Drug Abuse

Question by Seeker Of Painful Truths 2: What is the difference between “addiction” and “normal behavor”? Or…..?
…Or is it normal behavior to be addicted to many elements in life?

I ask because every time I read some info about what an “addiction” is, the more the experts explain away their points, the more it sounds like everything or most things is an addiction. That makes it difficult for me to narrow down what an addiction actually is. Just simply using drugs and alcohol and sex to explain it clouds the core of what an addiction is.

It almost seems as if people are so against certain things in life that they create a “scientific” belief system to quarentine those things from people doing them without actually having facts to prove their case.

For instance I read this alot,

“The biggest problem is the addicted person’s failure to recognize the harm their addiction is doing.”

It’s not hard to recognize what an addiction is or the harm it’s causing if the definition of what an addiction is, is clear, but it is not.

Need your help on this….Thoughts? Thanks.
@Adyeta – What you say only confirms that addiction is a normal part of daily life. What you say can be said about a great deal of women because many spend so much time making themselves appear beautiful and showing off their bodies for attention that they neglect other relationships with people in their lives and sometimes neglect their kids, yet, this is not socially seen as an addiction, when it is.

Or women the many millions of women are addicted to man hating media to the point where they neglect real solid relationships with men like their fathers, brothers, co-workers, etc, to the point that it negatively effects their jobs. Yet, thats not seen as an “addiction” to society, but it is based on the definition.

Best answer:

Answer by Milla ^.^?
The medical definition of ‘addiction’ is:

Habitual psychological and physiological dependence on a substance or practice beyond one’s voluntary control.

It can’t be normal things like breathing or drinking. Eating could become an addiction, for say someone who is obese and eats obsessively.

Drug use can be seen as an addiction. Alcohol is a legal drug, so just mere usage of alcohol isn’t seen as an addiction unless the person uses to such a degree where they are never sober or binge alot. Also to the degree where it affects their life.

Using illegal drugs is virtually seen as automatically an addiction, especially if it is meth, heroin and the more addictive drugs.
http://www.rave.ca/fr/image/full/283009/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=PQpjwctraUI#t=114

Answer by Adyeta
addiction is doing something (the addictive behaviour) to the point where it’s difficult to stop, and it makes you neglect other important things. for example if someone is addicted to…. the internet, they use it all the time, it’s difficult to get off the computer. they start getting health problems such as a sore back from a poor posture, or sore legs from sitting too much. but they may neglect this because they know it means “no more internet”. they may neglect duties such as caring for the kids, or stay up all night on the internet and barely interact with their partner. that is an addiction.. where it consumes your life and you have trouble controlling it. it controls you.