What is addiction/alcoholism? (Full Version)

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designed -> What is addiction/alcoholism? (2/12/2008 9:25:39 PM)

Chemical/alcohol addiction, and drug abuse continues to ravage the lives of a great many people and affects the lives of many of those around them. I believe that in order to effectively help those around us who are enslaved in the vicious and deadly cycle of chemical addiction/alcoholism, we must have a basic understanding of what addiction and alcoholism is. I have heard some describe it as demon possession. Others call it literal disease and illness. To some it is considered plain old sin (including myself). Now I understand that there are a lot of variables involved with addiction but I am looking to discuss the basics of what the root of addiction is. I feel strongly about my own views but I am always open to learning more and my hopes are that this may be a conversation full of graciousness where some light may be shed on the subject.

So what are your thoughts on what addiction/alcoholism/dependency is?

From what perspective should we Christians approach the subject and reach out to help those loved ones who are involved in it?

God bless.



GrahamCracker -> RE: What is addiction/alcoholism? (2/12/2008 9:45:07 PM)

I read an article about alcoholism. As I understand it, mental health professionals prefer the term "alcohol dependence." When there is real genuine physical damage caused by alcohol use, we ought not to confuse things like liver damage, brain damage and so forth--resulting from long-term alcohol use---with the craving of alcohol.

Often, there is a craving for alcohol without any serious physical damage. Obviously, that is true in the short-term. That is alcohol dependence.

As for the craving, I personally think that alcohol dependents use alcohol in order to fight the pains in life. Rather than discover the secrets of self-discipline and the help of God, they turn to alcohol. Life is painful and alcoholics would like to forget that.



designed -> RE: What is addiction/alcoholism? (2/12/2008 11:26:21 PM)

From my own experience with addiction and some learned understanding, I can break addiction down to basic cause and effect defenitions. Basicly summing it up in that long-term and consistent chemical use/abuse can cause both physical and psychological dependence (cravings), along with the substantial possibility of increasingly negative health, social, and spiritual consequences. I believe there is some very profound spiritual warfare going on within each addicted individual. Our enemy comes to steal, destroy and kill and chemical abuse all the devistation and chaos that goes along with it is just another avenue he uses to do that.
There are so many different psychological reasons one could point to concerning why someone chooses to abuse any particular chemical. Honestly I don’t think those reasons are nearly as important as understanding the spiritual nature of addiction and an addicted persons individual accountability in regards to ones sinful nature and choices.

quote:

Often, there is a craving for alcohol without any serious physical damage. Obviously, that is true in the short-term. That is alcohol dependence.

From what I understand, dependency comes from the bodys physical dependency upon the alcohol due to the bodys increasing tolerance due to regular/consistent alcohol usage. The body becomes physically accustomed and reliant upon alcohol to function and operate daily. I am not aware of physical 'damage' being a deciding factor of 'dependency'.



drmark -> RE: What is addiction/alcoholism? (2/12/2008 11:30:08 PM)

Addictions have both physiologic and moral dimensions. It is nearly impossible to successfully manage them without addressing both aspects. READ HERE for further details.



1love1God1way -> RE: What is addiction/alcoholism? (2/13/2008 2:01:10 AM)

An addiction can be defined as “a primary, chronic disease, characterized by impaired control over the use of a psychoactive substance and/or behavior. Clinically, the manifestations occur along biological, psychological, sociological and spiritual dimensions.”

Schlimme, Mary, comp. Video Game Addiction: Do We Need a Video Gamers Anonymous? 28 Feb. 2006. Serendip. 22 Oct. 2007 <http://serendip.brynmawr.edu>.


I even cited my source. I feel academic.



timf -> RE: What is addiction/alcoholism? (2/13/2008 10:11:32 AM)

What is addiction/alcoholism?

A woman once asked me if she was an alcoholic. My answer was that if she could go a month or two without having a drink and not even give it a thought, then alcohol played a very small part in her life. However, if she had trouble going eight hours without a drink or thinking about a drink, then alcohol played a much larger part in her life.

The desire for pleasure can grow such that decisions for pleasure are made that even shorten life and thus the ability to experience pleasure. The Epicureans advocated measured pleasure as opposed to the Hedonists that advocated "if it feels good, do it", because they saw the destructive characteristics of being given over to the pursuit of pleasure.

We know that some people who reject even the knowledge of God are given over to a "reprobate" mind and that homosexuality can be a consequence of this. However, it is possible that additional conditions such as alcoholism can be included.

We also have people that construct mental images that give them pleasure from the anorexic to the stalker. You can have people who become "additcted" to the intellectual pleasure of making others look less intelligent. There is a very complex amalgam of physical, intellectual, and emotional pleasure seeking in addition to various conditions such as a reprobate mind that make any universal declarations of addiction of questionable utility.

It is more helpful to consider a specific person in a specific situation and ask first are they a Christian. There were Christians who were getting drunk at communion in Corinth and God was making some sick and even letting some die. The Christian who walks in the flesh and is given over to carnality needs to learn to surrender himself to the Lord. This does not often work the first time as this "repentance" can be mimicked by the person who wishes to pacify another and gain the means for continued pleasure seeking. A person who claims Christ may not even be a Christian.

If a person is not a Christian, they need to hear about the Lord. The Salvation Army has much experience in this area. Often it requires patience, waiting until the person (if ever) fouls his life sufficiently to be broken and cry out to the Lord for salvation.



manda59 -> RE: What is addiction/alcoholism? (2/13/2008 10:42:02 AM)

An addiction is basically being enslaved to how one feels.

It is a spiritual issue, and unless it is addressed as such, the person may be able to walk away from that addiction, but will likely walk straight into another.



designed -> RE: What is addiction/alcoholism? (2/13/2008 3:35:24 PM)

quote:

drmark-
Addictions have both physiologic and moral dimensions. It is nearly impossible to successfully manage them without addressing both aspects.

very true. It's a multi- faceted subject and addressing every side is key.
quote:

1love1God1way-
An addiction can be defined as “a primary, chronic disease,...

I understand you used a web source for this info, but I just want to add that the disease description is troubling to me. IMO, it is a gross misrepresentation of the truth of the matter. If one wants to equate disease as a paralell to bondage, then I can see the relevance, but it just doesn't make a bit of sence to me to call it that unless the their is a desire for personal accountablility to be compromised.
Good posts folks. I look forward to hearing more on the subject.
God bless



GrahamCracker -> RE: What is addiction/alcoholism? (2/13/2008 5:50:30 PM)

designed said:
quote:

From what I understand, dependency comes from the body's physical dependency upon the alcohol due to the body's increasing tolerance due to regular/consistent alcohol usage. The body becomes physically accustomed and reliant upon alcohol to function and operate daily. I am not aware of physical 'damage' being a deciding factor of 'dependency'.


I was referring mostly to semantics. By "damage" I meant impaired nutrition, cirrhosis of the liver, and gastritis (inflammation of the stomach) etc.--that sort of thing. Obviously, those are long term effects of consuming too much alcohol. Those are obviously medical conditions and we know the causes and effects but often may or may not be able to treat. But they are unrelated to the cravings.

Anyway, those medical conditions might be also referred to as alcoholism and our use of the terminology might cause some confusion. The dependence, as I understand it, is the craving to the extent that a person continues to indulge in spite of the negative health and social effects.



cow451 -> RE: What is addiction/alcoholism? (2/13/2008 6:26:57 PM)

Alcoholics drink because they are alcoholics. Those events and stresses that make them drink are triggers. Those things happen to nonalcoholics, but alcoholics interpret feelings as a reason to drink. Alcohol becomes the answer to every negative feeling and the way to celebrate positive feelings.

No drinker starts out with the goal of becoming alcoholic.

Recovery is a medical, mental and spiritual process. It's about a lot more than just not drinking.



krazyxsinner -> RE: What is addiction/alcoholism? (2/13/2008 7:42:25 PM)

The world say alcoholism is a disease with no cure while God simply says it is a sin condition that can be fixed.



BeesKnees -> RE: What is addiction/alcoholism? (2/13/2008 10:09:32 PM)

quote:

An addiction is basically being enslaved to how one feels.

It is a spiritual issue, and unless it is addressed as such, the person may be able to walk away from that addiction, but will likely walk straight into another.


YES!!!!



GrahamCracker -> RE: What is addiction/alcoholism? (2/14/2008 12:11:58 PM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: cow451

Alcoholics drink because they are alcoholics. Those events and stresses that make them drink are triggers. Those things happen to nonalcoholics, but alcoholics interpret feelings as a reason to drink. Alcohol becomes the answer to every negative feeling and the way to celebrate positive feelings.

No drinker starts out with the goal of becoming alcoholic.

Recovery is a medical, mental and spiritual process. It's about a lot more than just not drinking.


Good statement and I certainly approve. I could not have phrased it any better myself. There is IMHO and underlying presupposition that alcoholics and addicts are entitled to feel good. In some of my reading years ago I realized that life is painful and I'd better get used to it. I never drank but that was certainly an instrumental insight to my own maturity. Addicts stop maturing emotionally somewhere along the way.



JimboFletch -> RE: What is addiction/alcoholism? (2/14/2008 12:25:31 PM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: krazyxsinner

The world say alcoholism is a disease with no cure while God simply says it is a sin condition that can be fixed.

Actually, the Bible addresses drunkeness, which may not even be characteristic of many alcoholics. I've known alcoholics that seemed to function without any noticeable effects but had a constant need to drink.



GrahamCracker -> RE: What is addiction/alcoholism? (2/14/2008 1:10:46 PM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: JimboFletch

quote:

ORIGINAL: krazyxsinner

The world say alcoholism is a disease with no cure while God simply says it is a sin condition that can be fixed.

Actually, the Bible addresses drunkeness, which may not even be characteristic of many alcoholics. I've known alcoholics that seemed to function without any noticeable effects but had a constant need to drink.


Jimbofletch

One of the characteristics of alcoholism is denial. Sooner or later it catches up with them. It doesn't always happen the same way or to the same extent, as with many other sins. One of my coworkers almost "proudly" told me that he was a functional alcoholic. Several times in the last year or two, his job hung on by a thread. That's not so "functional" in my book, I am sure you would agree.

In my readings on alcoholism, they go on for years or even decades thinking that they would escape the more severe effects of the condition/behavior.



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drmark -> RE: What is addiction/alcoholism? (2/14/2008 1:52:56 PM)

quote:

I have a friend who is very active in research. He said there is some new evidence that shows that alcoholism acts a lot like an allergy...which would explain why it varies from drugs.
Well, this explanation is overly simplistic to say the least. The variation in drug effects relates to individual characteristics of the receptors to which the neuroactive substance attaches. Thus some people may be more susceptible to effects from ethanol as opposed to THC, for instance. Allergy mechanisms require a specific antibody which interacts with foreign substances in the environment to provoke hay fever, asthma, eczema, etc. The only similarity I see is that both conditions are influenced by hereditary factors and environmental exposures. There is no psycho-emotional or spiritual component to allergic disease, other than the uncomfortable effects on daily lifestyle these patients suffer.



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drmark -> RE: What is addiction/alcoholism? (2/14/2008 2:06:53 PM)

quote:

That is however, the scenario he gave (10 people, 10 doses)
Right, as I explained above, opiates are much stronger chemicals on certain brain receptors than ethanol is. Different allergens may lead to different allergies in different people, but it has nothing to do with neurochemical receptor interactions. That's all I'm trying to say.



Deleted User -> [Deleted] (2/14/2008 2:11:19 PM)

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hotsaucygma -> RE: What is addiction/alcoholism? (2/14/2008 3:19:21 PM)

There are alcoholics that will say with the very first drink, they were "hooked". There are "recovering" alcoholics that will say that even after years of sobriety, walking into a church that serves wine on Communion Sunday will "trigger" an intense urge to drink in them. I have also hear people say quiting "hard" drugs was easier than kicking alcohol.

I think it fits a diease profile in some ways, but I also think the only "cure" is not picking up the next drink. That involves choice. I also think there may be a genetic predisposition to alcoholism, but again, the choice has to be made to not pick up the next drink- that is the only way to stop drinking/using. Having said that, I think it is a physical, emotional, spiritual and psychological issue. Complex and not easily defined.



WesP -> RE: What is addiction/alcoholism? (2/14/2008 3:54:13 PM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: hotsaucygma

There are alcoholics that will say with the very first drink, they were "hooked". There are "recovering" alcoholics that will say that even after years of sobriety, walking into a church that serves wine on Communion Sunday will "trigger" an intense urge to drink in them. I have also hear people say quiting "hard" drugs was easier than kicking alcohol.

I think it fits a diease profile in some ways, but I also think the only "cure" is not picking up the next drink. That involves choice. I also think there may be a genetic predisposition to alcoholism, but again, the choice has to be made to not pick up the next drink- that is the only way to stop drinking/using. Having said that, I think it is a physical, emotional, spiritual and psychological issue. Complex and not easily defined.


There is a lot of truth in that. If you don't have the first drink, then you don't have to worry about the 6th or 12th or etc....



designed -> RE: What is addiction/alcoholism? (2/14/2008 4:03:19 PM)

quote:

Jimbo-
Actually, the Bible addresses drunkeness, which may not even be characteristic of many alcoholics. I've known alcoholics that seemed to function without any noticeable effects but had a constant need to drink.

The Bible also addresses 'drunkards' which I think can apply to those who drink heavily and regulary(alcoholics) even if they don't "seem" drunk.



Bluethread -> RE: What is addiction/alcoholism? (2/14/2008 7:41:48 PM)

Whether it is systematic, chemical, psycological or a conscience decision, I believe that addiction is sin. By that I mean it is not acceptable to Adonai. That being said, what should we do about it? Placing blame is of little use, the health and wellbeing of the community is a corporate responsibility. I believe Adonai has given us direction on how to deal with our destructive obsessive/cumpulsive behaviors. These are not always easy to understand or impliment, but I believe they are the best remidies.

I am, of course, not talking about eternal salvation, but my understanding of the steps Adonai requires us to take in order to protect ourselves and insure a healthy community.

I think the first of these is compassion. By that I mean, we should do the best we can to treat the individual with the respect do to one who bares Adonai's image, for Adonai's sake if nothing else. This is no molly coddling or making excuses but recognition of the person's identity as one of Adonai's special creations.

Next is the repentance process which I believe is a three step process. First is recognition. Unless we agree on what has happened, we can not do much. Second is restitution. In order for us to understand the seriousness of our acts we need to be able to empathize with those whom we have wronged. Third is reformation. We need to take action to make sure the act or behavior does not reoccur.



designed -> RE: What is addiction/alcoholism? (2/14/2008 7:44:33 PM)

quote:

Timf-
It is more helpful to consider a specific person in a specific situation and ask first are they a Christian.

This is a definitive element to addressing the issue with any given person. While addressing the issues of addiction through the common secular(some quasi spiritual) avenues like AA, rehab centers, etc. many are exposed to the widely accepted recovery mentality that is completely incapable of identifying the spiritual elements as they pertain to biblical truth. I mean it makes sence that unfortunately every addict isn’t going to turn to God for answers and every doctor, counselor, etc. isn’t a believer, so they try their best to come up with the answers to the problems. IMO, I think this is where we get a lot of the disease and allergy type definitions. The recovery culture certainly hasn’t done the struggling addicts any favors by spoon feeding them theories of why they are so powerless to control their behaviour and desires. In the minds of many addicts, the daily realities of life produce triggers (to use) that are only there because their addictions have been elevated to the status of primary disability. It’s like someone who used to use a wheelchair but after no longer needing it, they are still troubled at the stairs that may be around every corner instead of resting in the confidence that they can walk as though they are healed. Christ is the only one who can truly heal and give the addict this type of confidence. I do believe in the possibility that certain individuals may have an inherited predisposition to alcoholic tendency, but we could also say that everyone has an inherited predisposition to sin. It should never be used as an excuse (as to why one can’t help themselves and their behaviour/choices or as to why one will never be rid of the title and desire) but as another example of our complete depravity.
quote:

timf-
If a person is not a Christian, they need to hear about the Lord. The Salvation Army has much experience in this area. Often it requires patience, waiting until the person (if ever) fouls his life sufficiently to be broken and cry out to the Lord for salvation.

I agree. It often takes the humbling experience of falling on your face again and again to see your helplessness and need of God. If a non- Christian is at the point where they can say 'I really need some help, I have a serious problem,' what a perfect time to introduce them to the Lord and point them to the cross.



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