Chapter 62

Great advances in the realm of psychology and countless research studies in neurobiology have officially overthrown the traditional perception that the ONLY problems addicts suffer from are that they are weak, bad, morally bankrupt people who are unwilling to control their behavior or lives. If this expression is to be accurately understood, while the aforementioned portrayal is obviously true to some extent, there is something going on with an addict well beyond his reasonable ability to control his behavior as it relates to obsessing, craving, and actively using drugs. I am a recovering addict myself and have every right to speak on issues relating to this –because I have first-hand experience. I know what it is like to be truly moral; I know what it is like to be deplorably immoral; and I also know what it is like to have raging compulsions beyond any human control.

Let us quickly examine the typical life-cycle of an addict. A person starts off with some sort of pain; it can be emotional, physical, and/or social. This person, by most societal standards is basically good, but finds his pain difficult to deal with. Since this person has an inner conflict or discomfort he does not know how to resolve (this could be difficulty fitting-in, anxiety, abuse, peer pressure…), he looks for a solution to the problem.

This is where the moral dilemma presents itself: Most people have troubles and struggles with life at some point, but the difference here is this person chooses drugs as his solution for one reason or another. The drugs appear to solve the problem and so a high value is mentally associated with its use. But this person believes a lie. Depending on the types of drugs used, full-blown addiction sets in very quickly, and he loses his power to choose. Casual, recreational drug use quickly turns into an uncontrollable obsession that traps the person in an endless cycle of craving, using, withdrawing, abstaining, and relapsing. The obsession is so powerful that all else in life means nothing, and the addict is even perfectly willing, at times, to die for his drug. Once the newly minted drug addict crosses the threshold of experiencing cravings, he’s in for the ride of his life.

The drugs heavily train the “pleasure sensors” of the brain, and simultaneously cause an absolute horror of the pain of physical withdrawal. He then seeks to reward himself with the pleasure that the drugs provide, accidentally increases his physical tolerance level, and will do anything to keep using. Now he experiences a downward spiral in his life; the drugs of abuse have permanently changed him both mentally and physically. There is a massive change in his original personality in that he will now start to harbor secret hatreds and hostilities and look for other people to blame for his condition. And all of this started with one simple immoral, bad decision: To believe the lie that drugs are the cure-all. The medicine that cures becomes the poison that kills.

As I have stated at the beginning of this book, the core of all addiction starts with a problem of belief; and consequently it can be treated by correcting false beliefs over time. Drug addiction, then, results from the immorality of excessive or continued use of habit-forming drugs in an attempt to resolve the original underlying symptoms of discomfort or unhappiness. That is why I believe it is helpful to have a full understanding of the psychological components that relate to addiction with the accompanying pursuit of spirituality. First things first though, if you are an advanced alcoholic or drug addict, you MUST go to a rehabilitation facility for an extended period of time to give yourself a chance at life, and that is as simple as I know how to make it. Remember that when you discover truth, even when it is placed before your eyes in its purest nature, you are not to expect from it any assistance other than that of a lighthouse or guidepost.