Addiction: The Financial Problem

accepted as necessary, we are getting better and better success rates. Addiction is a chronic, progressive and fatal mental disorder, accompanied by physiological complications. People have had a tendency to want to give up on or throw away the Addict who relapses. Yet, we don’t do that with diabetics or cancer victims. Putting a sick person in a cage will not get them well. Addicts do not suffer from a lack of morals and will power. They suffer from a chemically changed brain that can be restored nearly completely to a properly functioning organ. It is just very complicated by the fact that behavioral changes are a side effect that is a second issue that must be addressed. This is because memory reinforced over a long period of time is not easily overcome. It’s the “old habits are hard to break” syndrome. It can be done, though. Cognitive Behavioral Therapies have put a whole new face on the treatment of Addiction. It provides a set course of objectives that are measurable in their effectiveness and variations of applied techniques and time frames can produce positive results for a vast number of those being treated. Progression of the disease is predictable and assessable, and provide somewhat of a diagnosis of what stage an addiction is in. As with all diseases, the earlier it is identified, the sooner it can be assessed and a treatment course instituted. There is a third factor beyond the mental and physical that has been identified as a great help to the treatment of “disease” in general that applies even more significantly to the disease of Addiction… Spiritual Growth! 

So, what are going to do? Are we going to continue to treat this vast segment of the population as “lepers”, stowing them away in our modern dungeons… throwing them away like broken objects? Or are we going to invest more wisely in a new approach that sees the potential of the human being? It took me a very long time to accept that I wasn’t just “a bad person”. It was hard to believe that I could overcome the wreckage I had made of my life for such a long time. Most of all, though, it took a lot of Help! I made it though! After nearly 30 years of steady decline into hopelessness, I was brought out of the insanity by caring professionals and belief that something greater would lift me up and carry me when I had not the strength to do things myself! I am not a detriment to society anymore. I no longer thrive on selfish needs. The Veteran’s Administration invested in me and as a result not only am I no longer active in my Addiction, but I’m a Drug Counselor, dedicating the rest of my working life to helping others rise out of the depths of deprivation and become productive members of Society!   

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