Types of Addiction
By Ned Wicker There are a lot of different types of addictions to drug and alcohol but I thought we start our discussion with a few anecdotal stories about addiction to give everyone an idea of what we’re really talking about. Always the Clown Trixie is the comic at her place of work. She’s the practical joker who is always doing something to make people laugh and after hours she is the life of the party. It seems that she likes to tip a few after work and she does so on a regular basis. There are stories about her drinking exploits, some of which have become legend. Her long-time boyfriend watches out for her that is he drives her back home and makes sure she doesn’t hurt herself. The stories are funny, but the underlying reality is anything but humorous. Trixie is an alcoholic who is suffering through the beginning stages of liver disease. She talks about her problems openly, but the reality of her disease has no apparent impact on her behavior. Having a sense of humor is good, as it is so vital in handling the tribulations of life. Comedy is predicated on human suffering, or misfortune. The funniest jokes all involve a tragic twist, an irony or the ridiculous. Types of Addiction The comedian Foster Brooks made his living portraying drunks, and it’s classically funny, but the reality is profoundly sad. “Oh, I’m not an alcoholic, I’m just a problem drinker,” will get a laugh, but the intent of the statement is to cover up the real problem. That’s what makes the joke funny. For Trixie, however, it’s a way of dealing with life. The laughs, the comedy and the jokes cover up a sad underlying problem—something hurts. She uses the alcohol to deal with her life. Trixie is at least aware that something has gone wrong, which may or may not have an impact on her decision- making. But she needs treatment and without it, she will likely die. You can’t cover this sort of thing up because it doesn’t go away. People can mask their problem only so long before the problem becomes too large to manage. Trixie is in trouble. Types of Addiction 21-35 year-old man + alcohol at the ball park = JERK. There is always that one guy at the baseball game. He is always a young man. Young women are not as blustery, obnoxious and ready to prove themselves to the world. There is always that one guy at the game that drinks to the point of passing out, but before he does, he irritates the entire section, offers to fight all comers and puts on a show while the authorities drag him out. For spice, we often see another man, who is his buddy, get into the act out of sympathy. He gets arrested because his friend got arrested. This two-for-one makes the enjoyment of the game that much better. Types of Addiction As much as I used to love going to ball games in my hometown of Milwaukee, there are so many drunks in the park that it just gets in the way of having a good time. I’ve written (complained) of this before, but we have an epidemic of drunkenness in Wisconsin and it isn’t getting any better. As long as happiness and living a fulfilling life are predicated on drinking, or so it would seem, there is no reason to expect that those predictable young men at the stadium will act any differently. Types of Addiction Alcohol doesn’t make the game better, it doesn’t enhance the relationship with your friends, it doesn’t give you any spiritual benefit and it certainly doesn’t increase your opportunities in life. Yet, people have to drink for some reason. They drink to excess and it’s all the time. Is life that limiting? Types of Addiction How stupid is stupid? There was a great line delivered by Jamie Leigh Curtis in the film ‘A Fish Called Wanda.’ Curtis shouts out “Calling you stupid would be an insult to stupid people!” You’re going to love this, because we have a winner here. The Live 5 News website from North Charleston, SC, reported on a man, who called 911 to complain that he had been given the incorrect change after purchasing crack cocaine. Apparently the drug dealer on the street, observing that Dexter White, 41, was a candidate for stupid person of the year, short changed his customer. But according to the story, White smoked the crack before making the decision to call police. It seems White gave the pusher $60, but only received $20 worth of drugs. He wanted his $40 back. It makes perfect sense to smoke the $20 worth of crack and then get the authorities involved. Certainly the injustice should spark public sympathy. After all, the drug dealer refused to give him his money. Instead, the police arrested White for disorderly conduct and took him to the Charleston County Detention Center. Oh, the injustice of it all. Drug addiction is a disease of the mind body and SPIRIT Let’s establish one important point of understanding about drug addiction. We are body, mind and spirit, and because of that, drug addiction is as much a disease of the spirit as it is of the body and mind. Unlike other chronic diseases, like diabetes, asthma, or heart disease, the spiritual component of drug addiction will play a major role in a person’s recovery. For more about Types of Addiction please visit our home page HOW TO USE THIS SITE:This site contains five MAIN pages that EVERYONE should read:ABOUT… Read these five pages and learn what you need to know to spot Addiction to Drugs in: Yourself... Your Family... Your Friends... Your Community... The rest of the pages are there for your reference to explain important topics in more detail.
|
Recovery Now!!
GET HELP NOW!!
Site Search