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Addictive disease contains
all FIVE conditions that are
required to qualify as a disease.
1) PRIMARY: The disease is not a symptom
of another condition, and exists independently
of other disease processes.
2) CHRONIC: There is no cure. Abstinence
is necessary to stop the behavioral and physical
progression of the disease.
3) PROGRESSIVE: Signs and symptoms
become more severe over time.
4) PRONE TO RELAPSE: Once the disease
has progressed to the point where the symptoms
are obvious, it becomes abnormal for the individual
not to use.The individual must learn how to not use
and must have a preventive program in place to prevent relapse.
5) POTENTIALLY FATAL: All addictive diseases can kill
either directly or indirectly.
There are also TWO dominant characteristics of addiction.
1) TOLERANCE: As the result of cellular adaptation at the neuron level
in the brain, it becomes necessary to have an increase in use to achieve
the same affect.
2) PHYSICAL DEPENDENCY: Progressively severe withdrawal symptoms
of which the most important are those which originate in the brain itself.
As an addictive disease progresses it is these characteristics, tolerance
and dependency, which motivate continued use rather than anything else
in the addict/alcoholics life.
The above is a definition, alcoholics are individuals, therefore, every alcoholic
has his own diagnosis, his own time frame for the progression of the disease,
the different nuances of this and that, which they (the alcoholic) use to deny
that they have a problem.
Every alcoholic is a square peg trying to fit into a round hole,(or visa verse).
As regards the Chronic part of the definition, medication may help some, hypnosis may
help some, but once an alcoholic, always an alcoholic and the only sane way to survive
the disease is not to drink or drug, ever.
Progression can be illustrated by noting that some teenagers begin way out of control
and are dead by the time they are twenty-one. Some addicts and alcoholics start out hard
and hardy and have a good long run before the problems catch up to them. Some start out
slowly and go many years, with few problems, until they reach a point where they are sick
and tired of being sick and tired. There are exceptions: the traffic accident victim who is
severely hurt and requires large doses of pain killers to survive and when they are healed,
they are hooked. Grandma and Grandpa retire, never drank, now they decide to have a toddy
to help them sleep; the kids finally catch on and send them to the rehab.
The Prone to Relapse part of the disease definition is a topic that will be discussed in a series
of separate blogs after more discussions about the bad behaviors of alcoholics. The only constant
is that all of the victims will deny that they have a problem.
Alcoholism is the only disease that tells you that you do not have a disease.
The pain, the agony, the suffering and the misery are always caused by someone else.
Be sympathetic of the addict who is trying to quit drinking and drugging, but remember,
tough love may be the only sane way that you have to defend yourself from the alcoholic.
Please remember, they are sick people trying to get well, not bad people trying to become good.
The following is a link to one of the more highly recommended rehabilitation facilities on the east
coast of the United States.
http://www.fathermartinsashley.com
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Happiness is helping someone help themselves.
ME and the Boss
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