Processing Addiction
- kesha Pillai
- Apr 4, 2021
- 3 min read
According to the SBS series Addicted Australia, around one in every 20 Australians battles addiction or substance abuse. The pursuit of reward is central to addiction. Healthy behaviours like exercising, eating, and bonding with loved ones are rewarded by a healthy brain. This is accomplished by activating brain circuits that make us feel good, motivating us to repeat those behaviours. We can also feel good by engaging in drugs, alcohol, shopping, gambling, and other activities. Although genetic and other biological factors may play a role, many social, psychological, and environmental factors significantly impact addictive behaviours. Addiction is often misunderstood as a choice or a moral issue, and that all users must do is stop. Nothing, however, could be further from the truth.
Addiction as a Process
In 1985, Professor Jim Orford created the Excessive Appetites model of addiction to counter addiction's prevalent "disease" model. The first stage, according to the model, is adopting the “appetitive" behaviour. This usually begins during the adolescent years, when most people are first exposed to activities that can become addictive. People who have experimented with addictive behaviours soon discover that they are powerful "mood modifiers". This can take the form of increasing positive emotions and lowering, or escaping, negative emotions. When people adopt the addictive behaviour and learn that it can help them feel better, associations form between the behaviour and the desired states of mind and feelings. As these associations develop along neurological pathways and become automatic, cues that remind the person of the addictive behaviour can prompt them to seek it out. While some characteristics have been linked to addiction, such as the inability to tolerate distress or other strong emotions. Still, there is no single "addictive personality" type that accurately predicts whether a person will develop addiction problems.
Symptoms of Addiction
The following are the most common signs of addiction:
An uncontrollable need for drugs and engaging in harmful levels of habit-forming behaviour.
Ignoring or losing interest in activities that are not related to the toxic substance or behaviour.
An inability to stop using a drug, even though it is causing health or personal problems, such as job or relationship problems.
Hide substances or behaviours and maintain secrecy in other ways, such as refusing to explain injuries sustained under the influence.
Significant change in appearance, as well as a noticeable lack of hygiene.
Process Oriented (POP) approach treating addiction.
According to the study done by Brian Anderson, everyone's brain appears to be "wired" for addiction, and we all can become an addict. Studies prove that cues become hardwired to capture the attention through conditioning. To treat addiction, we must curb the reward-seeking normal cognitive process. According to POP, people usually have two basic addictive tendencies. We are addicted to what we know about ourselves and the world and crave stability from this primary identity. However, we are also addicted to less known experiences, which we disavow. These latter experiences are difficult for us to access from our ordinary states of consciousness. Therefore, the tendency to alter our states through substances is so widespread. When we do not investigate addiction's inner nature, the unrecognised aspects of ourselves will stay at the mercy of the substance and never get the message. Addiction is a search for the neglected parts of oneself and an expression of our yearning for a deeper connection. We cannot escape being whole, and addiction to substances and compulsive behaviours is an attempt towards wholeness. The work is to connect with and embrace these states without dangerous and harmful substances.
Self-Assessment on Addiction
A brief series of self-assessment help determine the level of your addiction on substance dependence and abuse. The statements relate to your thoughts, feelings, and actions in the last 12 months.
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