QUOTES
“Addiction is not a mysterious chemical process; it is the logical outgrowth of the way a drug makes a person feel. When we understand this, we can see how natural (though unhealthy) a process it is. A person repeatedly seeks artificial infusions of a sensation, whether it be one of somnolence or vitality, that is not supplied by the organic balance of his life as a whole. Such infusions insulate him from the fact that the world he perceives psychologically is becoming farther and farther removed from the real state of his body or his life. When the dosages are stopped, the addict is made painfully aware of the discrepancy, which he must now negotiate unprotected. This is addiction, whether it be a socially approved addiction or an addiction whose consequences are aggravated by social disapproval.” Stanton Peele, Love And Addiction, Taplinger Publishing, 1991 “
“In these terms, then, an addiction exists when a person's attachment to a sensation, an object, or another person is such as to lessen his appreciation of and ability to deal with other things in his environment, or in himself, so that he has become increasingly dependent on that experience as his only source of gratification. A person will be predisposed to addiction to the extent that he cannot establish a meaningful relationship to his environment as a whole, and thus cannot develop a fully elaborated life. In this case, he will be susceptible to a mindless absorption in something external to himself, his susceptibility growing with each new exposure to the addictive object.” Stanton Peele, Love And Addiction, Taplinger Publishing, 1991
“In the first place, exactly what are the withdrawal symptoms we hear so much about? The most commonly observed symptoms of severe withdrawal distress call to mind a case of the flu—rapid respiration, loss of appetite, fever, sweating, chills, rhinitis, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal cramps, and restlessness together with lethargy. That is to say, withdrawal isn't a unique, definite syndrome that can be precisely distinguished from many other cases of bodily discomfort or disorientation. Whenever the body's internal balance is upset, whether through withdrawal from a drug or an attack of illness, it can manifest these signs of physical and psychological distress. Indeed, the most intensely felt symptom of withdrawal, one that we know about only from the statements of addicts themselves, is not chemical at all. It is an agonizing sense of the absence of well-being, a sense of some terrible deficiency inside oneself. This is the major, personal upheaval that results from the loss of a comfortable buffer against reality, which is where the real wallop of narcotic addiction comes from.” Stanton Peele, Love And Addiction, Taplinger Publishing, 1991
“There is a paradoxical cost extracted, however, as fee for this relief from consciousness. In turning away from his world to the addictive object, which he values increasingly for its safe, predictable effects, the addict ceases to cope with that world. As he becomes more involved with the drug or other addictive experience, he becomes progressively less able to deal with the anxieties and uncertainties that drove him to it in the first place. He realizes this, and his having resorted to escape and intoxication only exacerbates his self-doubt. When a person does something in response to his anxiety that he doesn't respect (like getting drunk or overeating), his disgust with himself causes his anxiety to increase. As a result, and now also faced by a bleaker objective situation, he is even more needful of the reassurance the addictive experience offers him. This is the cycle of addiction. Eventually, the addict depends totally on the addiction for his gratifications in life, and nothing else can interest him. He has given up hope of managing his existence; forgetfulness is the one aim he is capable of pursuing wholeheartedly.” Stanton Peele, Love And Addiction, Taplinger Publishing, 1991.
“If you believe that achieving sobriety will magically confer upon you a sense of goodness and give you the feeling that all is well with the world, you will be disappointed with the early stages of sobriety. The idea that you’ll have more intrinsic worth sober than drunk is a wrongheaded view that holds that members of certain groups are intrinsically less or more deserving than others- a view that probably has caused more human suffering than any single idea.” Jack Trimpey, The Small Book, p132, DTP, 1992.
“Alcoholism and alcoholic are folk expressions. Neither word is a medical term…….I will use the term alcoholic to refer to people who believe they are powerless over their addictions and act accordingly…..They are practicing the philosophy of alcohol-ism……As with any philosophy, alcoholism is comprised of many beliefs and assumptions.” Jack Trimpey, The Small Book, pp5-6, DTP, 1992
“Surrendering…is based on the notion that alcoholism, or any addiction, is a sign of your failure, so you should give up on the belief that you can manage your own life…..It does not understand that alcoholism, like any addiction, is a displaced effort to exercise a necessary, healthy power against helplessness…..The appropriate solution is not to shamefacedly admit that you cannot manage your life, but to take over more management of your life.” Lance Dodes, M.D., The Heart Of Addiction, p95, Quill, 2002.
“All too often people suffering with addictions feel they are bad or weak because of their addiction. Moreover, we live in a culture that frequently treats people with addictions as if their problem were caused by a moral deficiency. The idea that addiction is a physical problem may, then, provide some relief from guilt and shame. Understandably, this serves as a powerfull reason to hold on to this idea (disease), even though, like the idea that addiction is a moral deficiency, it is not true.” Lance Dodes, M.D., The Heart Of Addiction, p79,
Quill, 2002.
ALCOHOLISM SUBSTANCE ABUSE CHEMICAL DEPENDENCY
 addictionalternative.net |
| recoverforever.com |
Send E-Mail to: twelch@buckeye-express.comCopyright © 2004 Tim Welch. All Rights Reserved