In many peoples lives there have been times when we have felt isolated, lonely, disconnected, and alone. These times have never been pleasant, and in the absence of nurturing relationships, close friends to call on a dime, or a tribe of your own, people "cope" by engaging in substitute relationships with work, money, entertainment, food, hobbies, and exercise (just to name a few). For years people accept this and feel shame about many of their behaviors, and their inability to connect in deep ways with others. Its important to understand that so much of adaptive behavior is a response to underlying root problems, problems that need resolving and will hamper in significant ways your ability to intiate, develop, and maintain intimate and nurturing relationships with people. I also believe that now, more than ever, those who struggle with addiction share similar root causes that need to be addressed if successful longterm outcomes are to materialize. The roots of addiction go much deeper than the adaptive behaviors that so often are the focus of intervention efforts. This is because dealing with the symptoms (addictions) are easier than dealing with the root causes. I have long believed that addiction is a problem best managed over time like other chronic condition, but successful management necessitates addressing what drives the addictive behavior in the first place. It requires knowing how to turn down the flame, dig out the roots, and resolve problems that are solvable. These underlying roots come in many shapes and sizes, but it seems that many people are pruning the branches of the tree of addiction and not that many know to get the root out. “For every thousand hacking at the leaves of evil, there is one striking at the root.” – Thoreau
Posted on: Sun, 06 Oct 2013 12:03:05 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015