Cynthetiq

I Can’t Help Myself’
Is Addiction a Matter of Choice?

By John Stossel

April 21
— Watching TV, you'd think the whole country is addicted to something: drugs, food, gambling — even sex or shopping.

"The United States has elevated addiction to a national icon. It's our symbol, it's our excuse," says Stanton Peele, author of The Diseasing of America.
There are conflicting views about addiction and popular treatments. So, we talked with researchers, psychologists and "addicts" and asked them: Is addiction a choice?

Publicity about addiction suggests it is a disease so powerful that addicts no longer have free will. Lawyers have already used this "addict-is-helpless" argument to win billions from tobacco companies.

Blaming others for our "addictions" is popular today.

In Canada, some lawyers are suing the government, saying it is responsible for getting people addicted to video slot machines.

Jean Brochu says he was unable to resist the slot machines — that he was "sick." He says the government made him sick, and his sickness led him to embezzle $50,000. Now, he's suing the government to restore his dignity and pay his therapy bills.

Psychologist Jeff Schaler, author of Addiction Is a Choice, argues that people have more control over their behavior than they think.

"Addiction is a behavior and all behaviors are choices," Schaler says. "What's next, are we going to blame fast-food restaurants for the foods that they sell based on the marketing, because the person got addicted to hamburgers and french fries?"

Well, yes, actually. Two weeks after he said that some children sued McDonald's, claiming the fast-food chain made them obese. They lost the first round in court, but they're trying again.


Uncontrollable Impulses?

"Impulse control disorder" is the excuse Rosemary Heinen's lawyer used to explain Heinen's shopping. Heinen was a corporate manager at Starbucks who embezzled $3.7 million, which she then used to buy 32 cars, diamonds, gold, Rolex watches, three grand pianos, and hundreds of Barbie dolls.

In court a psychiatrist testified Heinen was unable to obey the law, and shouldn't be given the seven-year prison sentence she was facing. The judge, however, did put Heinen behind bars, sentencing her to 48 months.

The "helplessly addicted" defense seemed to work better for the Canadian gambler. The judge gave Brochu probation and told him to see a psychologist. His mother paid back the $50,000 he stole.

Now Brochu and his lawyer are seeking $700 million on behalf of all addicted gamblers in Quebec, claiming the government is responsible for getting them addicted, too.


Calling Addiction a Disease

Many scientists say addicts have literally lost control, and that they suffer from a disease.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse calls drug addiction a "disease that will waste your brain." This is our government's official policy. And government-funded researchers, like Stephen Dewey of Brookhaven National Labs, tend to agree.

They say their studies of addiction in monkeys and rats show that addiction is a brain disease.

"Addiction is a disease that's characterized by a loss of control," says Dewey.

Dewey takes his message to schools, showing kids brain scans that he says prove his point. He tells students that addiction causes chemical changes that hijack your brain.


Genetic Destiny?

Dewey and other researchers say our genes predispose some of us to addiction and loss of control.

Researchers at Harvard University believe they may have found one of those genes in the zebrafish.

When researcher Tristan Darland put cocaine on a pad and stuck it on one side of a fish tank, fish liked the feeling they got so much that they hung around the area, even after the cocaine was removed.

Then Darland bred a family of fish that had one gene altered. These fish resisted the lure of the cocaine.

Darland says this shows that addiction is largely genetic. "These fish don't know anything about peer pressure. They either respond or they don't respond to the drug," he says.

At the Medical College of Wisconsin, Dr. Robert Risinger scans the brains of human addicts while they watch a video of people getting high on crack. It's what they call a "craving" video. He then shows them a hard-core sex film.

The brain scans show the addicts get more excited by the craving videos. The drugs become more powerful than sex — because addiction's a disease that changes your brain, says Dewey.

I asked Dewey if he was suggesting that drug users don't have free will.

"That's correct," he said. "They actually lose their free will. It becomes so overwhelming."

But if they don't have free will, how come so many people successfully quit?


Is the Disease Message Harmful?

Addiction expert Sally Satel acknowledges drug addiction and withdrawal is "certainly a very intense biological process." But she is one of many experts who say the addiction-as-brain-disease theory is harmful to addicts — and wrong.

She also thinks it's unhelpful to take away the stigma associated with drug abuse. "Why would you want to take the stigma away?" she asks. "I can't think of anything more worthwhile to stigmatize."

"People need to get rid of the idea that addiction is caused by anything other than themselves," says James Frey, author of A Million Little Pieces, a book about his experience as an addict.

Frey says he took just about every drug, from alcohol to crack. Yet Frey says he wasn't powerless. He scoffs at Dewey's claim that addicts' brains compel them to keep taking drugs.

Many doctors agree, saying you can still choose not to take drugs, even if they do cause changes in your brain.

"You can look at brains all day," Satel says. "They can be lit up like Christmas trees. But unless a person behaves in a certain way, we wouldn't call them an addict."


Environment and Choice

In fact, some researchers cite experiments that they say prove that addiction is a matter of choice.

In Canada, researchers gave rats held in two different environments a choice between morphine and water. The rats in cages chose morphine; the rats held in a nicer environment preferred the water.

Whether you get addicted also depends on how you're treated. At Wake Forest University, male monkeys lived together for three months, and established a pecking order.

The monkeys who'd been bullied by the "boss monkeys" banged a lever to get as much cocaine as they could. But the dominant monkeys, just by virtue of being dominant, had less interest in the drug.

"It's just like the human world," says Dr. Michael Nader, who conducted the experiment.

"Individuals that have no control in their job show a greater propensity for substance abuse than those that have control," Nader says.

These comparisons suggest that addiction is a choice — not a disease that takes away free will.

The message from the treatment industry is that drug users need professional help to quit. What they seldom say is that people are quitting bad habits all the time without professional help.

In fact, some studies suggest most addicts who recover do so without professional help.

For example, during the Vietnam War, thousands of soldiers became addicted to heroin.

The government tracked hundreds of soldiers for three years after they returned home. They found 88 percent of those addicted to narcotics in Vietnam no longer were.

read the rest of the story here...
__________________

When do we as individuals take responsibility for our own actions? For every action there is some sort of reaction/consequence. A couple of weeks ago John Stossel had a show called ‘I Can’t Help Myself’ Is Addiction a Matter of Choice? which I found pretty interesting since they had a variety of "addictions" from drugs and cigarettes to food and sex. He covered plenty of ground in a relatively balanced and fair way. Showing people who decided for themselves that "ENOUGH! I'm making the conscious effort to have discipline and stop."

My personal life brought me to AA/NA rooms with some friends and I found that no one there took responsibility for it. They pigeonholed it under "addiction is a disease" and that's how they were able to deal with it and then make the conscious choice to stop. They touted that it was something that they had no control over.

Having done my fair share of drinking and pot smoking, I do not agree with them. I did enjoy drinking and smoking. Even cigarettes. I stopped on my own. No patches, no "therapy", just made the decision to just no longer do that behavioir. I won't say it was easy. Even now, I'm instructed to not drink do to health reasons. I'd love to just have a beer with some friends, but I must refrain and do so because I know the consequences of my actions.

__________________
I don't care if you are black, white, purple, green, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, hippie, cop, bum, admin, user, English, Irish, French, Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Buddhist, Muslim, indian, cowboy, tall, short, fat, skinny, emo, punk, mod, rocker, straight, gay, lesbian, jock, nerd, geek, Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, Independent, driver, pedestrian, or bicyclist, either you're an asshole or you're not.

SiN

hrm...i think it's neither, or a combination of both, or it depends on the person. or all of the above.

i don't like how the 'disease' idea suggests 'victim'...

but on the other hand, i do think there's something sometimes valid regarding people's brain chemistry and such.

__________________

spectre

I don't think that these things are a disease. I don't even consider them an addiction. It's more of an emotional dependency based on a lack of self-control. It's also much easier to blame the problems on someone else or claim it's a disease just so people don't have to take responsibility for their actions.

__________________
"Fuck these chains
No goddamn slave
I will be different" ~ Machine Head

BoCo

__________________
Activism is a way for useless people to feel important.

blkdmnd

I think there is probably some scientific validity to the addiction thing. I think there are some things that when you ingest them in whatever manner, you want more. Who hasn't ever wanted another cookie, or beer, or another jump from the diving board, or to hear more of the same style of music.

We all want more of a good thing. Whatever we perceive that good thing to be.

Is this a disease? Absolutely, no way. Lack of self control? Without, a doubt.

I go with BoCo, weakness abounds.

__________________
I blow my nose at you. Now go away before I taunt you a second time.

tmroper

gotta go with boco on this one

ARTelevision

"Free Will" and "Personal Responsibility" are myths. They sound great. But we live in a society that surrounds us totally with manipulated messages that replace our thoughts with programmed message units. We don't have our own thoughts, we think in socially constructed memes.

That's the underlying issue in all of this.
Evidently, it doesn't seem significant enough to most people to bother with. Of course, this is simply denial.

__________________
create evolution

Cynthetiq

this is a part of a discussion we've had in v3.0 advertising. Those that live with little media messaging, do they still have the same issues?

__________________
I don't care if you are black, white, purple, green, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, hippie, cop, bum, admin, user, English, Irish, French, Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Buddhist, Muslim, indian, cowboy, tall, short, fat, skinny, emo, punk, mod, rocker, straight, gay, lesbian, jock, nerd, geek, Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, Independent, driver, pedestrian, or bicyclist, either you're an asshole or you're not.

ARTelevision

Yes.
Their societies are total immersion situations as well.
When it is said that man is a social animal, it means there is no such thing as an individual human.

As in bee colonies: a single bee is a mythical individual, it needs other bees to define it's existence and its place in the world as a bee.

The mind of man is and has always been a hive mind.

It's worth a thread of its own.

coming soon!

__________________
create evolution

Macheath

I would say that addiction has a very negative affect on a person's sense of free will and self esteem. After being addicted though, there does have to be some kind of individual effort to overcome the addiction and get back a sense of free will.

The individual often needs a really strong social and medical support network for their effort to succeed though. Unfortunately these networks seem to fall apart an awful lot nowdays.

I guess you could say that addiction is a valid reason for X but can't be an excuse for X.

gibber71

Unless someone has some sort of psychological problem,I tend to say addiction is a choice. Take people who smoke for example.Thay made a choice to start irregardless of any societal pressures to do so.When they say they can't quit, what they are telling you is that they don't want to quit. Proof is in the pudding? See what choice they make between continuing smoking and getting their legs amputated.

BulletBob

It's a choice. No matter what you're addicted to be it, cigarettes, coke, meth, or alcohol, you made a decision to start down that path in the first place.

gov135

Folks remember - the United States, along with the FDA and various other organizations define the word disease as: Any deviation from a normal state.

Often people forget this and think - "mental illness is not a disease. A disease is germs, cancer cells, etc." This thinking is incorrect, because their definition of disease is incorrect.

A disease truly is any deviation from a normal state. Alcoholism and mental illness are recognized diseases (by government, addict help programs, etc.) This is why you are never really cured from your addictions.

I won't say that any of you that are screaming free choice are incorrect. Cause it can be both: a disease and a free choice. But please consider redefining your personal definition of disease.

platypus

Neither. However, the decision to begin down that road and then refusing to seek treatment <b>is</b>.

__________________
Out the 10Base-T, through the router, down the T1, over the leased line, off the bridge, past the firewall...nothing but Net.

Derwood

It's tough to be addicted to smoking, drugs or alcohol if you never start using them in the first place.....

__________________
"You can't shoot a country until it becomes a democracy." - Willravel

Cynthetiq

more of those that blame someone else for their own choices....

http://www.foxnews.com/printer_frien...,86154,00.html

Gamblers Try to Hold Casinos Responsible for Feeding Their Addiction

Wednesday, May 07, 2003

By Steve Brown



David Williams' gambling addiction cost him his life savings — almost all of it dumped into the slot machines at Casino Aztar (search) in Indiana.

Williams decided to take action. He sued the casino.

"Casinos cannot come into this state and just take advantage of a bunch of sick people," said his attorney, Terry Noffsinger.

The first judge to hear the case sided with the casino, but Williams has appealed the decision. His claim is among a growing number of lawsuits that aim to hold the gaming industry responsible for exploiting compulsive gamblers.

The Rev. Tom Grey of the National Coalition Against Gambling Expansion (search) said slot machines are "delivery systems" for gambling addiction.

"The more available and accessible we make it, the more addiction it delivers," said Grey, who predicts the eventual success of lawsuits that target casinos.

The industry says it tries to spot compulsive gamblers. It has "been very proactive to help out that 1 percent who can't help themselves," said Frank Fahrenkopf of the American Association of Gambling (search).

But that didn't happen in Williams' case. When his gambling got out of control and a worried friend asked the casino to intervene, Williams was banned from entering Aztar. But early in 1999, after 11 gambling-free months, the casino began luring him back — mailing him tickets for complimentary hotel stays and meals.

Williams returned to the casino.

"It starts out as an adrenaline rush," he said. "But in a period of about seven days, I lost $38,000."

When it was all over, he had squandered about $175,000 and had to file for bankruptcy.

Williams' lawsuit claims the casino should have done more to keep him out. The casino counters that Williams was the cause of his own problems.

"You shouldn't sue McDonald's claiming they're responsible for your obesity problems," said Patrick Shoulders, Casino Aztar's lawyer. "Fundamentally, problem gamblers have to take responsibility for their own actions."

The U.S. District judge in that case agreed, ruling that under state and federal law, Aztar had no duty to protect Williams from his gambling habit. His attorneys have appealed the decision.

The Indiana Coalition Against Legalized Gambling has been monitoring the case and hopes it will be the first step in requiring more responsibility from casinos.

Meanwhile, the Indiana House of Representatives passed a bill that would authorize a statewide list of self-proclaimed compulsive gamblers who want to be barred from casinos. If they do try to enter a casino, they would be charged with trespassing. Casinos would be prohibited from sending them coupons or cashing their checks.

The bill is now before the state Senate.

Fox News' Catherine Donaldson-Evans contributed to this report

__________________
I don't care if you are black, white, purple, green, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, hippie, cop, bum, admin, user, English, Irish, French, Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Buddhist, Muslim, indian, cowboy, tall, short, fat, skinny, emo, punk, mod, rocker, straight, gay, lesbian, jock, nerd, geek, Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, Independent, driver, pedestrian, or bicyclist, either you're an asshole or you're not.

BulletBob

Personally, I can't stand people who pull that crap. People who sue the tabacco companies for money because there wasn't a warning label on cigarettes are pathetic. Hello? You're inhaling smoke into your body of course it isn't going to be good for you. This tard with the casino is even dumber. Before long you aren't going to be able to rip a fart without being taken to court.

guthmund

It's a weakness of the mind and body.

Although your brain/body chemistry changes to make you crave the things your addicted to it is your physical action that draws them into the body.

While you might crave cigarettes, alcohol, and gambling to the point of driving you crazy, you have to pick up the cigarette, you have to buy that beer and you have to slap that money down on the table.

We live in a blameless society. It's okay for folks to do basically whatever they want as long as they can tie some 'addiction' or 'disease' to it.

Beat your kids? probably we're abused yourself.
Killed a bunch of people? Well you obviously were clouded with rage/lust/jealousy
Can't stop buying alcohol and getting slobbering drunk? It's probably because you can't, you see you suffer from a disease.
Can't stop bouncing off the walls? Chances are you've got a disorder.

It's the modern day equivilent to the snake-oil salesmen. They tell you that you have something wrong with you and that it's not your fault, then they tell you that there is a cure and only thay have it.

You are the source of all your problems. Plain and simple.

__________________
No signature. None. Seriously.

butthead

I believe this would work through the dopamine reward pathway in the brain (the same pathway drugs like nicotine, methamphetamine, cocaine, and orgasm work through).

I don't think one is weak for being "addicted". (I think the term addiction is profitless now.)

However claiming you are helpless is fucking lame. Reminds me of my depression. I guess I am lame. Fuck.

How do you correlate "psychological problems" to addiction or vice versa? What are "psychological problems" and "addiction" supposed to mean?

Fucking excellent. I have been thinking about this lately. One of the things that spurred it were all of these people claiming they don't care what people think (that may be true to an extent, but I have a hard time believing it absolutely).

I look forward to the thread.

Reminds me of all those Zoloft commecials.

I don't think it is so "plain and simple".

bahb463

I believe Addiction is nothing but a choice.
If you find that hitting your forhead with a hammer gives you headaches. Then stop it. If you fail to recognize that it's the hammer giving you the headaches, you need the brain dammage you will get.
(Speaking as a reformed Cocain addict)

__________________
"...... and when I'm feelin' blue, The guitar's commin' through to sooth me."

bahb463

oh yea, and, By the way.....
Anyone telling you that addiction is a 'desiese' is SELLING you something.
Lawyers, making money by bending perception of reality to their will. Govt. researchers spending grant money so they keep getting grant money. Banal authors, selling books to the weak minded people who need to blame others for their decisions.

__________________
"...... and when I'm feelin' blue, The guitar's commin' through to sooth me."

nowthen

Im with Boco too, you have to take responsibility for yourself. Sure sometimes it would be far easier to get yourself in to a state of oblivion by drugs or drink, but you have to have the strength of character to face up to life.

In my own personal, small experience, a lot of addicts are just running from their responsibilities, rather than facing up to them. I guess it is an easy way out for some people, and the way that society views addicts as victims only pampers to this attitude.

__________________

"People are always blaming their circumstances for what they are. I don't believe in circumstances. The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for the circumstances they want, and, if they can't find them, make them."

George Bernard Shaw

phyzix525

I have struggled with that for some time now. My father is an alcoholic, I am not. I never understood why he would consiously make a decision while he was sober to start drinking. He claims it is a disease, so it is not something he can control, but it always seemed like uch a cop-out, a way of not taking responsibility. I do think that some people are more disposed to being an addict. That would explain how some people can just have a drink and go on with life. or then again it could just be an excuse. either way I stay away from alcohol.

__________________
It's hard to remember we're alive for the first time
It's hard to remember we're alive for the last time
It's hard to remember to live before you die
It's hard to remember that our lives are such a short time
It's hard to remember when it takes such a long time

madsenj37

We trade one vice for another and we all have at least one vice. Some can help it and others cant. Just try to get yourself or someone else into a healthy vice like sports.

__________________
"Only two things are certain: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not certain about the universe."
-- Albert Einstein

krwlz

If its anything other then a drug, its a pathetic show of a lack of self control....well, maybe that was put harshly, but thats what I believe.

*Nikki*

Take responsibility for your actions. Addiciton is self inflicted, just like stupidity.

duckznutz

found this via google : -

Some of us have inherited characteristics that make alcoholization more likely. The children of alcoholics become alcoholized more often than the children of non-drinkers. This is because the predisposition to alcoholism is hereditary, not because of the influence of environmental factors. Science is searching for methods for recognizing individuals at risk of alcoholism already in childhood. This would provide us with the possibility of preventing alcoholism.

The effects of the environment and of hereditary factors have been studied. A Swedish study revealed that sons of an alcoholic biological parent were, compared to others, twice as likely to become alcoholics, whereas the risk did not increase for adoptive children of alcoholized foster parents. Nothing indicated that imitating the behaviour of parents would be a significant factor in adopting alcoholic drinking habits.

The effect of hereditary factors is also evident in drinking habits and intoxication. The drinking habits of identical twins are more alike than those of fraternal twins. According to and American study, identical twins may even take to the same brands of alcoholic beverages. They also become intoxicated in the same way.

Laboratory animals provide a reliable method of research. The environmental factors are the same for all of them. Over twenty years ago, in Alko's research laboratory, two types of rats were bred: rats that consumed a lot of alcohol, and rats that were sober. Their descendants were also drinkers or sober, respectively.

Rats can also be bred to tolerate alcohol differently. In Alko's research laboratory, there are rats that become more intoxicated than other rats on the same amount of alcohol. Also these laboratory tests prove the importance of hereditary factors in alcoholism. It wouldn't even be possible to breed rats with different drinking habits or varying tolerance for alcohol if these traits were not hereditary.

It is not yet known what it is in alcoholism that is hereditary. Few expect the researchers to find a gene responsible for alcoholism, determining whether an individual will become an alcoholic or not. Instead, researchers try to define a hereditary biological characteristic that predisposes some for alcoholism. This is one of the great challenges of biomedical research on alcohol.

If we find out what it is that causes the drinker rats in Alko's laboratory to like alcohol, we might be close to revealing the secrets of alcoholism. This knowledge would give us the possibility to find those individuals who are predisposed to alcoholism before alcohol becomes a problem for them. Measures could be taken to protect them from alcoholism and the development of a problem could be prevented.

Research professor Kalervo Kiianmaa, National Public Health Institute

__________________
Where your talents and the needs of the world cross . . there lies your vocation.

WhoaitsZ

How in the hell did I not see this thread?

the biggest issue of addiction is, indeed, yourself. some addictions, though (mainly drug abuse related) can literaly rewire your brain, which is their own fault but a problem nonetheless.

i posted on music about scott weiland how i hoped he'd be better but its time her grew up... i didn't expect the bumrush that made one user give me

the thing with addiction is (or for me was) You have to say enough is enough and I do not want or need it ever again. period. No more. and then actually succeed with your promise and _never touch it again_.

when i got off a major addiction to Hydrocone (I took 100 pills in five days and 16 ounce elixer in 4 days at the peek) i for weeks would be sitting and going about my business when bam! i'd get sicksickSICK.

i'd have tp play everything back in my mind a few days, trying to figre out what the hell happened to make me sick. sickness is not tolerated with me, it has to be attacked head on, aggresively, imediatly, or it will kill me. so i went back in thought. nothing. then i thought Lortab.

when i went through withdrawel before rehabbing i'd feel exceedingly sick, achey, sweat..... like a flu. these symptoms poped up for two years, but i didn't reach back for the Hydrocone. I bit down and just took it. the next day, things were much better, but i had to hold on. you can't go half assed or even 95% ready to quit. its got to END.

now for those who thinks its easy, its not. for me, anyhow. i have a fourteen hour siezure due to the withdrawel. i have 1) had back surgery cutting from buttock to neck 2) a tracheotomy put in 3) surggery without anesethesia 4) broke my right femur hitting a van knee first 5) I've had a lung to collapse about 15 times 6) I've had a lot of uncomfortable sittuations and nothing contends with those last 14 hours of withdrawel.


the problem with this topic is like saying "`the man isi njured', does he hurt or not?" how is he injured? where? why?

there are tons of addictions.

I do fully believe Americans have way too many 'addiction' problems. its called being irresponsibe and getting away with it.

i have a major obsession with porn. like bad, but i'd never in my wildest (worse) dream ever hurt a lady or lay an unwanted finger on them. i am not going to tell the cops 'oh woe is me'. i'm never even going to think in that direction, much less let it happen.

with casses of OCD or similiar casses where a person gets addicted to 'buying' obsessively or something, i say lock em up, stop further purchases, and let the person pay back the money.

i don't think we should do any further penalties, just make them pay with a required psyche examination.

the thing thats SUCKS is so many people do have a mental disorder and they are ignored because of some little fuckwit who can't control his own purchases. its the few minority who don't need help badly fucking the system while the rest of the minority go hungry. its sick.

oh and i too believe the media makes a lot of this shit up so they can convince us that we need a product or make us believe it is perfectly okay to loose self control of oneself so the media can make money. I bet my bottom dollar most of these buisnisses see their money before all is said and done.

there are too many diseases or simply problems with OCD and such to say "I have the answer". most of the time it IS a controlable problem, but i guarantee you someone, somewhere is coming unglue for lack of control he or she can't control, and that is sad.

MacGnG

some people are "more prone to addictive tendencies" - whatever that means.

but people with all kinds of addictions have overcome it with time and determination. yea it sounds like somethin from a pamphlet but thats kinda what it was for me.