goldiilocks

I was wondering about people's thoughts on addiction in specific regards to what is referred to as an "addictive personality". Do you all think it is genetic to be born with a certain type of mind that is easily addicted to things, or do you all think it is a learned behavior? I think it could definitely be a mixture, but in some cases it is genetic. Just wondering what others' think about this. Any information, opinions, or links on the subject are welcome.

Tippingpoint

This may be a hotly contested topic...I'm going to sit back and watch how it goes!

awuh1

My 2 cents is that it can be either or and or both. How's that for covering the bases? People are different. Knowledge about myself, though useful, was never enough.

Dee74

I really don't know Goldilocks.

Personally, there is a family history with me - but while my brother and I had problems, my parents and my sister are fine...I definitely learned some bad behaviours too...so maybe I'm a mix?

A lot of people get hung up on finding the cause in order to find the solution...but I don't think that's necessary myself - you don't need to nail a cause in order to do something about it

D

goldiilocks

Really? Interesting. Self knowledge is one of the most important things to my recovery up to this point in time. It helps me understand why I did the things I did, however frivolous or insane the reasoning there was always one there. (said in reference to awu)

I am the type of person who always asks why... I have always been very curious. And really, I posted this so people can share if they want and if not, that's fine too....

Soberween

Me personally, I think it was a learned behavior. I don't have an addictive personality whatsoever. Very controlled with my eating habits. Use to smoke cigarettes here and there, but nothing too much. Can take or leave caffeine. Level headed in my relationships. However, I am Irish and I have noticed that alcoholism really does seem to effect my Irish friends more than say my Italian friends. Who really knows for sure. Just my two cents. Thanks for asking!

Impurrfect

My dad's side of the family is rampant with addiction. Mom's side? I was the first addict, though now have a cousin who is in rehab.

I always wanted to know "WHY" but it really didn't matter..I became an addict for whatever reason. I'm also a codependent and had NO history of that in my family.

In the end? It didn't matter WHY I was an A, I was, and a darned good one. I was raised by parents who's only addiction was cigarettes. I was brought up about as good as a kid could be. Why did I become a codependent, who turned to drugs to deal with a relationship I couldn't control?

Who knows? Could be lots of things, but the bottom line is I am an addict, I am a codependent, and I have to work my recovery on both fronts every day.

Hugs and prayers,

Amy

awuh1

Don’t get me wrong. Self-knowledge, at least for me, is very important in terms of understanding why I do what I do. However, it’s not enough. Perhaps it's just a matter of perspective.

I like to think of myself as more or less self-sufficient. This, however, is a fiction. I need other people to do things for me as simple as grow the food I eat. We are all very much dependent on one another. I can have any number of decades of sobriety but it doesn’t mean a thing if nobody benefits from it but myself. For me at least, life needs to have a certain amount of meaning beyond an endeavor to just extract pleasure from it. That’s what keeps me sober now, farther on into sobriety, not just what I know about myself..... as important as that was in the beginning.

eJoshua

I don't know the science all that well, but I do know that I come from a long and infamous line of addicts and alcoholics. A lot of my extended family has been in treatment, in and out of AA and in and out of jail, and a few have died from their addictions. Some families don't seem to have as much of it. Who knows?

Sapling

I don't mind sharing on this. Alcoholism is rampant in my family. If you shook my family tree and all the alcoholics fell out there would be nothing left but the stump. I believe I was an alcoholic before I picked up my first drink....And that was at the age of 12...By 15 I was drinking to get drunk...I had that phenomenon of craving the Big Book talks about. I had a cousin my age that came and stayed with us when I was 17....And we drank a lot. He died of this disease at the age of 40 and I drank 10 more years after that. I couldn't do it any more...It was killing me. I knew that that the last couple years and I still didn't stop. Something beyond me spared my life.
I have a good friend in AA that told a story about her family...And I'd heard that it's not uncommon for this to skip a generation...But this kind of proved it for me. She and her brother were both alcoholics but her mother and father weren't. She stopped for 17 years and her husband did something she got a terrible resentment for...she was out with friends and they knew she didn't drink...But she asked for a glass of wine. 6 years later she was back in AA....And the day she got her one year medallion her brother died of alcoholism...He was 53. She found 40 recovery books in his apartment littered with bottles and cans..Including a 1st...2nd..3rd and 4th edition Big Book...He just never worked the program...She did....Her grandmother never drank...She was 80 years old and never touched a drop. She was having problems sleeping and a doctor recommended having a glass or two of wine at night before bed. She became a full blown alcoholic at the age of 80 and was speaking at AA meetings at the age of 84. So I'm sure some people can drink there way into it....I believe it was handed down to me. All I know is however you get there...It sucks. And it will kill you.

Mark75

Of course... Whether it is genetic or hereditary or familial... All similar terms but different in some important ways... I don't know. But how many times have you heard... "Oh he's just like his father"? You don't need a degree in science to see the truth in that!

liv1ce

I have an addictive personality. I can get addicted to anything whether it be food, exercise - found it easy to give up that one - collecting old tools, alcohol and/or drugs. On top of that I love getting high. In the end I found that finding out about my self helped a great deal in getting control of my problem. But then after years of happy sobriety the enjoyment of getting high brought me back. In the end it is a decision.

Innerchild

Interesting topic, I have a very addictive personality I struggled with eating disorders, over exercising, smoking, alcoholism, caffeine addiction, etc. Thank God, I never picked up any illegal drugs bc I am at a high risk.

I believe my addictive personality is a result from my childhood just bc I used many things to numb my pain over the years so I couldnt feel. Its all or nothing for me and it something I struggle with every day. Ive realized this from my outpatient hospitalization program. For many of us who dealt with abusive childhoods, we find other coping mechanisms to deal with pain whether its sex, drugs, alcohol, or any other addiction. I wish I could explain it as well as the therapist who taugh my class about it. Its very interesting.

goldiilocks

It's very interesting for me as well, because I was raised by 2 people who never allowed alcohol in the house, never drank, one of them was my biological parents (my mother) and the other one raised me so in every way that person is a parent to me, but there are no blood connections between us... My mom smoked cigarettes (she was up to 2 packs a day) but quit cold turkey when I was 5 years old. I however don't know my father. And I think the reason I ask myself questions like this is because genetically I'm at a loss when it comes to knowing exactly what I have a predisposition towards. So, I think about it a lot. There's also a couple of medical things that I absolutely can say I've gotten from my father's side (since no one on my mother's side has them, and they are genetic things), so it really just makes me wonder. While knowing will never keep you sober in itself, for me it's something interesting to think about. I found this article on google, and talks about what i'm getting at. I dont know if i'm allowed to post stuff up like this, but mods, feel free to delete my post if its against the rules: Why Do Some People Have Addictive Personalities? - DivineCaroline

Programmer27

I'd like to think I have an addictive personality. It can be helpful and... as you can see by the fact that I'm here... very harmful.

When I find something I like, or am interested in, I can easily become obsessed with it. I either do something 110% or I don't do it at all.

Before I was sober, I'd easily turn down 1 or 2 beers unless it was going to lead to 15.

When I was in college, if it was a class I liked, I'd spend every ounce of energy to study and get an A, if I wasn't interested... screw it, I'll get what I get.

Hobbies are the same way... I will either become entranced with something to the point it's not healthy, or I just won't do it.

hypochondriac

I don't really know where I stand on this yet but I do know that everything I have done I have done obsessively, even as a kid. My dad was a bit the same but I don't know if it was learned behaviour...he certainly wasn't an alcoholic, but my mum is borderline. I think really I have known I had a problem since the first time I drank aged 12. My reaction scared me a little, and I never did any drugs growing up because I always thought I had enough of a problem with alcohol. Everything I have obsessed about which wasn't an addictive substance I've managed to give up quite easily though.

Someguy23

I've noticed different people have tendencies to get addicted to different things.

I've always struggled to control my food and alcohol intake (that's why I'm here) but I don't like to smoke at all, either tobacco or weed. I just hate the feeling of smoke down my throat.

My mom, on the other hand, eats just right and likes wine without ever actually getting drunk, but smokes (cigarettes) like a chimney. She won't even hear of cutting down, despite having had health problems because of it.

I've always thought a person's vices say something about the person, but I'm not sure what.

Ranger

I can only speak from my experience.

I never had a sip until my 19th birthday in August.

I was drinking alcoholically by fall.

I learned a few years later that my dad had a closeted drinking problem the entire time we lived under his roof. The first time I saw him drink I was in my early 20s.

So, was my draw to alcohol primarily driven by nature, nurther, or neither?

I know where I'd put my money!

Donnylutz

Very interesting area........

From my experience it is certainly both. I have several drinkers in my family but also turned 21 in a lifestyle where everyone drank heavily on the weekends. Why my friends were able to stop and I wasn't.........that I don't know

I think in the end we all have the same addiction, but the reason for it can be very different. Some drink because they may have a predisposition to it. Others drink to cover or hide from something traumatic. Others drink because it's what they see around them. Many of us drink I'm sure from a combination of these and many other factors.

So at least my opinion......it has to be a mixture.......I think

Donnylutz......

wpainterw

I am not a psychologist but I gather that if the term "addictive personality" has any meaning it is as you say, a product of genetics and learned or conditioned behavior. Characteristics of such a personality may include excessive dependency tendencies (e.g.I am overly dependent on my dog), obsessive- compulsive behavior, perfectionism, narcissistic tendencies, pleasure seeking, risk taking, depression or mood changes, feelings of inferiority, (manic-depressive), shyness, socially ill at ease, product of abusive home, divorced or domineering ("smothering") parents, excessively strict religious upbringing.

W.