Is addiction natural?
A simple guy making his way
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Maine
Posts: 7,867
Is addiction natural?
I was reading and I came across the use of the word "natural". It kinda struck me. A simple unassuming state of being that would hardly scare someone if they read it in reference to themselves, their family, their God, their life here on earth.
To be natural is to exist without pretense or planning. With out friction to ones state of mind or body. To coexist with what you see and feel in a manner that allows love and your heart and mind to flourish. Where hope lives.
I know no such life.
No. Don't get me wrong. This is no woe is me. Just a realization that tells me how fortunate I am this day. The ability to see past that which drove me to drink. Use.
Growing up in an abusive house. An alcoholic house. There was no natural loving family. No expectation of belonging or being wanted.
Growing up gay. No naturally falling in love without shame. Fear. It felt natural to hate myself.
But the real question I ask myself "is addiction natural?"
If it's not, then why do so many drive their lives into the ground. Why do some lose their lives to this "thing"?
My life has taught me deep and meaningful lessons. That what feels natural can in fact be very very unnatural. That my blurry vision of reality is not true. Addiction is not natural. Not to me anyway. There is no way on this earth I will accept that.
Without sober time under my belt I would never have believed myself. I would have accepted that drinking and drugging is something I was born to do. That's the kind of unnatural thinking that got me into my messes.
Not sure what this post is trying to say. Just keep hoping. Keep trying. The unnatural will fade.
K
To be natural is to exist without pretense or planning. With out friction to ones state of mind or body. To coexist with what you see and feel in a manner that allows love and your heart and mind to flourish. Where hope lives.
I know no such life.
No. Don't get me wrong. This is no woe is me. Just a realization that tells me how fortunate I am this day. The ability to see past that which drove me to drink. Use.
Growing up in an abusive house. An alcoholic house. There was no natural loving family. No expectation of belonging or being wanted.
Growing up gay. No naturally falling in love without shame. Fear. It felt natural to hate myself.
But the real question I ask myself "is addiction natural?"
If it's not, then why do so many drive their lives into the ground. Why do some lose their lives to this "thing"?
My life has taught me deep and meaningful lessons. That what feels natural can in fact be very very unnatural. That my blurry vision of reality is not true. Addiction is not natural. Not to me anyway. There is no way on this earth I will accept that.
Without sober time under my belt I would never have believed myself. I would have accepted that drinking and drugging is something I was born to do. That's the kind of unnatural thinking that got me into my messes.
Not sure what this post is trying to say. Just keep hoping. Keep trying. The unnatural will fade.
K
Administrator
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Australia
Posts: 211,372
Interesting thoughts Ken 
With the benefit of hindsight I feel addiction's not natural - I've lived an addictive life and I've lived what I feel is an authentic one and I know which one feels more better, or more right to me.
I think it's a life that most of us aspire to tho - but those of us who are not Indian mystics or Buddhist months devoting their life to prayer will have to settle for the striving I think
D
With the benefit of hindsight I feel addiction's not natural - I've lived an addictive life and I've lived what I feel is an authentic one and I know which one feels more better, or more right to me.
To be natural is to exist without pretense or planning. With out friction to ones state of mind or body. To coexist with what you see and feel in a manner that allows love and your heart and mind to flourish. Where hope lives.
I know no such life.
I know no such life.
D
A simple guy making his way
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Maine
Posts: 7,867
Thanks SW.
Thanks Dee.
Nothing about the post is intended to be telling past the recognition that today is so dramatically different than even my recent past.
Aspire to? I agree!
K
Thanks Dee.
Nothing about the post is intended to be telling past the recognition that today is so dramatically different than even my recent past.
Aspire to? I agree!
K
Member
Join Date: Aug 2013
Posts: 2,129
You're awesome, Ken.
We deluded ourselves for a long time, didn't we? I drank more to convince myself that it was ok to drink more. For years.
I get what you're saying and I, too, am grateful to feel more natural and more guided by healthy principles instead of the drinking despair. Life isn't always easy in sobriety, but it certainly flows a lot easier now that I'm applying self care.
Thank you for a very cool post! Let's keep on striving!
Your buddy,
Melina
Xoxo
We deluded ourselves for a long time, didn't we? I drank more to convince myself that it was ok to drink more. For years.
I get what you're saying and I, too, am grateful to feel more natural and more guided by healthy principles instead of the drinking despair. Life isn't always easy in sobriety, but it certainly flows a lot easier now that I'm applying self care.
Thank you for a very cool post! Let's keep on striving!
Your buddy,
Melina
Xoxo
Member
Join Date: Apr 2010
Posts: 8,614
Natural might be letting anything take it's course- chaotic, arbitrary, much like Nature herself. Creating definitions and putting meanings to entities beyond our human capacity is natural, to humans. Desires to control is all it is. And why not? One must survive. We imply our experiences, we project. Try and make sense and order of things.
Its not difficult to see that many creatures will return to a thing again and again even if it means their very destruction. Maybe this is natural. We humans seem to have more inclination to both create destructive substances and also choose, to an extent, whether or not we partake. The choice making and awareness of a situation is what sets us apart it seems, do you think?
Natural... you really got me thinking Weasel thanks!
Its not difficult to see that many creatures will return to a thing again and again even if it means their very destruction. Maybe this is natural. We humans seem to have more inclination to both create destructive substances and also choose, to an extent, whether or not we partake. The choice making and awareness of a situation is what sets us apart it seems, do you think?
Natural... you really got me thinking Weasel thanks!
G-Woman
Join Date: Nov 2015
Location: Mississauga, ON
Posts: 979
Your post made me think of something one of my counsellor's told me in response to me life's story:
'You didn't stand a chance.'
In terms of childhood trauma, family history of alcoholism and mental illness, etc.
It might have been a way of her trying to downplay the guilt I was feeling. And I don't mean it to excuse or rationalize my behaviour. But that always stuck with me.
'You didn't stand a chance.'
In terms of childhood trauma, family history of alcoholism and mental illness, etc.
It might have been a way of her trying to downplay the guilt I was feeling. And I don't mean it to excuse or rationalize my behaviour. But that always stuck with me.
Member
Join Date: Feb 2014
Posts: 476
It seems to be mostly mental/psychological. Of course there's the physical aspect with actual physical changes to the brain, etc but if i had to guess (based on my experience anyways) it's like 70% mental and 30% physical.
I think there's also the genetic component, some of us are more pre-disposed to addiction based on the parents. My dad was a life-time alcoholic for example.
Once it gets it's hooks in you it seems to become embedded in the very subconscious itself. That seems to be the only explanation for a lot of the disturbing and highly vivid "alcohol dreams" i've had. It's my understanding that dreams mostly stem from the subconscious, so it would make sense that it plays a big role in addiction.
I think there's also the genetic component, some of us are more pre-disposed to addiction based on the parents. My dad was a life-time alcoholic for example.
Once it gets it's hooks in you it seems to become embedded in the very subconscious itself. That seems to be the only explanation for a lot of the disturbing and highly vivid "alcohol dreams" i've had. It's my understanding that dreams mostly stem from the subconscious, so it would make sense that it plays a big role in addiction.
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Join Date: Nov 2015
Location: USA
Posts: 701
It is natural to seek pleasure and comfort. It becomes unnatural when the method we use to fullfill our desires become detrimental to our wellbeing. Deep breathing and meditation is natural. A bottle of vodka is not.
Member
Join Date: Nov 2012
Location: Central America/Florida USA
Posts: 4,064
FormerWineGirl's post echoes my thoughts too, Ken. We turned to alcohol and drugs because we enjoyed the high, but more importantly we felt comfort in its embrace. After a while, it felt completely "normal" to be drunk all the time - getting sober was like learning to do everything left-handed. Sobriety sort of made sense, in theory, but in practice it was difficult to break these chains.
And let's not forget all the money behind "big alcohol"! I grew up with billboards and TV advertisements telling me that it was "natural" to have a beer after mowing the lawn and "totally normal" to sit around drinking booze with friends around a campfire. In fact, those carefully-placed clever advertisements would have you believe that it's natural to have a drink in your hand WHENEVER you have free time.
The world needs people like you, Ken. People who have taken the road less traveled, experienced a darker side and have come out the other end....without these types of folks, the world would be pretty boring. Stepford wives, husbands, and partners...we are not! Thank goodness.
And let's not forget all the money behind "big alcohol"! I grew up with billboards and TV advertisements telling me that it was "natural" to have a beer after mowing the lawn and "totally normal" to sit around drinking booze with friends around a campfire. In fact, those carefully-placed clever advertisements would have you believe that it's natural to have a drink in your hand WHENEVER you have free time.
The world needs people like you, Ken. People who have taken the road less traveled, experienced a darker side and have come out the other end....without these types of folks, the world would be pretty boring. Stepford wives, husbands, and partners...we are not! Thank goodness.
now's the time
Join Date: Feb 2013
Posts: 2,181
Well natural =/= good. Hemlock is natural but we shouldn't eat it.
I think my alcoholism is natural, in that I see it in my family tree but not in my immediate family so I believe that it's genetic rather than learned. (I also believe this because of the science that's out there, particularly studies of monkeys).
But I'm also naturally social, and naturally smart. So I naturally had the tools in my hands that I ultimately used to stop.
On days when I feel like there's spiritual meaning in the world, I think I was born with an albatross that would either kill me or make me a better person, and so hopefully in this struggle lies some of the meaning that I'm meant to make out of my life.
On days when I'm feeling like things are probably just random, I think well maybe people like me are meant to die off and leave the stronger members of the herd, but it's the 21st century so take that evolution! Not letting THIS particular mutation take me out, no sir!
Either way, with 10% of the population affected by something, I feel like it's part of the natural texture of life one way or the other.
I think my alcoholism is natural, in that I see it in my family tree but not in my immediate family so I believe that it's genetic rather than learned. (I also believe this because of the science that's out there, particularly studies of monkeys).
But I'm also naturally social, and naturally smart. So I naturally had the tools in my hands that I ultimately used to stop.
On days when I feel like there's spiritual meaning in the world, I think I was born with an albatross that would either kill me or make me a better person, and so hopefully in this struggle lies some of the meaning that I'm meant to make out of my life.
On days when I'm feeling like things are probably just random, I think well maybe people like me are meant to die off and leave the stronger members of the herd, but it's the 21st century so take that evolution! Not letting THIS particular mutation take me out, no sir!
Either way, with 10% of the population affected by something, I feel like it's part of the natural texture of life one way or the other.
Member
Join Date: Sep 2015
Location: MN
Posts: 88
I don't think it's natural at all. In fact when we are addicted we are short circuiting our brains pleasure center to reach that unattainable high. It becomes more important then eating, sleeping, sex, etc. It becomes the new normal, which is not natural. Once that foot pathway from our inner brain to our frontal cortex becomes a four lane highway it's very hard to get back to our non-using normal. Once it does become a highway it doesn't revert back to a pathway, it's already wired up. Sure genetics played a part in how fast or how big that highway became due to our overuse of it.
Guest
Join Date: Nov 2012
Posts: 302
Im not sure whether addiction is natural or not. I would like to believe that its not.
This post got me thinking though, where did the term "addictive nature" originate? Ive heard people say "oh they just have an addictive nature" which just made me think the person they were describing could easily become addicted to something/someone/etc. But now I'm wondering if this terminology started with the idea that addiction is a natural phenomenon. Any thoughts?
This post got me thinking though, where did the term "addictive nature" originate? Ive heard people say "oh they just have an addictive nature" which just made me think the person they were describing could easily become addicted to something/someone/etc. But now I'm wondering if this terminology started with the idea that addiction is a natural phenomenon. Any thoughts?
That bell or bike person
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: london
Posts: 4,978
I was always after pleasure .
I was always after trying to make the pleasure last as long as possible .
What i wanted was a life of pleasure with not one moment of pain .
Alcohol and drugs appear to give pleasure but actually all they give is anesthesia and death, a delusion.
Acceptance was the thing for me , accept that life is pain , death and destruction as i heard someone say once .
Freedom from the desire to be free ..
I have no questions about life , others seem to peddle answers but if i've got no questions, looking at my feet is more interesting to me than what any of them have to say .
Just forget it , go and do something more interesting .
m
I was always after trying to make the pleasure last as long as possible .
What i wanted was a life of pleasure with not one moment of pain .
Alcohol and drugs appear to give pleasure but actually all they give is anesthesia and death, a delusion.
Acceptance was the thing for me , accept that life is pain , death and destruction as i heard someone say once .
Freedom from the desire to be free ..
I have no questions about life , others seem to peddle answers but if i've got no questions, looking at my feet is more interesting to me than what any of them have to say .
Just forget it , go and do something more interesting .
m
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