Viewing a single comment thread. View all comments

NetflixAndZzzzzz t1_j2f0v5k wrote

Reply to comment by nauseacomaneci in Will we ever cure addiction? by 4ucklehead

Go to an NA meeting and explain to everyone that, because the structural changes in their neural pathways resemble those found in people with non-chemical dependencies, this means that chemical dependence to an addictive substance is not the primary impetus driving their addictive behavior.

0

nauseacomaneci t1_j2f1txw wrote

I would, except that is not what I said, nor was it the point of my comment. Your retrograde defensiveness over whose addiction is "real" clouded your ability to understand what I was trying to point out. Moreover, chemical dependence is not the only thing that drives addictive behavior, but I suspect you were not replying in good faith.

1

NetflixAndZzzzzz t1_j2f3lgz wrote

If someone is chemically dependent, but they abstain from using the chemical, are they addicted to it?

2

nauseacomaneci t1_j2fakxl wrote

It depends on why they are abstaining from the substance! I am copying my reply to your other comment as it is relevant here, too:

"Chemical dependence is a necessary but insufficient precondition for addiction. Addiction is a biopsychosocial disorder & one needs a particular constellation of biological, psychological, & sociological symptoms or risk factors to be diagnosed...
...Being chemically dependent on something doesn't necessarily mean you're addicted to it.
Take the example I wrote about elsewhere in this thread. I am chemically dependent on my antidepressants. Meaning, if I stopped taking them, I would experience deleterious physical symptoms. However, I am not "addicted" to these medications as such, because, for one, I am not abusing them [I take them as prescribed], & taking these medications does not impact my ability to live my life or meet social or familial obligations, &c.
So, chemical dependence needs to be present to diagnose a substance use disorder, but chemical dependence on its own is insufficient to meet the criteria of substance use disorder."

1