We’ve all heard of addicts but what really qualifies an individual as an addict? Addiction is defined as “the state of being enslaved to a habit or practice or to something that is psychologically or physically habit-forming, as narcotics, to such an extent that its cessation causes severe trauma.” (Dictionary.com, 2002) Last Monday, I had the opportunity to observe an open Alcoholics Anonymous session at Calvary Chapel in Reynoldsburg, Ohio. Upon arrival, there were two people already there. One lady appeared to be the facilitator as she was seated at a table with sign in sheets and class material. I quickly introduced myself and explained that I was there to observe as a class assignment. She warmly welcomed me, handed me some reading material and offered me to sit where I pleased. The room was located in the multipurpose room of the church. There were no windows, just an assortment of chairs positioned in a circle for easy discussion. While waiting for the others to trickle in, I was educated that the weekly sessions were formed for addicts to discuss their journey of addiction, and to provide and receive support for their decision to remain sober. The meeting opened with group facilitator making everyone aware that I was a student observer that would be observing for the night. I was asked to introduce myself and I also agreed to keep their stories and names anonymous when writing this paper. It somewhat felt awkward as the outsider, but
The effect of addiction have consumed billions of individuals all over the world, not only consume but also killed. Individuals have relied on drugs to fill the void in their life that is missing. The addict is not only hurting themselves from the drug use but their families, friends, and their community. In this paper, it will give a description of a 21-year-old male named Anthony. Anthony started using marijuana at the age of 20, trying to hide the pain from the death of his sister. Eventually, marijuana was not enough to get Anthony the extra high he wanted which Anthony made the choice to try another drug and eventually it
The AA meeting I attended was an open speaker (OS), which meant that the majority of the time was spent listening to a particular member give a testimony of their journey with alcohol. As I sat, I had no idea what I was going to expect which made me nervous. There was a woman introducing herself in front of everyone who I learned was the meeting chairperson for that day. As the meeting began, the chair asked if anyone was attending AA for the first time. A few raised their hands; I was not one of them. I was too intimidated to introduce myself and speak. The chairperson then read the AA Preamble and led a group prayer which the majority of the people recited. At this point, I felt like an outcast since I did not know the words to the prayer.
Many people believe the misconception that an addiction is a moral problem and not a disease. To better understand the reasons why an additicition is in fact a disease; I will identify several types of addictions, and the problems associated with them. I will examine reasons why certain people are more susceptible for developing an addiction. Also, I will determine why many addicts deny their problems and many recovery methods addicts use to fight their illness. Researching these issues, will help aid my claim that addiction is a disease.
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
Both of the psychological and biological models explain addiction. In addition, both models take a holistic approach in their arguments. They simply
The meeting had a structure; they followed their agenda strictly. In the beginning of the meeting everyone went around and introduced them selves and said why there were there. I said that I was a student and was there to observe. After the introductions there was several readings that were handed out and asked to be read aloud, some of the reading were “Why are we Here”, “Who is an Addict?”, and “We do Recover”. After the readings they handed out key chains to anyone that has reached a specific time of sobriety. The leader of the group got his 9 mouths key chain. Then there were a few more readings, after the reading the floor was open to anyone who wanted to say anything. Then the meeting was over.
I chose to attend the Alcoholic Anonymous meeting at Holy Trinity Orthodox Church on the north side of Chicago. I chose to visit a church because I wanted to see if there was a religious aspect thrown into the session. The name of the session was called Big Book Stop Study. This session occurs every Monday at 7:00pm, as an open meeting. The meeting lasted for an hour. The session was led by three members, Kyle, Tamara, and Melissa. There was fourteen participants within the group. I was very apprehensive about attending a meeting because I didn’t want to be seen as an alcoholic. For that very reason, I understand how hard it may be for some to admit to their alcoholism, due to the negative connotation that comes with the name. To some, that may seem like a short span of time. However, upon visiting this particular session I saw progression in each participant. I was very pleased with what I witnessed as a visitor.
When I arrived they had coffee and refreshments open to anyone which i found thoughtful and a good way to get people talking. I saw mainly people with families there who seemed to be going for support. I was still a little apprehensive going by myself as a student and at the time did not feel open to sharing. A man came to the front and stated he is the speaker for this meeting and welcomed us to an open meeting of Alcoholics Anonymous. The meeting began with a moment of silence for those who are sick and a prayer. After the prayer the speaker spoke
This learner believes that behavior and addiction should be accepted as the same as addiction to substances. Working in a substance abuse recovery program has allowed this learner to understand addiction as a behavior. Many individuals have a substance abuse addiction and issues because of their behavior. They have made a choice to use substances and their behavior has taken over their life. Overall, this learner believes that all addictions are just as important as a substance abuse addiction. In fact, it should not be considered the same type of illness despite of it being a food, sex, or even gambling addiction. However, the addictions have to be treated differently based on the type and the individuals. According Smith (2012), “Developing brain science brain science has set the
Although some people argue for the legalization of drugs, addiction to these substances has caused a huge increase in violent crimes in the home, at school, and on the street. Many people do not understand why individuals become addicted to drugs or how drugs change the brain to create compulsive drug abuse. They mistakenly view drug abuse and addiction as strictly a social problem and may characterize those who take drugs as morally weak. One very common belief is that drug abusers should be able to just stop taking drugs if they are only willing to change their behavior. This is a false and uneducated belief. Drug abuse may start as a social problem or social escape but one the addiction has taken ahold of a person
There are several theories of addiction. All of them are imperfect. All are partial explanations. It is for this reason that it is important to be aware of and question addiction theories.
They assume addicts lack moral principles or self-discipline and that they can quit by simply deciding to. The reality is, people who have struggled with substance abuse have often found it extremely difficult to quit due to the physical and/or mental addiction. Drug have the ability to change the brain patterns and cause health complications, making things harder in the long-term and may determine life or death. Fortunately, because of more research, there are more ways to back out of an addiction and seek help through an enduring and extensive treatment. Factors that affect the likelihood and speed of developing an addiction are environmental and individual factors, including genetics and
I attended an A.A. meeting on April 5, 2010. Before the meeting I seemed very anxious. This was not my first meeting I have been to meetings before but they all seem to make me nervous. When I arrived the nervousness had eased off because everyone had made me feel welcomed. I was made to feel like a part of their family from the beginning to the end of the meeting. I seemed to have realized I missed going to these meetings and I miss the fellowship but it has not interfered with me staying sober.
October 24th, I visited Bridgeway Recovery Center in Salem. This is a big program that helps people with serious addiction, either substance addiction or gambling addiction. And it is the second of the 100 best nonprofit Oregon business in 2015.
“Addiction is a brain disease expressed in the form of compulsive behavior,” says by Alan Leshner in his article, “Addiction Is a Brain Disease” featured in the book Drug Abuse: Opposing Viewpoints. Addiction has a variety of meanings depending on what your viewpoint of addiction. According to dictionary.com, the concrete definition of the word addiction is, “the state of being enslaved to a habit or practice or to something that is psychologically or physically habit-forming, as narcotics, to such an extent that its cessation causes severe trauma.” Basically various doctors and therapist consider addiction to be a genetic disorder. “Provocative, controversial, unquestionably incomplete, the dopamine hypothesis provides a basic framework