To say that addiction is a choice rather than a disease is not to say that people don’t really suffer. Nor is it to say their behavior comes from some inherent “badness” within them. It is to say that their suffering is indeed real, and that it emanates from a set of beliefs about substances,… Continue reading On saying that addiction is a choice – briefly.
Category: Self-Help
Victims of circumstance: How to avoid being a delicate addict on the edge of relapse
In the model of addiction that pegs external circumstances as the cause of addiction, recovery, and relapse – relapse is always inevitable. There’s always an excuse.
Quick answer: You can avoid being a delicate addict on the verge of relapse by refusing to blame circumstances (and other external factors) for your substance use – and simply owning it as a choice freely made for immediate pleasure/happiness.
There is only one way to “recover” from “addiction”
There is only one way to “recover.” Hint: it’s not a program, treatment, medication, support system, alternative coping method, therapy, etc. The only way to recover is…
Motivation to Change: The Absence of Pain vs The Pursuit of Happiness
What motivates problematic substance use, and what motivates people to change it? Maybe the following quote will give you some insight. “Achieving life is not the equivalent of avoiding death. Joy is not ‘the absence of pain,’ intelligence is not ‘the absence of stupidity,’ light is not ‘the absence of darkness… Building is not done… Continue reading Motivation to Change: The Absence of Pain vs The Pursuit of Happiness
The Oak Tree has spoken…
Physical dependence is easy to deal with. Spend a week in a detox ward, and you’re done. Deeply ingrained beliefs are not quite as simple. No medication or surgical procedure can change the fact that someone believes that chasing the cheap thrills of drugs and alcohol is a better use of their time than any… Continue reading The Oak Tree has spoken…
Addiction – The Freedom Model vs The Control Model
In my work helping people with substance use problems, I am an instructor rather than a counselor, therapist, or medical professional of some kind. The people I work with read a textbook, complete written assignments, and come to class to review the reading, their work, and the ideas contained within. It is truly a unique… Continue reading Addiction – The Freedom Model vs The Control Model
Brain, or Thought? How To Explain Changes In Substance Use Habits
The Black Eyed Peas vocalist Fergie recently spilled her guts to Oprah about a past problem with drugs, specifically crystal meth. She says she got into a state of paranoia, walked into a church, had a conversation with God, and decided to stop using drugs. Meanwhile, addiction “experts” often describe choices about substance use as… Continue reading Brain, or Thought? How To Explain Changes In Substance Use Habits
Money, Drugs, and Triggers
It’s amazing witnessing the lengths that addiction researchers and theorists will go to in order to avoid stating what’s so painfully obvious to any sane person. As an example, I present to you this passage from a popular manual on “relapse prevention”: Substance cues include not only the drugs themselves, but also associated cues and… Continue reading Money, Drugs, and Triggers
Oh The Devastation…
According to the leaders of the recovery culture, the idea that addiction is freely chosen behavior would supposedly be so devastating and crushing to people’s egos, that we should never talk about it! I found a little poem that gives a sobering perspective on such nonsense. I hope you like it!
The Surprisingly Unfortunate Limitations of CBT
CBT can alternately be empowering and extremely limiting. While it’s built on some true wisdom, it focuses on such a small part of living – our reactions – that it ignores what we can proactively create in our lives by starting at the level of thought.