GreenTea

What do you think? Is alcoholism a "disease", or is it just a "condition"?

I was taught that a disease is almost anything which causes biological malfunctioning, has a specific pathology, typically and ultimately resulting in death.

American Heritage Stedman's Medical Dictionary:
A pathological condition of a body part, an organ, or a system resulting from various causes, such as infection, genetic defect, or environmental stress, and characterized by an identifiable group of signs or symptoms.

Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary:
an impairment of the normal state of the living animal or plant body or one of its parts that interrupts or modifies the performance of the vital functions and is a response to environmental factors (as malnutrition, industrial hazards, or climate), to specific infective agents (as worms, bacteria, or viruses), to inherent defects of the organism (as genetic anomalies), or to combinations of these factors.


It seems to me as though the criteria are met with alcoholism. I know that my alcoholism certainly interfered with my vital functions, perhaps not early in my drinking career, but the steady progression and deterioration was there.

I also know that my alcoholism was doing its best to kill me.

I consider alcoholism a disease... What do you think?

parentrecovers

yep. disease. my two cents.

hugs to ya, k

Astro

Main Entry: dis·ease
Pronunciation: \di-ˈzēz\
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English disese, from Anglo-French desease, desaise, from des- dis- + eise ease
Date: 14th century
1obsolete : trouble
2: a condition of the living animal or plant body or of one of its parts that impairs normal functioning and is typically manifested by distinguishing signs and symptoms : sickness, malady
3: a harmful development (as in a social institution)
— dis·eased \-ˈzēzd\ adjective

I tend to over-simplify my thinking. Impairs normal functioning? Yep. Distinguishing signs and symptons? Yep. A harmful development? No doubt about that. Yes, I definitely think of it as a disease.

Thank you for a thought provoking topic GT!

cookconfay

This sure comes up a lot huh? But for what it's worth.....I'm on the "it's a disease" band wagon! I am one that believes it is genetic too......disease goes way back in my family history.

Rowan

Yup - I over-simplify things too, and the 'alcoholism as a disease model' works best for me.

Also - I am learning a lot about alcoholism in relapse prevention therapy, the chemistry of an alcoholics brain, and how genetics plays a role. I'm convinced.

cmc

Thanks GT.
I believe the disease of alcoholism as has four components: biological, psychological, social and spiritual.
Here's what the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) has to say:
FAQs for the General Public
and one more link from the American Medical Association:
http://www.ama-assn.org/ama1/pub/upl..._treatable.pdf

unigirl

Hi GreenTea. I think it is a disease- i recently read some of the book 'under the influence' which says it is. It has been recognised by ppl in the medcial proffesion as a disease- so i'm not about to argue! I believe it to be hereditary too- something like a 1 in 4 chance of getting it if a parent has the disease. Both mine do! (But both sober, like me, thanks to A.A)

gypsytears

I don't think it matters if one thinks of it as a "disease" or a "condition". If it causes problems it is a problem. All that really matters is that you "treat" it by getting help and by quitting.

melwilson

Ahmen gypsy!!!!!!!

That's all I have to say.

Mel

"..Celebrate we will, 'cause life is short but sweet for certain.." ~Dave Matthews

CarolD

My dis ease is arrested by my condition of abstinance

Luckyv2

I guess this question would be something along the line as this one.....

What came first the chicken or the egg?

It really doesn't matter!

What matters is WHAT are ya going to do about it?

Are you going to take the necessary action to make it go away....or prolong it

Or

Are we going to decide that we just had a run of bad luck and live in a world of denial the rest of our lives....

So for me I will continue doing what I've been doing it seems to be working at least for me

Thanks for the topic

nogard

hey whatever it is I got it!

Dee74

I'm with Gyps and Chance and Kev - doesn't matter a whit what it is, so long as we deal with it.

D

GreenTea

Thanks for the responses everybody...

I agree that what you do about it is more important than whether its a disease or a condition. I was simply wondering what other people's opinions were on the question.

Keep 'em coming, folks!

Pilgrim

Me too Kev!

I can't control my drinking once I start any more than I could cure a tumour if I had one.

reed

I guess its a disease and unfortunately I have it.

nogard

((((((((((((((Steph)))))))))))))!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

tanyapmc

Great thread. I am writing a paper on this very subject. When I get it done I will post it here.

tanyapmc

Here is a link that I find facinating.

T.H.I.Q.

GreenTea

Thank you very much Tanya for that!

Isoquinolines are mentioned in "Under The Influence", which was was the first place I had heard of them. Isn't there also evidence to suggest that the dopamine receptors in the brain become "attuned" to them and start to prefer them over the natural chemicals your brain produces?

I know that somewhere in my drinking career I had started to experience a curious effect. With high enough levels of alcohol in my system, I used to get this feeling of, well... joy, I guess, and well-being... I'd have this stupid grin on my face, and no matter how bad things might seem, I felt in control and that somehow things weren't as bad as they seemed... It was a matter of drinking enough to feel that way, yet not drinking so much that I was a sloppy, slobbering, passing out mess.

I remember one local music concert in particular... I felt so good, so much "myself", so *human*... Part of me felt very drunk, but part of me felt almost sober... I remember thinking, "THIS is what life is about -- THIS is how its *supposed* to feel, with the world at my feet and people being accepting"... It was like I had emotions, or passion again, and it felt good... I had "found the balance", as it were...

I was a happy drunk until my supply ended for the night -- everything closed, 'fridge empty, dawn arriving, whatever... Then I would be a very emotional drunk with a crushing sense of sorrow, pain and loss.

I was a pretty functional drunk, up until the end there. Then it hit a point where I couldn't get drunk enough. I kept chasing that feeling, trying to recapture it again... But there was hardly any "joy" or "well-being" during those final oblivious weeks... just very wet and scared and a complete mess. Perhaps I had built up a tolerance to the isoquinolines by that point? I remember that it used to take more and more alcohol to get me there, or even close again.

Thank you... Maybe that's why "normal drinkers don't know what they're missing"? ... As the saying goes, "...when I'm drinking normally I'm not having fun... when I'm having fun I'm not drinking normally..."

So... Where were we? ... Oh yes. Specific causes, signs and symptoms and a definite pathology, in my opinion... I was in a death spiral there at the end.