Let’s stir (not shake) things up a bit, hopefully.
Do you think alcoholism is a DISEASE?
I don’t.
Cancer is a disease. You can’t quit cancer. You can quit drinking. If you are locked in a room with no alcohol for the rest of your life, you will probably have some physical symptoms of withdrawal, but you will be okay. If you are locked in a room with cancer and given no treatment you will just die.
I think alcoholism is an ADDICTION. Like I’m addicted to food … my brain has repeatedly felt better when I eat, so now I think I have to have certain nasty foods to feel not depressed, to feel happy, to feel in control mostly.
Alcoholism is poor choices. It's checking out of life. It's not taking responsibility for your own crap.
So what do YOU think?
I think it's more comparable to a mental health disorder. Many people with mental illness could take medication to be better but because the brain is affected by the disorder they often choose not to and it's rational in their mind. I think alcoholism(as any other addiction) is a disease of the mind as well and the compulsion/craving overwhelms rationality. A mental illness is a valid illness...some people do find a way to live full lives, take their treatments and control their illness...some alcoholics do the same. Others never quite get well enough mentally to do so.
ReplyDeleteAlso...comparing it to cancer is a bit of an an incorrect analogy, untreated cancer is usually an acute illness while alcoholism is chronic/long-lasting..perhaps compare it to another chronic disease such as arthritis...you choose to live with they symptoms or not...but you won't die from it, at least not immediately. But if left untreated may get progressively worse.
Simply said, "Breeze is right."
ReplyDeleteWith word origins meaning "dis-ease" or "lack of ease" in a certain area of the body [1] a disease or medical condition is an abnormal condition of an organism that impairs bodily functions, associated with specific symptoms and signs.[2][3][4] It may be caused by external factors, such as infectious disease, or it may be caused by internal dysfunctions, such as autoimmune diseases or in Holistic medicine and Alternative medicine by energetic imbalances in physical, emotional, spiritual, social and/or environmental needs[citation needed] .
ReplyDeleteIn human beings, "disease" is often used more broadly to refer to any condition that causes In this broader sense, it sometimes includes injuries, disabilities, disorders, pain, dysfunction, distress, social problems, and/or death to the person afflicted, or similar problems for those in contact with the person.syndromes, infections, isolated symptoms, deviant behaviors, and atypical variations of structure and function, while in other contexts and for other purposes these may be considered distinguishable categories.
I accordance with the definition, it is a disease. It is an external cause. It does cause pain, dysfunction, distress, social problems, and/or death to the person afflicted, or similar problems for those in contact with the person.pain, dysfunction, distress, social problems, and/or death to the person afflicted, or similar problems for those in contact with the person.
http://www.virtualmedicalcentre.com/uploads/VMC/DiseaseImages/495_alcoholism.jpg
there's a brain scan. can he or she undo brain damage? No. just as you can not "undo" cancer. At least cancer (abnormal growth of cells) can be terminated with chemo. You can't regrow brain cells and synaptic activity. You may call it an addiction in the first 3-6 months, but after that, it's a disease.
alcoholism = the disease i can give myself! i see your point b/c lung cancer is a disease and can be caused my ME smoking. what if ALL cancer is caused by crap we eat or something we did? creepy.
ReplyDeleteI see your point Kerrie. I really do. Some people do seem to be drawn more to drinking to excess. Maybe there is some chemical in their body that alcoholics succumb to it more than others?
ReplyDeleteAll I know is I stay away from all drinking because my father (who I didn't know because of his drinking) was an alcoholic and I don't want to even go down that road.
I don't think it's a disease simply because we exercise a choice in whether or not we drink. I also think categorizing alcoholism as a disease may prevent some people from taking responsibility for their choices.
ReplyDelete