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I think people with pain need to have that pain taken seriously by doctors.
I know addiction is always an issue with certain substances it always will be until either we find out what causes addiction and addictive personalities and stop the conditions or heal the problems in society that trigger denial and the uncontrolled desire for substances. Either way it's addicts who have to become aware of the issues inside addicts that bring about addiction themselves.And anything can be addictive,food,relationships,sex,internet,religion, the color blue,hoarding animals,shopping,coffee,control.
Should we ban everything in the world because some people want it too much and have no self control?
My dad was a drunk and when I went to Ala-non it was said,to me, you are NOT responsible for making the world alchohol free because there is a drunk in the house,they will drink it anyways whatever you do with the booze.Same goes for oxy,An addict sometimes needs to hit the bottom ,whatever the bottom is for them,to even begin to break through thier own denial enough to see they got a serious problem. Well meaning 'enablers' who cover up for the addict,clean his meseses up,try to stop substances from coming into commmunity or the house,call his work to make excuses for him, or try to control the addict for his own good just delay the enevitable,the bottom.
And this sickness of addiction and enabiling can't be solved by a simple political decree,a 'drug war' or by police action and jails.
And sadly it seems as I hear more and more people's stories of life with an addict, hitting bottom is one thing that can wake an addict up out of denial.In a way I had to "hit bottom" I had to realize that the addict was doing this and he would do it despite me.That I had no control over what he did.I just had control over myself,my emotions,my life and how I responded to his problems.
The addict has to be able to decide what they want for themselves for themselves. Like whether to live or die,circumstances that cannot be denied,are one way for an addict to be able to see thier problem for themself.People in A.A. say listening to other drunk's stories help remind them of where drinking can take them because they see themself and thier story in that other person's pain.They support each other with one goal staying clean.
It is very hard to watch and be around through a loved one's free fall to the bottom. Denial is a tough thing to see .No one can change an addict's habits by guile,kindness,prohibition,pleading or force.The same applies to non-addicts if they are unwilling to change a behavior that's interfereing with a relationship.
Addiction is really tough for loved ones who live or are raised with such a person to go through,they don't want to see thier father/husband/wife/freind addicted and they don't want to live with him when he's off the wagon either,they don't want the addict dominating thier lives, they don't want to break up thier families,runaway or be on thier own alone..ect.Change is tough especially when the outcome is uncertain and out of your hands.
It's painful for families to cope with someone they love under the influence alone, maintaining the addict's appearances and life while they are drugging or drinking becomes the all consuming tyrant ,a secret problem in the home.Addictions can do alot of damage to the lives and spirits of people around them .People living with a drunk or addict need support from others who have been there.And it is vital that people living with addicts get help,support and education so that the addicted person doesen't take even more of thier life and sanity,serenity away.Likewise it's vital that sources of help and support for addicts and drunks BE there when the addict decides to change his life.It's a journey for all of us,and the addict has a hard road,as do all of us on our own ways,which are just as painful.
People need to understand how the problem of addiction in people drives the misguided desire of society to use political pressures to control substances that addicts use and that this is flawed thinking.No one who needs medical help should have to suffer with pain or a sickness or side effect from chemo because of societies desire to control addictive people's habits for them.It's because society is unaware,uninformed about what addiction is,what recovery is,they react in pain dealing with addiction by controlling it and the desire to control interferes with thier thinking clearly too.
Sometimes in our culture the idea of control is what we are taught to do first,we react against an 'enemy' start a war with what we think is THE problem when faced with something uncertain we paint everything black or white.Life is way more complex than this and politics sometimes control isn't the best answer..
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