Addiction, a Different Perspective

I suspect that many of you know somebody who has an addiction e.g. drink, drugs, gambling, shopping, cigarettes, painkiller, food, or somebody who has an addictive personality. Perhaps you are that somebody. I watched this video a while ago and it blew me away. It looks like a move towards a more effective solution, although I do feel it's a little dangerous and naive to suggest that there is no such thing as physical/chemical addiction.

When somebody approaches me about ending their addiction, I always want to start with the person, with their life and relationships, their emotional state, their reasons for using/doing it, and not the addiction, the physical dependency (smokers are often deeply shocked when I explain that nicotine addiction lasts for only a few days - beyond that, what's going on?).

My belief is that if I can help the person towards healing, they can find their own way to rid themselves of any unwanted behaviours. Let's face it, people do it all the time on their own - lose weight, give up cigarettes, stop drinking, quit cocaine - they know how to, they just have to stop. People like me come in when they can't - they don't want or need criticism, chastisement or to hear what they already know; they need support, understanding, acceptance (and most importantly, self-acceptance).

Addiction carries a terrible stigma, it's seen as a sign of weakness, addicts are spineless, immature idiots - they just need to grow up and face the realities of life. In truth, they are people like us, they may even be us, but somewhere along the line, something has happened to cause them to seek solace in loveless places, they feel disconnected from human relationships. Please watch this video and consider the implications: