Self-awareness, self-control critical to addicts' recovery, experts say From CNN

(CNN) -- For a recovering addict, reveling at a party or having pills in your room can be seen as a sign you are in control, having successfully defeated your demons -- or just as likely, experts say, a sign of weakness that could lead to a dangerous, if not deadly, outcome.

On any given day, an estimated 23.5 million Americans need help to overcome chronic substance abuse, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration.

By her own admission, Whitney Houston once was one of them -- until her still unexplained death last Saturday in her Beverly Hills, California, hotel room.

She had admitted in the past having done marijuana and cocaine, spoke about her mother staging an intervention for her and made several trips to rehab. Yet more recently, many of her friends contended that Houston's spirits, and her health, seemed good.

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