at Thamkrabok has been likened to the archetypal 'Journey of the Hero' as described by Joseph Campbell; This 'Journey' has three steps -

   1. A Separation from home and family, and all that is familiar.

   2. A (sometimes) frightening, difficult, but exhilarating journey, helped along by unexpected hospitality from strangers and help from mystical allies. So you face your vulnerability and break out of many youthful fears and neuroses.

   3. Finally, a return home: the traveller apparently the same person, but forever changed.

So, chok-dee (Thai = Good Luck) to you for a successful detox and a very long, very happy recovery.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Be well and kind regards.

With Metta,

Vince
 
(h)  01635-552665
(m) 07909-545380

www.5th-precept.org
www.TARA-detox.org
www.HungryGhostRetreats.org
_________________________________
8
As a stormy wind
cannot move a mountain of rock
so one who contemplates
the reality of the body,
who develops faith and energy,
is unmoved by Mara (Craving).
__________________________________
A DHAMMAPADA for CONTEMPLATION 

[William Callaway]

Bennie, here's the info I have.

e-mail:   in...@thamkrabok-monastery.org

Phone:  66-36-266-292

Phra Bill

[bennie]

Thank you very much, William.
I did email but so far no reply as yet.

---

From: "William Callaway" <wlcal...@gmail.com>
Sent: Wednesday, May 30, 2012 5:17 AM
To: friends-of-tham...@googlegroups.com
Subject: Re: [FOTM:3209] Re: Arrivng June 13th, anyone else?

[William Callaway]

ha ha ... I find that Thai people don't check their e-mails as much as most people.  Give it a couple of days and if nothing then, try their phone number.  66-3-626-6292

William

[William Callaway]

If you don't hear from them in a couple of days, let me know, I have a friend who lives about 40 kilometers from them, I will ask him to call them and tell them to check their e-mails.  OK?

William

On Tue, May 29, 2012 at 8:32 PM, bennie <ben...@funfactory.com.my> wrote:

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www.watkhaolang.blogspot.com

 

[bennie]

William.

Ok will let you know.

Rgds/Bennie

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From: "William Callaway" <wlcal...@gmail.com>

Sent: Wednesday, May 30, 2012 12:20 PM
To: friends-of-tham...@googlegroups.com
Subject: Re: [FOTM:3212] Re: Arrivng June 13th, anyone else?