I was a drug user from 14 years to 27 years old. Every story I have read on this site is a familiar one to both me and my mom (who enabled me for the first 26 years and got tough with me at age 27). I am now 58 years old and have never relapsed since going to rehab 31 years ago. This message is for everyone struggling with addiction or with an addict. I have some great news! Addiction is NOT a disease! I can hear the gnashing of teeth as people read this but bear with me and let me explain.
People who use drugs don't suffer from "drug" addiction...they suffer from "victim" addiction. It is the need of the "addict" to see themselves as a helpless victim....victim of bad parenting, victim of rejection, victim of abuse, and yes, victim of the drug. By calling drug addiction a "disease" we give addicts an easy way to avoid true responsibility for the choices they make. (The devil made me do it). The "disease" can only "make you do it" if there are drugs in your body. So how do you explain relapses after days, months, even years of being clean with no drugs in your body? How do you attribute that to a 'disease"
Once a person moves out of the victim phase into true adulthood, there is absolutely nothing that could get them back in "the life" of drugs. There is no "white knuckle" sobriety. Just a feeling of accomplishment and pride.
For me, I attribute my escape from drugs to one primary factor....I desperately wanted to change. It wasn't easy....quitting drugs was only the first step. When I got clean I was a 13 year old in a 27 year old body. 31 years later I still struggle. Not with a desire for drugs but a desire to become a good, decent sister, daughter, aunt, wife and all around person. And God ain't done with me yet. I still have a long way to go.
For those with a visceral reaction to my premise that addiction is not a disease.... I would invite you to do some self exploration and ask yourself why are you invested in a belief that defines people as victims rather than embrace a knowledge that we ultimately control our destiny (with the help of God's grace of course!)
Dear Suz,
I agree with much of your post.
There are many reasons people struggle with the disease concept. Mostly because it is self inflicted, but also because of the awful behavior people exibit when using.
Heart and lung disease, and diabetes are also often self-inflicted. They just don't have the stigma because heart disease patients don't lie, cheat, and steal to support their habit.
The reason I buy into the disease concept is simple: Once you cross the line into addiction, your body is forever changed. This is why people who resume usage after a long period of sobriety will quickly use at a equal or greater rate than when they first sobered up. The body continues to change. With alcohol, the great obsession of every alcoholic is to resume drinking "like a gentleman". This is a notion that must be smashed, because the body has morphed beyond the point of controlled usage.
In the end, to me it doesn't matter if people agree or disagree with the disease concept. What matters most it, what are you going to to about it?
I agree with much of your post.
There are many reasons people struggle with the disease concept. Mostly because it is self inflicted, but also because of the awful behavior people exibit when using.
Heart and lung disease, and diabetes are also often self-inflicted. They just don't have the stigma because heart disease patients don't lie, cheat, and steal to support their habit.
The reason I buy into the disease concept is simple: Once you cross the line into addiction, your body is forever changed. This is why people who resume usage after a long period of sobriety will quickly use at a equal or greater rate than when they first sobered up. The body continues to change. With alcohol, the great obsession of every alcoholic is to resume drinking "like a gentleman". This is a notion that must be smashed, because the body has morphed beyond the point of controlled usage.
In the end, to me it doesn't matter if people agree or disagree with the disease concept. What matters most it, what are you going to to about it?
Hi SUZ99, I really enjoyed reading what you wrote here. I think it gives people a different way to look at addiction and help them see that it's something that can be cured and with that belief the hope is greater. I am going to print your post out and try get my daughter to read it. It's gave me hope.Thank you! M.
It was a BIG DEAL for me to get rid of my addiction and believing I didn't have a disease almost killed me and it was VERY necessary for me to go to a rehab . without it I would be dead. One thing we have to remember in our recovery journeys is that we are all different in the progression of our addiction and in the progress of our recovery . number one rule.. NEVER compare yourself to another. I cannot tell someone else if they have a disease or if they just abused alcohol or drugs . I also cannot tell if the recovery of someone else is going to be easy or difficult and I certainly cannot say my sobriety is proof that everyone can beat addiction.. One thing we should remember when we post on a forum such as this that there are people who come here who are still suffering from addiction or in early recovery looking for support. what we say or suggest can make a difference in the decisions the person who reads it will make for that day. By telling someone who is in active addiction that they dont have a disease and that there is no need to go to reab for help is about the same as giving someone tips on how to destroy themselves.Everyone knows DENIAL is part of the sickness of addiction and reading something like this just validates what the addict wants to believe.....
I have constantly struggled with the "disease"concept for years. I wholeheartedly agree that we see ourselves as VICTIMS and for some of us...me included, it was just another way for me to feel sorry for myself and not hold myself responsible for my CHOICES. My theory, as it relates to me, is that I HAD to go through all the years, all the experiences, to get to the place where I just GREW UP...MATURED. Granted it took me YEARS....AA, outpatient, inpatient, legal problems, DWIs . The single thing that helped me most was one on one therapy. My relapses have just continued to get farther and farther apart...it was no longer enjoyable at all and had just become a habit of I DONT LIKE HOW FEEL, THIS IS WHEN I TURN TO DRUGS. I REALLY TRULY BELIEVED I JUST MATURED.
