FOR THE ADDICT AND THEIR LOVED ONES
ADDICTION MYTHS (just a few of the many false expectations)
- Addiction is a moral decision.
The cause and origin is a debated topic. I, personally, have rejected the idea that addicts are morally inept for the simple fact that I have met so many great people with addiction that simply would not have chosen to be overcome by the powerful disease of addiction. The disease model of addiction describes addiction as a lifelong disease involving biologic and environmental sources of origin.
Since the introduction of the disease concept, research studies have examined a possible genetic link in alcoholism/addiction. One such study demonstrates that the offspring of alcoholics are approximately three to five times more likely to develop alcoholism than offspring of non-alcoholics. Other biological components of addiction have been discovered as well, such as differences in functioning of the frontal lobe between addicts and non-addicts.
- Addiction is simply the dependence on drugs and/or alcohol.
Actually addiction goes far beyond the compulsion to use/drink. Abnormal thinking plays a large role in addiction. Alcoholics Anonymous coined the term “stinking thinking” to describe this.
Recommended Reading: Addictive Thinking by Abraham Twerski
- Supporting my loved one means helping them pay bills, bailing them out of trouble, and fighting their battles.
Not necessarily. The family of addicts often feel that they have to prevent their loved one from experiencing consequences from their substance use for fear that they might get hurt. In fact, it is NOT experiencing a consequence that can harm them...we will keep touching a hot stove if we don’t feel the burn. Healing for the family and the addict involves redefining what support is.
- Relapse is when the addict uses their drug of choice again.
Actually relapse starts long before you pick up your drug of choice. Many people say that relapse is a process and this process ends when the addict uses their drug of choice again. This process may start days or months or years before the addict uses/drinks again. The relapse process involves changes in thinking, feeling, attitude and lifestyle. It is important to learn what your personal warning signs are.
- A treatment program can cure me (or my loved one).
The disease model views addiction as a life-long disease that needs to be maintained much like Diabetes. An alcoholic will never be able to drink “normally” and a drug addict will never be able to use “casually”. Recovery is about finding out what helps you maintain abstinence (and the many other changes in recovery) and continue to do it one day at a time.
- The addict is the sick one…I (family, spouse, partner) do not need help.
Addiction is considered a family disease because it affects everybody. Often the loved ones of addicts spend so much time focusing on the addict, they forget about themselves. Self-care is an important part of recovery for the family and the addict.
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