Alcoholism and addiction

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   RudyRedposted 11 years ago

   Legitimate disease or self-inflicted physiological affects of abuse?

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2. 70

   Cagsilposted 11 years ago

   It's both.

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3. 52

   RudyRedposted 11 years ago

   How so? What leads you to believe this?

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      Cagsilposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Alcoholism leads to liver disease, which leads to death.
      
      Alcoholism is a disease of the mind, a lack of knowledge, a lack of self control, a lack of understanding(of self and life) and can have physical repercussions.
      
      From a psychological point of view- it is an abuse one applies to self while not being aware of it happening.
      
      When the self-realization becomes known to the individual and that individual makes an honest, conscience, conscious assessment of their own situation/circumstance, then and only then will that person finally see.
      
      Some never do. Some do.

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4. 85

   kaiyan717posted 11 years ago

   Addiction and Alcoholism are not a disease, it is a choice.  I have a rare brain disease, I can not merely put down a bottle to make it go away.  Addiction is an initial choice made with serious reprecussions and a guarenteed hard road to follow.  Calling it a disease is a cop out.  IMO of course.

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      Cagsilposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      The initial action is a choice. The effects happen when will power is no longer in control. Thus, alcoholism and addiction. Addiction isn't a disease, per se. Addiction is more a mind game. Alcoholism is a disease, as it creates more diseases.

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5. 52

   RudyRedposted 11 years ago

   Lack of knowledge or understanding is ignorance, not a disease. We don't say uneducated or illiterate people are diseased. They are uneducated. The physical diseases stem from the act of alcoholism and addiction.

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      Cagsilposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Ignorance is a disease of the mind which the ego refuses to let go of because it can be used as an excuse.
      That would depend on the specific individual and being uneducated or illiterate would only be one factor.
      Yes, it's one factor.
      I think I said this.

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6. 52

   RudyRedposted 11 years ago

   No, ignorance is defined as a lack of knowledge or information. What you describe is denial, which again is an action, not a disease.

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      Cagsilposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Oh. Okay, if you say so.

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      kaiyan717posted 11 years agoin reply to this

      I don't even think people can claim ignorance, there is too much information about the results of alcohol and drugs, yet people still do it.  If a person knowingly takes dangerous drugs that can shut down their liver and have permanent lasting side effects, it becomes a choice everytime they partake.  An stupid choice, yet a choice.

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7. 52

   RudyRedposted 11 years ago

   I ask because I work in a drug treatment facility. We drug test and counsel clients (mostly forced to be there due to criminal charges) and it seems arbitrary and almost misleading. Everyone is taught they can't partake in drugs or alcohol because they have a disease. Thus forbidding these clients (in their minds) to consume drugs or alcohol, creating further dysfunctional relationships with substances that have destroyed their cognition. What they need is education on these substances they consume and education on why they are susceptible to these addictive traits. This proves difficult when clients are unable to perceive and understand more advanced information.
   
   I have mixed feelings about abstinence. I believe in being responsible for yourself. There are however, those that will not or are unable to escape from these self-inflicted ailments.

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8. 52

   RudyRedposted 11 years ago

   What do you mean if I say so. Look it up yourself. Type in "define: ignorance", it does not cite diseases of the mind I assure you that.

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9. 69

   gsidleyposted 11 years ago

   I believe that using the term "disease" when referring to problems of behaviour/mental health is counter-productive and misleading. To legitimately refer to something as a disease there needs to be a clear, identifiable biological disturbance in the brain or body that is primarily causing the disorder. To use the term for alcohol problems removes any sense of agency/personal responsibility and works against recovery.
   
   The same arguments apply to mental disorders like schizophrenia and depression (but maybe that's a debate for another thread?)

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10. 0

    jenuboukaposted 11 years ago

    Here:
    
    http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/alcoholism/DS00340/
    
    It is a chronic and progressive disease to which begins in the brain; yet manifests inside the body and more over the neurotransmitters in your brain.  The only cure is abstinence and perhaps most should seek some kind of mental therapy as those who are bipolar or suffer from depression. 
    
    Each time an alcoholic resumes drinking they drink right from where they left off; via a fifth or such. It may start out as a social event; yet since it is a progressive disease of the brain there is no real way to determine the time it will manifest into death; each person is different. 
    
    I can see for some how it would be difficult to understand that drinking is more than just a mere choice to those who suffer; however, it begins with the brain; the most complicated organ to diagnose of the human body. So for most; there is an underlying issue to which drives them to drink that usually stems from the brain.

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11. 77

    Mighty Momposted 11 years ago

    It is a biochemically based disease and the disease model is pretty much universally accepted these days.
    Fact: The livers of alcoholics actually process alcohol abnormally.
    Fact: The brains of addicts are different than so-called "normal" people's.
    
    It is an allergy of the body combined with a compulsion of the mind. That's what you, on the outside, don't see. A brain commanding you to drink more, more more, even while your body cannot tolerate the alcohol.
    What you do see is the behavioral consequences of the disease, which admittedly make no sense, are not very pleasant, and often are downright criminal.
    
    It is really frightening to me that in this day and age we have people working in the field of drug treatment who are still so misinformed. Not to mention judgmental.
    

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12. 69

    gsidleyposted 11 years ago

    When we talk about "brain disease" the suggestion is that there is a linear, causative relationship between biochemical or cellular changes in the brain that directly lead to a disorder.  Thus, senile dementia can legitimately be called a brain disease as the symptoms of the disorder do not emerge until  brain cells start to malfunction or degenerate; a person cannot under any circumstances suffer senile dementia unless this brain cell degeneration occurs.
    
    Alcohol problems are not caused by a brain disease. Yes, a small proportion of people with alcohol problems may physically react to alcohol in an abnormal way. Yes, some people are perhaps more genetically prone to addictive behaviours of any kind (heroin abuse, gambling, shopping). But brain pathology that can be demonstrated on scans will be the direct consequence of a prolonged period of alcohol abuse.
    
    And let's not fall into the trap of assuming that those people who buy into the "disease" model of a disorder have a monopoly on compassion; the converse seems to be the case - for example, there is evidence that those holding disease models of schizophrenia hold views that are more stigmatising and rejecting of the sufferers themselves.

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13. 89

    meloncauliposted 11 years ago

    I believe alcoholism is primarily caused by either personality traits (addictive personality) and/or learned behaviour. To say it is choice is partly true but if you take those causes, you can see that often the problem has grown before a person realises it. People also become alcoholic to mask other problems in their lives...stuff they can not handle. That means there is cause and effect that is not indicative of disease but of an incapacity to focus on and deal with the real issues in that person's life.

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