Addiction: Family Disease And The Whole Family

Every year thousands of people die from an overdose, leaving behind friends and family. Once someone starts using drugs they get addicted and they can't stop. They will go out of their way to get drugs and will do anything to use. People go against their family and friends and end up caring about themselves and nothing else. Being addicted to drugs is like having a disease that is very hard to get rid of.

Addiction is a theme that has been present throughout my life through members of my family and myself. My father was addicted to gambling and alcohol until finally, his drinking ended his life. My brother struggles with alcohol and keeping ahead of his problematic drinking. I have several cousins that float between alcohol and drugs to fulfill the need for an outside substance. For many years, I pondered how I had escaped the addiction curse in my family only to realize that my addiction is food. I overeat and self-sooth through food even though I have health concerns and know a better way. I spent most of my young adulthood angry at my father because he could not or would not change for his family. I am understanding more through education

Addiction- a primary, chronic, neurobiologic disease, with genetic, psychosocial, and environmental factors influencing its development and manifestations. It is characterized by behaviors that include one or more of the following: impaired control over drug use, compulsive use, continued use despite harm, and craving. The difference between addiction and abuse is often times unclear. It’s a difficult call to make as a family member or a close friend that is dealing with a person like this in their life, but ultimately it is a call that only the addict can make for themselves. There are tons of different sources and tests and questions out there that can be done that can

Substance abuse is an issue that continues to grow in America at an alarming rate. Families are an important factor for the onset of substance abuse as well as the sustainment of the addiction (Gruber & Taylor, 2006). The National Institute of Drug Abuse defines substance abuse as “A chronic disease characterized by drug seeking and use that is compulsive, or difficult to control, despite harmful consequences” (“Understanding Drug Use and Addiction,” 2016). In order to prevent relapse, success is found in the formation of familial and social relationships (Baharudin et al., 2014). Substance abuse is a major stressor in the family system and it not only impacts the family’s relationships with those outside of the family but

Drug addiction is something that everyone is vulnerable to, and that unfortunately is something that many people are going through in today’s society. Everyone is exposed to drug addiction, no matter what, it’s just up to the person to determine if they have a strong enough will power to not take the drugs. However, drugs are available to anyone who is willing to buy them, and many people are willing to spend everything they have in order to buy drugs that might give them temporary relief of a situation that they are currently struggling in; drugs are many people’s escape from the reality they are forced to be in. People have different reasons as to why they start using and abusing drugs; some may choose to do it simply because they like the feeling the drugs causes or occasionally because of the environment or situation the person was or is in, but I mostly think it’s because the person isn’t strong enough to stop taking the drugs or to say no to them.

A person, especially a parent, who is dependent on alcohol or drugs destroys a family because family members not only see how miserable the addicted really are, but they also witness, firsthand, the way substance abuse can deteriorate a person’s physical and mental body, as well as the fact that family members notice the money that is spent on the abused substances, which sometimes leaves families living in poverty for no reason other than the simple fact the addict has to have their fix. Addicts are the destroyers of happiness, self-worth, and any amount of money.

Addicts blame others when things go wrong, they make loved ones feel guilty or ashamed, and maintaining an addiction can take a financial toll on a family. Children, pets, and other family members are often neglected and left to fend for themselves when living with an addict. Addiction can also cause separation in a family. Eventually patience runs out and people end up walking away from the addict when they refuse to get help or take responsibility.

It is important to understand the complex role that families can play in substance abuse treatment. They can be a source of help to the treatment process, but they also must manage the consequences of the IP’s addictive behavior. Individual family members are concerned about the IP’s substance abuse, but they also have their own goals and issues. Providing services to the whole family can improve treatment effectiveness. Meeting the challenge of working together will call for mutual understanding, flexibility, and adjustments among the substance abuse treatment provider, family therapist, and family. This shift will require a stronger focus on the systemic interactions of families. Many divergent practices must be reconciled if family therapy

Inside my family structure, my mother’s parents struggled with addiction. My grandmother, Ellen Sweeney, who has since deceased, was addicted to opiates, and my grandfather, Wayne Smith, who has also passed away, was an alcoholic. My mom was one of five children, her siblings included, Margaret “Markie”, the eldest, , Catherine “Kerrie”, the second eldest, my mother, Marian, the middle child, Amy, the second youngest, and lastly, Matt, the youngest. Moreover, my mother and my aunt Margaret “Markie” Smith have also battled alcoholism and my aunt Amy has since been diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder. Due to my mother’s family struggle with alcoholism, addiction, and mental disorder, my mother’s childhood was particularly difficult. Not only was she undoubtedly influenced by her parent’s substance abuse when she was a child, but it has continues to affect her as an adult raising her own children.

Addiction is usually not a problem that rises out of nowhere. It is usually linked to anxiety, or depression and this is known as dual diagnosis. Individuals who are diagnosed are most likely to have these mental issues that run in their family. If the father in the family is an addict it is more likely for the child to learn these habits through observation as an acceptable or harmful coping method. (Pinel). One in every three people diagnosed actually seek help for their addiction. There is a thin line between recreational consumption and addiction.

There is no question about how the dynamics of the family structure can change when a family member is a substance abuser. Substance abuse can easily tear apart a family, especially, when some members of the family want the abuser to stop using the substance and to get help, but the user is not ready to change his lifestyle and is resisting pressure from his love ones. There are group therapies and organizations designed to help family members understand addiction, why one might start using drugs and alcohol, and one’s new role in the abuser’s lifestyle, and at the same time help them confront their own issues with the addicted family member. When the abuser is a parent or parents, many people wonder about how are the children coping psychologically,

It was a calamitous knock, a knock that brought with it the worst of news that commenced a series of devastating events to follow for years to come. This knock arrived at our door at 5:00 a.m. one morning and it was my brother, Andrew. He refused to reveal the contents of his night, but in his insensible stupor he incessantly demanded for our help in finding his lost car, keys, phone, and wallet. After hours of much endeavor from each family member, Andrew’s car was discovered in a ditch with a blown out tire, his keys in another city miles away from the crash scene, and his wallet and phone were never recovered. My brother’s desperate knock and our cautious opening of the door revealed that Andrew’s misfortunes of that night had derived from the abuse of methamphetamine. This event remains in my mind as the initial incident that began our continuous familial struggle over the past five years.

In reading chapter one of the textbook “Substance Abuse and Family” I found a couple things that caught my attention and felt were important to know. The first being the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) I first heard about this manual in my Anthropology class two days ago when examining attributes that can lead to disorders such as non-attachments, interpersonal disorganization and mother and child strain. The textbook describes DSM as providing criteria for varies types of substance (mental health) issues, they are clustered by different symptoms that impact individual functioning. Another interesting piece of the chapter was the four species of alcoholism found in the disease model being one of the three primary models of addiction.

Addiction is very commonly associated with drugs and alcohol. Addiction is not only related to drugs or alcohol, but it is also tied with things and activities. Addiction to drugs or alcohol are quite similar yet slightly different to addictions to activities and other things. Addiction to drugs and alcohol over time leads to a buildup of tolerance causing the user to need more of what they are addicted to in order to experience the same or more of an effect than they once needed to attain the same effect. They take drugs to avoid or relieve withdrawal symptoms. Addicts start putting people close to you at risk and jeopardizing your social life just for a little more of what you are addicted to. Addiction to an activity can be just as bad for you as addiction to a drug. Addicts will put their addiction to whatever activity before the rest of their normal lives. Some may become codependent on these drugs and activities. Codependency is a psychological condition or a relationship where a person is controlled or manipulated by another who is affected with a pathological condition When an addict is not doing such activities, they are thinking about it, letting their mind consume itself.

Addiction is condition that results when a person's ingest a substance in them that they like and want it on a daily. Any addiction can hurt you in all types of ways. It can hurt you or kill you and you don't want that to happen. It's not just gonna hurt you, but it will hurt other people around you. The most common addictions are drugs. Drugs are the worst addiction, you wanna be on because it can really affect your body and it can hurt you or kill you. If the parents are addicted to anything they are on their kid is gonna want to do the same because they think it's good because the parents are doing it which is called hereditary. Any addiction has causes and effects, but there are cures to stop that addiction. For somebody to start an addiction, you start by doing something small then gets bigger, but you can also stop that addiction, which it can take a while which you can go to rehab or something to help you stop.