Addiction vs. disease
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Addiction vs. disease
What does this mean to you? Gneiss' thread has inspired me to make this thread. I need something to think about today so I'll throw this out there.
I believe I have addictions, not diseases. I smoke cigarettes which is an addiction not a disease. I can choose to drink alcohol, which to me is another addiction and not a disease. Both will lead to disease for sure. Neither are good and to be avoided. Both of these substances will alter levels of neurotransmitters in my brain. Addiction, I guess, could be said to be a disease of the brain, although I am still fuzzy on this. No one ever says "I have the disease of smoking," and smoking will put holes in your brain too.
Thoughts?
I believe I have addictions, not diseases. I smoke cigarettes which is an addiction not a disease. I can choose to drink alcohol, which to me is another addiction and not a disease. Both will lead to disease for sure. Neither are good and to be avoided. Both of these substances will alter levels of neurotransmitters in my brain. Addiction, I guess, could be said to be a disease of the brain, although I am still fuzzy on this. No one ever says "I have the disease of smoking," and smoking will put holes in your brain too.
Thoughts?
The camps are pretty divided on the "disease" issue from what I can tell. Maybe it's easier for some to accept their addiction if they think of it as a disease...IDK. Anyway, I prefer to think of it as just an addiction and that I am 100% responsible for it.
Get ready for a wild ride on this one, Katie.
Get ready for a wild ride on this one, Katie.
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The camps are pretty divided on the "disease" issue from what I can tell. Maybe it's easier for some to accept their addiction if they think of it as a disease...IDK. Anyway, I prefer to think of it as just an addiction and that I am 100% responsible for it.
Get ready for a wild ride on this one, Katie.
Get ready for a wild ride on this one, Katie.
Good points Katie. Its actually ironic that many people who believe that addiction is a disease are the first ones to say that relapse and recovery are choices. If all it takes to be sober is "wanting" it bad enough, then how does the disease come into play?
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Tough question but good question. I'll let bigger brains answer this one
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I don't know...i guess i can see both sides...i usually work within the diseaase concept...
bottom line is i really don't care what others call it, and i just have an idea in my mind of what i think i'm dealing with that makes since to me.
choice and responsibility are two different issues for me....I am responsible regardless of wether or not i have a choice...
focusing on the misapplications of how others use concepts and words is only helpful to me if it is done in order to understand what i believe.
i think it is really good to put some thought into how you see this aclhohoism/addiction stuff and sorting out how to find your path through it all
bottom line is i really don't care what others call it, and i just have an idea in my mind of what i think i'm dealing with that makes since to me.
choice and responsibility are two different issues for me....I am responsible regardless of wether or not i have a choice...
focusing on the misapplications of how others use concepts and words is only helpful to me if it is done in order to understand what i believe.
i think it is really good to put some thought into how you see this aclhohoism/addiction stuff and sorting out how to find your path through it all
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2009
Posts: 1,141
I don't know...i guess i can see both sides...i usually work within the diseaase concept...
bottom line is i really don't care what others call it, and i just have an idea in my mind of what i think i'm dealing with that makes since to me.
choice and responsibility are two different issues for me....I am responsible regardless of wether or not i have a choice...
focusing on the misapplications of how others use concepts and words is only helpful to me if it is done in order to understand what i believe.
i think it is really good to put some thought into how you see this aclhohoism/addiction stuff and sorting out how to find your path through it all
bottom line is i really don't care what others call it, and i just have an idea in my mind of what i think i'm dealing with that makes since to me.
choice and responsibility are two different issues for me....I am responsible regardless of wether or not i have a choice...
focusing on the misapplications of how others use concepts and words is only helpful to me if it is done in order to understand what i believe.
i think it is really good to put some thought into how you see this aclhohoism/addiction stuff and sorting out how to find your path through it all
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I don't think it matters one bit whether you view addiction as a disease or not. What helps me recover is knowing the facts about my own experience with alcoholism. A real turning point for me was knowing for sure what unbearable consequences I faced if I drank, and knowing with absolute assurance that I was going to drink.
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Katie...just so you know the AMA considers smoking and alcoholism the same "disease".
The adoption of the word "disease" by the AMA is quite controversial and has an interesting history if you want to google it.
The following is a letter submitted to the AMA and their reply...
> The following information was submitted:
>
> Comment: By what criteria does the AMA base their
> "endorsement" of
> alcoholism/drug addiction as being a "disease" in? I
> would like to know
> HOW "addiction" meets the criteria for
> classification as a "disease".
Subject: RE: Contact Us: About the AMA, Other
> Date: Wed, 13 Sep 2006 12:26:22 -0500
> From: "USC-AmerMedAssn"
> To: "John
>
> Linda Rashid, Communications Coordinator for the
> American Medical
> Association Unified Service Center, is responding to
> your email inquiry.
>
> Thank you for contacting the American Medical
> Association regarding
> alcoholism as a disease.
>
> We do consider alcoholism to be a disease. Chain
> smoking is a behavior
> resulting from nicotine addiction which we also
> consider to be a
> disease, as is other drug dependence — more properly
> called substance
> use disorders. There are a wide array of levels of
> problems related to
> use of alcohol and other drugs, some of which are
> primarily behavioral,
> others involve physical and psychological
> dependence.
The adoption of the word "disease" by the AMA is quite controversial and has an interesting history if you want to google it.
The following is a letter submitted to the AMA and their reply...
> The following information was submitted:
>
> Comment: By what criteria does the AMA base their
> "endorsement" of
> alcoholism/drug addiction as being a "disease" in? I
> would like to know
> HOW "addiction" meets the criteria for
> classification as a "disease".
Subject: RE: Contact Us: About the AMA, Other
> Date: Wed, 13 Sep 2006 12:26:22 -0500
> From: "USC-AmerMedAssn"
> To: "John
>
> Linda Rashid, Communications Coordinator for the
> American Medical
> Association Unified Service Center, is responding to
> your email inquiry.
>
> Thank you for contacting the American Medical
> Association regarding
> alcoholism as a disease.
>
> We do consider alcoholism to be a disease. Chain
> smoking is a behavior
> resulting from nicotine addiction which we also
> consider to be a
> disease, as is other drug dependence — more properly
> called substance
> use disorders. There are a wide array of levels of
> problems related to
> use of alcohol and other drugs, some of which are
> primarily behavioral,
> others involve physical and psychological
> dependence.
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Well, I will be damned Bugsworth. Thanks for bringing this to my attention.
I still disagree though. I think it's a choice when I ingest poisons. It's an addiction, to be sure, but a choice. I did quit smoking for 15 years - a choice. I picked it up again - a choice. Much like drinking. I do hold myself responsible.
I still disagree though. I think it's a choice when I ingest poisons. It's an addiction, to be sure, but a choice. I did quit smoking for 15 years - a choice. I picked it up again - a choice. Much like drinking. I do hold myself responsible.
I don't believe I am addicted or diseased. I believe I learned ways of dealing with or adjusting emotions when I was young that at some point became destructive towards my well being. Now I am learning new coping strategies that will be more beneficial to my emotional, physical and spiritual well being and growth.
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I don't believe I am addicted or diseased. I believe I learned ways of dealing with or adjusting emotions when I was young that at some point became destructive towards my well being. Now I am learning new coping strategies that will be more beneficial to my emotional, physical and spiritual well being and growth.
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If the problem were as simple as a physical addiction, then a detox would be sufficient for recovery. Just get your body 'unused' to those things, and we'd all recover. Time spent without ingesting alcohol would be a cure.
My alcoholism centers in my mind. I have an obsession that I can't think my way out of.
My alcoholism centers in my mind. I have an obsession that I can't think my way out of.
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If the problem were as simple as a physical addiction, then a detox would be sufficient for recovery. Just get your body 'unused' to those things, and we'd all recover. Time spent without ingesting alcohol would be a cure.
My alcoholism centers in my mind. I have an obsession that I can't think my way out of.
My alcoholism centers in my mind. I have an obsession that I can't think my way out of.
As a sidenote, I had a bottle of wine in my fridge for a month and FORGOT about it - yes forgot. I was on a maximum dosage of mood stabilizer when this happened - my miracle drug. It is not about an "alcoholic mind." FOR ME. It's about neurochemistry and coping skills or lack thereof.
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I disagree. I quit both smoking and drinking for six weeks a while ago and then two months on different occasions. I was out of the detox phase on both. What led me back to both was my inability to deal with reality in a positive way - a lack of coping skills to be exact. Again, a choice. I could have made another choice but didn't know what other choice to make.
As a sidenote, I had a bottle of wine in my fridge for a month and FORGOT about it - yes forgot. I was on a maximum dosage of mood stabilizer when this happened - my miracle drug. It is not about an "alcoholic mind." FOR ME. It's about neurochemistry and coping skills or lack thereof.
As a sidenote, I had a bottle of wine in my fridge for a month and FORGOT about it - yes forgot. I was on a maximum dosage of mood stabilizer when this happened - my miracle drug. It is not about an "alcoholic mind." FOR ME. It's about neurochemistry and coping skills or lack thereof.
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True. But as an owner of two Shih Tzus and a cat, let me tell you they make better choices. They stay away from toxins. Ok, so an animal lover here.
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