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Do You Believe Addiction is a Disease, Or... [POLL!]

Addiction is...

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    365
I understand what you're saying nicky, and I tend to feel the same way.

Its a matter of perspective though, and if I look at my life, I cant think of a time I wasn't 'addicted' to something; if it wasnt sugar, or caffeine, it was video games, internet, pills, or all of the above. Sometimes I was more functional than others, but I never thought of myself as having a disease. But what if this pattern Ive had (and apparently many people have) can be linked to a genetic mutation or whatever. Is it a disease then? If it didnt apply to me would I think of it as a disease?

Im asking myself this as much as anyone else, and even if my answer was yes, I would still rationalize beyond that label of 'disease'. And the mind is really uncharted territory, so I dont believe that medical professionals and the like can claim they know whats going on in your head.

Its hard when it comes to mental 'diseases' though, because they are directly related to how one thinks. Those with severe mental disorders often believe they see things clearly, while those around them disagree. So is that us and we just cant see it? Or is there more to this?
 
addiction is a disease, and every addiction specialist in the u.s.a will back me up on that. If you have cancer, and you let it go untreated you will die. If you have a drug addiction and it goes untreated, you will die. Theres a small percentage of non medicinal cancer survivors out there, let it be known. theres even less untreated addicts that are still alive out there. argue all you want.
 
PureLife said:
If you have a drug addiction and it goes untreated, you will die.
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you mean purely from the addiction itself? NO

NickyBundles said:
The only reason they say it's a disease is because it's fits the criteria of what makes a disease, a disease.
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i agree 100%. dependence can technically be considered a disease, but in reality it can't.
if i was given a choice between cancer and a coke habit i'd go with the coke.
 
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Let me take a swing at this one:

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/disease
dis·ease (d-zz)
n.
1. A pathological condition of a part, organ, or system of an organism resulting from various causes, such as infection, genetic defect, or environmental stress, and characterized by an identifiable group of signs or symptoms.



Organ? Brain.
Resulted from: Repeated exposure to an opiate.
Characterized by: Onset of opiate withdrawl. The PHYSICAL changes in your brain that occur during opiate addiction. (op receptors changing).


http://www.emedicine.com/asp/dictionary.asp?keyword=disease
disease

Pronunciation: ( diz¢ez) 1 . An interruption, cessation, or disorder of body functions, systems, or organs. syn: morbus syn: sickness syn: illness 2 . A morbid entity characterized usually by at least two of these criteria: recognized etiologic agent(s), identifiable group of signs and symptoms, or consistent anatomic alterations.



Now, I know that admitting its a disease kind of hard for a bunch of drug addicts to do, but how the hell isn't (at least opiate) addiction disease?
The only reason I can use this solid evidence is because opiates are the most researched drug ever. If opiate addiction is DEFINITELY a disease, than I would wager, the more we learn about other drugs/addiction most all drug addiction would be a disease.

I am would wager that there is a parallel psychologically disorder that occurs in most 'drug addicts' that some people seem more likey to get than others (Take it, or leave it people).


With opiates we can manage the physical side of the disease fairly well with medication, but still people can't kick. I would say these people have more of a psychologically disorder called, for lack of a better term, drug addiction.



I guess, the term drug addiction is too broad a brush for the time being, as it can kind of describe either the disease part or the psychological part.
 
I think you make choices about using of course. Sometimes they are helped along by trama. I feel that at the height of addiction the urges are really almost beyond your control and you need help to stop. Its a mix if phsyical, psychological and behavioral, just like most things in life.
Thats just my take.
 
smackem said:
how the hell isn't (at least opiate) addiction disease?
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because you can get better at any time, if you really wanted to.

ill admit there are some similarities:
prolonged exposure to opiates can result in W/Ds just like
prolonged exposure to wet & cold weather can result in pneumonia

nobody wants either of those things, but the fact is: you can wake up one morning and say "i dont want these W/Ds anymore!" and you're perfectly able to get rid of them for good. you cannot, however, wake up and say "i dont want pneumonia anymore!"and be able to get rid of it by sheer willpower.

that is my only argument for this.
you give me a legit, self-inflicted disease that you can completely cure by yourself, without any medicines, practices (ex. dieting), etc... and i will change my mind.:)
 
I think addiction is a sign of weakness and too little self control. Thinking it's a disease is just dissociating yourself from the consequences of the choices you made earlier imo.
 
delta_9 said:
So, some people are more prone than others to develop heart disease....
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You're right. And like others have said, some of the classic diseases(diabetes, obesity, lung cancer) may also be caused by one's behavior.


I guess I'll have to add to my reasoning as to why I don't think it's a disease. And root alluded to what I'm going to say...


It's not a disease because you can completely cure it by stopping that behavior. Hard, yes, but also completely possible.


You can't say that about the classic diseases.
 
This is a topic that will never be resoved. None of us can change anyones mind, so (and this is just for me) Lets just leave it at lets agree to disagree..

LillyF40:)
 
I think the whole disease model of addiction is kind of a cop out. It makes people think that they aren't responsible for their actions because its a "disease."

When I was living in a halfway house, about half the people their thought they had the disease of addiction (because basically all day everyday we were told we had the disease of addiction and we were powerless). And because of this they basically used it as an excuse to do whatever they felt like.

I do believe the physical aspects of addiction are very real but ultimately I believe that it's your own choice and responsibility as to what you put in your body. Obviously physical addiction plays a huge role in mental addiction which clouds your actions but (as a former addict IME) I know that doing drugs is my choice.

Drugs aren't forced on me by satan or some evil entity and there isn't a disease that makes me want to use. When i use it's my choice, when I choose to not use it's my choice. I know addiction can be so overwhelming and consuming that it would be nice to simplify it as something easy like disease but I believe that addiction is much more complicated than a disease. this is just my opinion, I respect everyone else's. Shiiiiiiit for the year i was completely sober I was a big book thumper and bought into everything the 12 step programs pushed on me. So I understand both sides but I refuse to believe that using/abusing drugs is anyone or anything else's fault other than my own.
 
OverDone said:
I CHOSE to drink when I was a kid, I CHOSE to smoke weed, I CHOSE to snort blow and I absolutely chose to figure out how to stick that needle in my vein(s).

Diseases aren't chosen, they happen for whatever reason.
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What about STDs? Someone with one certainly CHOSE to have sex with a person who had it. Does that disqualify it as a disease?
 
^Yeah, I think people should be a little more specific in their disease comparisons; since we're dealing with a (possible) mental disease, not a tumor or clogged arteries (which CAN be reversed through willpower BY changing lifestyle, if they aren't too advanced).

Opiate addiction specifically (along with alcohol, and benzos I think?), have mental and physical withdrawal symptoms, while many other substances have a more psychological effect.

To all the people saying that addiction is a due to weak willpower etc.:
If you are yourself a 'former' addict, do you have a strong affinity for, or problems controlling yourself with socially acceptable substances? Sugar, caffeine, alcohol, porn, nicotine, food, etc? If so, like I have done many times, you are still addicted, you have just shifted it into legal gear.
 
If you are yourself a 'former' addict, do you have a strong affinity for, or problems controlling yourself with socially acceptable substances? Sugar, caffeine, alcohol, porn, nicotine, food, etc?
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No. Never shifted my addiction to anything else.
 
dankstersauce said:
I think the whole disease model of addiction is kind of a cop out. It makes people think that they aren't responsible for their actions because its a "disease."

When I was living in a halfway house, about half the people their thought they had the disease of addiction (because basically all day everyday we were told we had the disease of addiction and we were powerless). And because of this they basically used it as an excuse to do whatever they felt like.
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re: the powerless bit-
what you were told was you were powerless over drugs and alcohol. not powerless in general because you have a "disease". i don't understand why people always muck that up.
 
By definintion its a disease. It's considered a disease in the medical community, and widely accepted common knowledge. I don't understand whats so hard to understand about this guys. It might be your personal opinion that it isn't, but your personal opinion doesn't fucking matter in the real world unfortuantly. Try not to shed tears.
 
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