Really Interesting Audio Program
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Join Date: Jul 2009
Posts: 46
Really Interesting Audio Program
Dr. Stanton Peele - The Truth About Addiction and Recovery
im not against aa at all if it helps you than keep at it
but this was very very interesting.
im not against aa at all if it helps you than keep at it
but this was very very interesting.
Member
Join Date: Jul 2010
Posts: 432
I listened to the program. He seems to lump all current thinking about addiction into either:
1. All addictions, ranging from heroin to the internet, are exclusively medical issues, and can only be dealt with by physicians, using medication, or
2. All addictions are just minor behavioral quirks that everybody should be able to drop on decision.
He posits this dichotomy and then claims #2 must be true because #1 is absurd. Makes no sense. What about a middle ground? He also uses the cheap sales trick of saying the interviewer's name over and over.
1. All addictions, ranging from heroin to the internet, are exclusively medical issues, and can only be dealt with by physicians, using medication, or
2. All addictions are just minor behavioral quirks that everybody should be able to drop on decision.
He posits this dichotomy and then claims #2 must be true because #1 is absurd. Makes no sense. What about a middle ground? He also uses the cheap sales trick of saying the interviewer's name over and over.
Member
Join Date: Jul 2010
Posts: 432
I did some poking around on his blog. He says, "America had some success - halting and imperfect as it was - in imposing English-speaking Democratic values and government on Western Europe"
HUHH???? Is he saying Western Europe got those ideas from the USA, and NOT the other way around? Has he ever heard of the English Civil War? Or the French Revolution? Is he saying we caused those somehow?
Sorry guys, he seems like a really lazy thinker to me. Out to sell his books and his "Life Process Program ©". Nothing more.
HUHH???? Is he saying Western Europe got those ideas from the USA, and NOT the other way around? Has he ever heard of the English Civil War? Or the French Revolution? Is he saying we caused those somehow?
Sorry guys, he seems like a really lazy thinker to me. Out to sell his books and his "Life Process Program ©". Nothing more.
Member
Join Date: Sep 2010
Posts: 395
Stanton Peele is somewhat of an iconoclast in the recovery field, which is not necessarily a bad thing.
I like how he challenges the "disease" model and points out the fact that this disease of addiction has spread to all facets of lives and is growing in society while addiction levels should be falling due to the growth of all the treatment programs we have seen over the past few decades. I also like how he criticizes our current drug policies and how Americans view drug use.
I disagree with him over the idea that people get addicted because they do not have a positive, healthy, enriched life. Perhaps I am misunderstanding Peele, but it seems that he subscribes that people get addicted due to cope with challenges and problems in life.
While this is true during the late stages of my alcoholism, it wasn't when I first started to drink and drug. I had the world in the palm of hand with unlimited possibilities lying ahead of me. At first, I drank and drug to enhance life; to celebrate life. I drank to get drunk or catch that alcoholic high. I never wanted to have just a couple. When I wanted a "couple", it was a 6 pack of good beer, in which I always ended drinking more. For awhile, it wasn't a problem. I was highly functional, but unfortunately my drinking and drugging slowly eroded away my functionally, happiness, and opportunities.
I eventually became despondent and depressed. But that was because of the problems and pain I was inflicting upon myself. I wanted to stop numerous times, but couldn't do it. I knew I was throwing my life down the drain and bringing pain upon myself, but I couldn't stop it, even when I had the resources (which I eventually pissed away) to live a happy and enriched life.
Peele has some success stories on his webpage of alcoholics going back to moderate drinking. While I am sure there are a few select few cases, I am skeptical of these stories since they never followed through. Typically some alcoholics have success with drinking after abstaining for long periods of time, but they eventually slip back into the viscous cycle. Additionally, for the few alcoholics who have success in moderating their drinking, there are countless other examples of alcoholics who don't. They go on to destroy their lives, other lives, and sometimes find a nice cozy bed six feet under.
I like how he challenges the "disease" model and points out the fact that this disease of addiction has spread to all facets of lives and is growing in society while addiction levels should be falling due to the growth of all the treatment programs we have seen over the past few decades. I also like how he criticizes our current drug policies and how Americans view drug use.
I disagree with him over the idea that people get addicted because they do not have a positive, healthy, enriched life. Perhaps I am misunderstanding Peele, but it seems that he subscribes that people get addicted due to cope with challenges and problems in life.
While this is true during the late stages of my alcoholism, it wasn't when I first started to drink and drug. I had the world in the palm of hand with unlimited possibilities lying ahead of me. At first, I drank and drug to enhance life; to celebrate life. I drank to get drunk or catch that alcoholic high. I never wanted to have just a couple. When I wanted a "couple", it was a 6 pack of good beer, in which I always ended drinking more. For awhile, it wasn't a problem. I was highly functional, but unfortunately my drinking and drugging slowly eroded away my functionally, happiness, and opportunities.
I eventually became despondent and depressed. But that was because of the problems and pain I was inflicting upon myself. I wanted to stop numerous times, but couldn't do it. I knew I was throwing my life down the drain and bringing pain upon myself, but I couldn't stop it, even when I had the resources (which I eventually pissed away) to live a happy and enriched life.
Peele has some success stories on his webpage of alcoholics going back to moderate drinking. While I am sure there are a few select few cases, I am skeptical of these stories since they never followed through. Typically some alcoholics have success with drinking after abstaining for long periods of time, but they eventually slip back into the viscous cycle. Additionally, for the few alcoholics who have success in moderating their drinking, there are countless other examples of alcoholics who don't. They go on to destroy their lives, other lives, and sometimes find a nice cozy bed six feet under.
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