Doomed to be an addict?
I’ve read many reports over the years that claim we all are “addicted” to one thing or another. Control… love… money… shopping… The people who assert this point of view say that addiction in human beings is simply inevitable and not at all unusual.
I don’t know if I believe that or not, but I will say that almost every person I’ve ever encountered is an “addict” of one kind or another. Many volunteer themselves to death (not literally, just figuratively), others “can’t live” without a steaming mug o’ Starbucks coffee in the morning. Many, myself included, have a strange love-hate relationship with food and weight, a partnership which can only be controlled on a day-by-day basis.
Hm.
At this point, I’m stumped and turning the blog over to you…
- Do you think it’s possible that everyone has an addiction?
- Could we truly all be “addicts”? If so, is the point to just replace the “bad” addictions (like EDs, drug use, alcoholism) with “good” ones?
- Is this all a bunch of bunk?
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POSTED IN: Addiction, alcoholism, drug use, musings
6 opinions for Doomed to be an addict?
Mark
Mar 18, 2008 at 8:19 pm
‘Could we truly all be “addicts”?’
No… imho
‘If so, is the point to just replace the “bad” addictions (like EDs, drug use, alcoholism) with “good” ones?’
Depends on whether or not you maintain a positive or negative POV… because your definition of “bad” and “good” might simply be faulty.
Mark
angelique
Mar 18, 2008 at 8:25 pm
Mark:
Thanks so much for chiming in. You’re so right about the POV, too.
Great points.
Gabrielle
Mar 23, 2008 at 10:30 am
Not crazy about the overuse of the word “addict” or “addiction” in today’s world. And I cringe when I find myself doing it (i.e. I’m addicted to MySpace….). I think Mark makes some great points.
Jackie
Mar 28, 2008 at 7:25 am
Sometimes hobbies get mixed in with addiction. Most notably with video games, which have gotten alot of bad press due to ultra-violent games, which I personally don’t like myself. However I also don’t like how the entire gaming industry is painted with the same shade as those companies, *cough*RockstarGames*cough*, who want to put out ultra-violent games.
So in that sense I could say I’m addicted to Nintendo, but I don’t see it as like affecting my daily behaviour to where I can’t function like a true addiction. These days though, people act like if a kid plays video games for more than an hour, they’re a TV zombie.
Rebecca
Nov 7, 2008 at 7:36 pm
I have experience with ed. I used to think everyone had, at least. one addiction. I no longer believe that to be true. I believe you can live without any addictions at all. I, now, just try to be healthy and it doesn’t interfere with my life in a negative way. Balance is key.
valerie
Nov 8, 2008 at 12:32 am
i believe we are all addicts in that we view most things in life the wrong way; BLACK or WHITE. We are always on either side of the spectrum; eating a lot/eating nothing at all.. We take things to the extremes, or at least enjoy having the comfort of knowing we are not LIMITED in the things that we like.. If you want to know exacly what I mean, just ask yourself this: How many times haven’t you seen “eat all you want, as much as you want and still lose weight” pills or patches & thought about buying them to eat ALL the crap you can get your hands on? Or how often have you rejected a perfectly healthy & well-structured eating &/or exercise plan because it mentions “changing your lifestyle”? We don’t appreciate boundaries & this often leads to addictive behaviors (only not all of them have strictly negative consequences.. ex.: helping others above yourself - isn’t always good, but comes off as plain “being noble”..). What we need is to be BALANCED in each and every aspect of our lives (particularily those of us struggling with EDs!)
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