What an article close to my heart. Being an addict myself, and working in an industry with addicts (vaping/ecigarettes), has been a really interesting experience. What blows my mind the most is how many people will come in because they "can't quit" smoking, but they also say they "aren't addicted," and that always is a source of frustration for me, in that obviously denying a problem is not the first step to recovery, and I find that to be generally disconcerting. I want to help people to be successful as much as possible, but sometimes just realizing and accepting that addiction is real and that we are in turn effected by it is so huge.
I'm not ashamed to be an addict. I found it quite freeing to admit it, quite honestly. Once I admitted it, not only did I find my behavior changing, but also my relating to others changing.
I am a very addictable person...when I started smoking cigs when I was 19, I feel like I was addicted at the first one I smoked...unlike others who feel it took them a while. My brain is just wired to get hooked.
I can become psychologically addicted to just about anything through my own compulsivities, as well...the things that a person "can't get addicted to," well...yeah you can. It's possible. Not for everyone all the time, but at some point someone will probably be afflicted with some sort of addiction.
Also--the societal acceptance of certain addictions over others is interesting to me, as well. For example, food addictions in the south are often accepted...to a certain extent, alcoholism is accepted, caffeine addiction is definitely acceptable...it's such a complex topic, and one people don't always like to discuss, but it's so important.
Thank you for sharing this here. Upvoted and following you now.
Thank you sharing your story. Indeed we need to exorcise the demon of judgments and just accept who we are.