The Disease That Isn’t - Page 2

GottaGo · #11 (**permalink**) 02-21-2010, 06:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cnredd

Same...

I don't know of anyone who says they came down with a severe bout of gambling...

I'm not sure I would call them a disease, I do believe it is a phsycological "addiction".

My ex-husband was/is addicted to gambling, he sold things and hocked things and stole from his friends to gamble. He is also addicted to cocaine, and eventually became a crackhead, and has lost everything that meant anything to him in life.

A twelve step doesn't CURE anything, Pat. It teaches a person to resist the addiction (just like with tobacco), and change the habits related to the addiction.

And just as with any compulsive behavior, you do it just once after you've quit, and you may have thrown yourself right back into the cycle.

alan · #12 (**permalink**) 02-21-2010, 09:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by saltwn

Hhmm..what do you think it is then?

It is a choice.
It's no secret that things like tobacco, cocaine and heroin can be addictive. People make that initial choice to use them. Every time I light up a cigarette or pour myself a drink, I am making a choice.

foundit66 · #13 (**permalink**) 02-21-2010, 04:20 PM

I would agree it is not truly a disease, per se.

disease: a condition of the living animal or plant body or of one of its parts that impairs normal functioning and is typically manifested by distinguishing signs and symptoms
Disease - Definition and More from the Free Merriam-Webster Dictionary

To claim it is a disease is to make improper assumptions about "normal functioning"...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pat

It is a choice.
It's no secret that things like tobacco, cocaine and heroin can be addictive. People make that initial choice to use them. Every time I light up a cigarette or pour myself a drink, I am making a choice.

"Making a choice" I would say technically yes.
But it's not really a complete picture of the subject, IMO.

The underlying factors driving that choice, for an addict, are less under his control than would be a "choice" of paper or plastic.
For example, nicotine addiction.

If you want to increase the level of a chemical inside the body, you could make more of the chemical. Or you could interfere with the body's mechanism for destroying it.

Recent information concerning dopamine, a neurotransmitter associated with pleasure and well-being, indicates that cigarette smoke might use both techniques for raising dopamine levels. If true, it could have serious consequences for smoking cessation programs.

Nicotine has long been known to stimulate the release of dopamine. Now, research by scientists at Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) in New York points toward -- but does not prove -- another mechanism for cigarette addiction. They've found something in cigarette smoke that seems to be slowing the breakdown of dopamine.

This is your brain on nicotine

Ultimately, I don't think I'm really "disagreeing" as much as providing more information.

Gordon Shumway · #14 (**permalink**) 02-21-2010, 04:38 PM

& people who are addicted to food are just called fat

Calling something a disease just seems to be an out for people to remove themselves from taking responsibility for their actions.
While the addiction can become a very real uncontraollable vice --- Pat's right that the decision to do the drug/take that drink/or light up that smoke in the first place was a choice.

Billo_Really · #15 (**permalink**) 02-22-2010, 02:06 AM

I wish they would legalize all drugs.

There are worse problems that need to be addressed.

Temptation has been around since the apple. What makes anyone think they can legislate that out of someone's heart?

mlurp · #16 (**permalink**) 02-22-2010, 10:40 AM

What ever the addiction, many can and do over come it. It depends on the person and their desire to quit, IMHO.

I drank sometimes more than I needed. From 18 onward. But I never smoked till Viet-Nam...

I realized I was a bad drunk... So I quit it. No twelve steps. I never admitted I was drinking to much.

But I have tried to stop smoking several times and failed. Was it part of the Nam experience?
Or is it the fact they made smoking more addictive? Or is it the two combined?

Let me lite up and think about it.

I guess I settled for the fact that only Christ knows my date to the grave. And if I stopped now after 43 years I think it will not change the results of longevity very much...
I would have to say for me one addiction was easier to dump than the other.

I accept my fate.. As it affects me and harms no others.

Mustang Man · #17 (**permalink**) 02-22-2010, 10:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Billo_Really

I wish they would legalize all drugs.

There are worse problems that need to be addressed.

Temptation has been around since the apple. What makes anyone think they can legislate that out of someone's heart?

Then they will need to legalize prostitution as well. That has been around longer than probably any other "addiction".

mlurp · #18 (**permalink**) 02-22-2010, 11:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mustang Man

Then they will need to legalize prostitution as well. That has been around longer than probably any other "addiction".

Now that is the one addiction I never tried, nor needed too. And I wouldn't want to start now.

Billo is liting up right now on the beach kicking back.. Thats not an addiction...

spirowilliam · #19 (**permalink**) 08-05-2010, 02:12 PM

Most of the people have the addiction and remaining are suffered by the stress, hyper tension and worries. So, it is preferable to quit the addiction to live the life healthy and maintain the body. I prefer Yoga to keep away from the stress and worries.

saltwn · #20 (**permalink**) 08-06-2010, 02:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pat

The Disease That Isn’t

Addiction.
Sorry, I just can’t accept that addictions like alcohol, drugs or sex are an actual disease. Maybe a mental illness, but not a disease.

I’d like to know what other actual physical or mental diseases can be cured by a twelve-step program. Can you cure leukemia, lung cancer or Parkinson’s with a twelve-step program? What about bi-polar disorder? Can that be cured with twelve steps administered by somebody with no medical training?

Why isn’t nicotine addiction considered a disease like alcohol or heroin or sex addiction?
What sets tobacco use apart from other addictions? Could it be politics and the anti-smoking lobby that has determined that tobacco use is something to be vilified?
Golly gee, we wouldn’t want to show any sympathy for tobacco users, but if you choose to use heroin, then you are a victim.

Addiction isn’t a disease, calling it one is just an excuse.

Since habitual intake of some of these things (alcohol, marijuana, cocaine for instance) cause a chemical imbalance to occur, there is a good chance behavioral modification with reinforcement techniques can at least cure the symptoms.
My spouse feels the same way you do, BTW. He doesn't have any addictions save cigarettes and cannot understand that some people do.
We all know though that peer pressure or group modifications can affect behavior.
Just look at cabbage patch dolls.

A group of peers decided they were cute

and valuable so some of them soared in price to thousands of dollars.
Life is all about perception and how you perceive yourself is the most important of all.
Like praying and feeling forgiven or relieved of a problem, seeking a higher power to take over what you cannot seem to fight allows you to give up and still claim victory. The men who thought this up were geniuses IMHO.

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