Is addiction a disease?

[ayjay]

^ That's my point - the simplistic models will never be as effective as a more sophisticated model (as in model 4 above) - because they aren't an accurate map of the territory (to paraphrase Korzybski...)

 

[edarrin]

The diseases you mentioned aren't dependant upon any choice by the afflicted person, but on an abnormality in the body, so i really don't understand the comparison

Obviously. I'm talking about genetic predisposition. Same root cause as PKU or type 1 diabetes.

Sorry if I came across as condesending. I was pretty high at the time. Just that I feel strongly about this as it is as plain as day to me with my family history,personal and professional experience.

 

[DustnRoses]

Addiction being a disease is a debatable subject...in my opinion, it's an acquired disease. If I never took my first percocet, I would've never moved on to OC then eventually to heroin, using every day. Luckily I'm not physically addicted anymore, but psychologically, I don't think I'll ever be able to go back to how I was before opiates. They changed my life.

 

[Diggitydank420]

yes it is, its genetics

 

[wesmdow]

i wrote a paper for my psych class from this thread....

i had to write a paper about a psychological theory, and i chose the premise of this thread for my topic: the theory that addiction is a disease. much of this has been covered in the thread, but i wanna post the paper in its entirety, if anyone wants to read/critique...

Is addiction a disease? I find the behavioral aspect of addiction fascinating because it is a controversial subject. While the medical community does generally classify alcoholism/drug addiction as a disease, controversy stems from disagreements about the use of the word. "Disease" has several definitions. The most relevant definition to this paper is: "any harmful, depraved, or morbid condition, as of the mind or society." There are valid arguments supporting either side of this debate. Some say that addiction is purely in the mind--a learned behavior--while others will argue that addictive behavior is genetic. I believe it is probably a combination of both genetic predisposition and exposure to drug/alcohol use. For the purpose of simplification in this paper, drug addiction and alcoholism will be considered one and the same, as they often overlap in many individuals.

The disease theory of alcoholism was first proposed in the early 1800s by Dr. Benjamin Rush. Alcoholism does in fact follow the disease model in many ways. Addiction exhibits the properties of a disease in that it gets progressively worse, without the 'victim' having much control over progression, and often leads to hospitalization or death.


As to just why addiction is such a problem for some people is a question researchers are still puzzling over. I know many alcoholics and drug addicts myself, and often wonder what drives them to hurt themselves so--it truly does seem, at least on the surface, very similar to any other sort of disease. Often addicts will do, for lack of a better word, stupid things to satiate their addictions; i.e. get high before a test, or before work. I have a hard time justifying this as just pure stupidity because I know these people not to be total idiots in other aspects of their lives.

Most researchers agree that drug/alcohol addiction is partially attributed to genetics, as are many other degenerative diseases like multiple sclerosis, diabetes mellitus, or osteoarthritis. Addiction has been proven to run in families, which is an indicator that it has something to do with genetic predisposition. Not all addicts or alcoholics are born to addicted or alcoholic parents, either, which is evidence that it is at least partially a learned behavior.

It is difficult to absolutely prove that addiction is a disease, however, because it does not exhibit all the standard symptoms of a disease. Drug addiction or alcohol abuse are both self-inflicted, where other diseases are not. Given the opportunity to stop using a drug that the user knows is harmful, such as methamphetamine, users will continue use despite the risk. I doubt that many people with a true illness, such as aids, would voluntarily keep their affliction. Another difference between an addiction and a standard disease is that an afflicted individual does not exhibit any observable out-of the ordinary symptoms. That is, one cannot tell that an individual is an addict just by looking at them or speaking with them. It is also very difficult to prove that an individual is 'cured' of their addiction, simply because, again, there are no observable symptoms of the "curedness." A "cured" individual may go months or years without using, and suddenly relapse of their own choice--this does not happen with other diseases. When one gets over a illness such as a cold, that particular disease is forever cured--one might catch a cold again, however, the second cold is a separate, slightly different virus; a new disease altogether.

An aspect to consider on the issue is that there are those with a vested interest in maintaining the idea that alcoholism/drug addiction is a disease, because treatment is a very profitable industry. Each year millions of dollars are spent by patients in both in and outpatient rehab, there is quite a bit of money to be made in the field of rehabilitation. Because there is such an amount of money to be made in the area of addiction recovery, it is difficult to create truly unbiased studies, as so much profit lies in the outcome of said studies. A good example of this is the class of drugs known as SSRIs (specific seratonin reuptake inhibitors). SSRIs are very commonly prescribed for a plethora of reasons, from depression to anxiety. They gained popularity as a replacement for barbiturates, because SSRIs have little to no abuse potential when compared to barbiturates. The long-term effects of SSRIs are not very well documented, however that does not appear to dissuade doctors from (in my opinion at least) over prescribing them due to pressure from pharmaceutical companies.

Due to the fact that it is so difficult to classify the exact type of problem addiction is, and even more difficult to isolate the cause of the addiction, treatment becomes extremely difficult, often addicts struggle with the problem for their entire lives.

Although the I can see the case for it, I personally have trouble classifying addiction as a disease. This is because I feel that choice is involved, at least to some degree. If, as I believe, (Sane) people do not choose to become ill or to remain ill. , then it follows, therefore, that because drug addicts choose to use--despite the negative consequences—that this is a psychological disorder. However I do not feel that its fair to those afflicted with legitimate illnesses to compare them with people who essentially bring it upon themselves.

 

[FractalStructure]

i defenitely believe its a disease, but this article seems to say (unless im interpreting it incorrectly) that you are born with this "disease" you are always miserable, until you find the drug (opiates would be the best example) and then it takes all that away, and since you have found the missing puzzle piece of your mind, you keep using it. but i dont really believe THAT part is true. opiates make EVERYBODY feel nice. i think this could be the case with some people, but it cannot be applied to any dependent person on the planet.

P.S. Decent paper. although ive gotten high before many a test and did just fine ;-). keep in mind that if you are talking about ADDICTS getting high before a test, if its an opiate addict, they will need the opiate to be FUNCTIONAL enough to take the fucking test. I'm not talking about slamming a bundle and nodding your ass off. For me (since i am dependent on opiates ATM), before any important activity i wll take my "feel normal" dose, as would anyone in such a position... unless they want desperately to get high as fuck and not just stay clear of withdrawal

 

[wesmdow]

i defenitely believe its a disease, but this article seems to say (unless im interpreting it incorrectly) that you are born with this "disease" you are always miserable, until you find the drug (opiates would be the best example) and then it takes all that away, and since you have found the missing puzzle piece of your mind, you keep using it.

I have a hard time justifying this as just pure stupidity because I know these people not to be total idiots in other aspects of their lives.

i tried in that sentence, obviously not too well, to convey exactly your problem with my paper.

i dont feel like it is entirely genetic OR learned, however some people (such as myself) ARE miserable most of the time without our drug of choice-mine being a benzo of some sort.

 

[sushii]

^ You write very well. Do you not have to put references in, though? We got absolutely slaughtered in undergraduate psych for not referencing properly.

 

[wesmdow]

nah, i dont have to include references in this... (o dear god i hope!!!)

its just a "reflection paper," i pulled out of my ass this morning when i realized it was due at noon

 

[Pander Bear]

I swing on this...some days I agree with the disease model and tell myself that going to CMA, CA, NA, AA, etc. on a regular basis is no different that a diabetic taking insulin to survive. Other days I say fuck meetings, fuck the disease model, I can survive by my own willpower. I feel that the same part of my brain that says, "fuck it", is also the same part of my brain that convinced me I'd be able to use meth again soley through smoking/snorting without injecting anymore. That didn't turn out too well... =/

*edit for clarity*
Overall; I don't think it is a disease in the traditional sense. Addiction has several aspects that are similar the the concept of a disease; but I know too many people who overcame their addictions w/o accepting that they had a "disease" and required various support groups to recover from it for me to buy into what I was told in rehab, etc...

Saying addiction is a disease, and saying its chronic, and incurable are two different things.

 

[ayjay]

^OK, but the main proponents of the disease model are 12-steppers, and they do say that it is chronic and incurable...

 

[B9]

No it's not a disease at all !
It's escapism !
Some people need to escape all the time !
Then they may not need to one day, but by then it is a habitual thing !

This thread is somewhat circular!

 

[Pander Bear]

^OK, but the main proponents of the disease model are 12-steppers, and they do say that it is chronic and incurable...

As far as I'm concerned, 12 steppers don't know what they're talking about when it comes to the disease model, even if they are living with it up close and personal every day. They lack the perspective, and the medical training to make that evaluation.

I remember when my sponsor first told me that he had been cured and that he was no longer addicted. This wasn't one of those wishful-thinking 6-months-sober kinds of things that you tell yourself to justify doing coke on the weekends again. He's 28 years clean now and still has a small army of sponsees, and does counseling.

At some point along the line in an individual's recovery (how ever they are doing it), all those really characteristic behaviors and triggers are extinguished. That sort of thing happens to all sorts of people in all sorts of aspects in life. Its just special for addicts because they routinely die from their addiction, and for many of them, just wanting to be happy again isn't enough.


Anywho, the color ran out of my face when my sponsor told me than. Even though we were alone, I started speaking to him in hushed tones because what he was talking about would have attracted a mountain of judgment and condemnation in a 12 steps community. He gets by with flaunting a basic tenant of the belief system because he does good works for them, and becuase he been clean for close to three decades. He knows what most people who have been clean for that long know: that its more about helping others, and constantly improving one's self than it is about making sure you don't get high today.

When I split, it was because I decided I didn't want to tell myself that what I had was incurable, because as long as I told myself that, it might as well have been true.