I'll just share my experience. I have abused a lot of substances, was totally addicted to crack. I say abused lightly...got a DUI with alcohol a couple decades ago, lost my nursing career to opiates. However, I quit them both quite easily. Didn't get into recovery, found crack.
The first time I met my dr. I asked him if he had time, then told him all about it. Told him what my "preferences" had been in the past, and if I ever asked him for a certain medication (anti-anxiety) he'd BETTER question me.
A few years later, he was the one treating me for PTSD, I had over 3 years in recovery, and he was one of those that wanted to know..how I was doing in school, what was going on at home (dysfunction junction), how things were going at work, etc. I ended up on the very medicine I'd told him about, but not without answering a lot of questions.
Fast forward, he left the practice and I have a new dr. She doesn't know me so well, so she wants to see me more frequently, re-evaluate whether I still need the med. As I WANT to be held accountable, I took in the prescription, showed her that I was NOT abusing it, nor even using it as prescribed.
She's being cautious, wants to get to know me better and the huge difference is, I'm not only okay with that, I WANT it.
Do I consider myself in recovery? You bet - 4-1/2+ years and counting. I don't want to get high, I don't want to get numb, I just want to be able to function as a responsible adult.
Whether people agree with me or not stopped affecting me a long time ago. I work my recovery, I've been through some REALLY rough times, I try to give back all the great ES&H that's been given to me, and I don't get numb. I'm not cured, I know that. I'm a recovering addict and there will always be that little voice that says "get numb"...I just work, really hard at shutting it up
Hugs and prayers,
Amy