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Substance dependence, or addiction, as defined by the DSM, is indicated by the presence at least three out of seven criteria (tolerance, withdrawal symptoms, continued use of drug despite harm, loss of control, attempts to cut down, etc). All but the first two criteria reflect some form of loss of control over the use of or effects of the drug. Those criteria are not possible with sports, work, automobiles, shopping, etc.
I have known people who are addicted to all of those things and they do indeed have those negative symptoms and emotional issues if they try to stop.
The action of the addiction is a band aide covering the underlying issue. When they try to stop, all of those emotional issues explode to the surface.
I believe that in an alcoholic a dependency occurs in the brain. The fact that alcoholism runs in families suggests a genetic component that cannot be ignored.
I am a social drinker, but I have alcoholism in the family, so I am always aware, and looking for signs of dependency, and have made my children aware of the dangers. Blessedly, they have escaped any issues with drugs, alcohol or tobacco.
My husband also has alcoholism in his family, and one of his children has had issues with drug and alcohol dependency, so cannot touch either at all. My husband was a smoker, and struggled for years to finally quit, so I know he has an addictive trait.
These pages from the Mayo Clinic explain alcoholism, prevention, symptoms, diagnosis, treatment and maintenance of sobriety in easy to understand terms:
I think there has been rarely so widespread and damaging an illness that is so misunderstood. Maybe the reason for that is the degree of denial that seems to be built into the disease itself. This affects the user, his family and ultimately society as a whole.
There are many definitions. The one I was taught is, Alcoholism is a chronic, progressive, terminal, treatable illness. The apparent exceptions to the rule are confusing but, observed over a period of time, these qualifiers seem to apply.
I have known people who are addicted to all of those things and they do indeed have those negative symptoms and emotional issues if they try to stop.
"Negative symptoms" and "emotional issues" are not signs of addiction or substance dependence, although they might be signs of abuse, which is not the same thing.
^Go ahead and conclusively define precisely where the line between abuse and dependence exists and you'll probably have the next version of the DSM named after you. "Which is not the same thing" suggests that the line between the two wouldn't be blurry, and that is false.
All sorts of behaviors are these days at least colloquially described as "addictions" (and if there's any branch of medicine that is more informed by colloquial "wisdom" than psychiatry, I shudder to think what that branch of medicine might look like). Think Tiger Woods for a well-known example. I read this book several years ago as it profiled people with various "addictions", including food and shoplifting:
Ultimately most things in the DSM remain subjective (albeit educated guesses, perhaps the most educated of guesses) and should not be accepted without further analysis.
Substance dependence, or addiction, as defined by the DSM, is indicated by the presence at least three out of seven criteria (tolerance, withdrawal symptoms, continued use of drug despite harm, loss of control, attempts to cut down, etc). All but the first two criteria reflect some form of loss of control over the use of or effects of the drug. Those criteria are not possible with sports, work, automobiles, shopping, etc.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bmachina
I have known people who are addicted to all of those things and they do indeed have those negative symptoms and emotional issues if they try to stop.
The action of the addiction is a band aide covering the underlying issue. When they try to stop, all of those emotional issues explode to the surface.
CA all those criteria ARE possible with other addictions that dont include the use of chemical substances. take race car drivers for instance, they are adrenaline junkies, and when they stop racing, they miss the adrenaline rush they got when racing. and they do in fact have withdrawal symptoms. most people pass this off as a natural thing that they miss the sport and have regrets of ending their driving career. the same thing happens with other prop athletes as well, but the fact is that they are going through withdrawal from the rush they got playing the sport. that same rush that drug and alcohol users get.
CA all those criteria ARE possible with other addictions that dont include the use of chemical substances. take race car drivers for instance, they are adrenaline junkies, and when they stop racing, they miss the adrenaline rush they got when racing.
While there are behavioral addictive disorders, for example, to food, gambling, and sex (as well as addictive disorders to substances) so far, car racing and shopping are not among them. Not enough scientific evidence, apparently. There was an attempt to include Internet addiction in the DSM-V but after much scientific review, it did not qualify. Maybe in the future...
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