Welcome to Moving Beyond Addiction

 

 

 

 

 

As I welcome you to my new blog “Moving Beyond Addiction: Nurturing Your Spirit in Sobriety”, I sit here in gratitude and wonderment as to how I got here.  I look forward to sharing with you my own journey in recovery with antidotes from the past and present, as well as the gifts I have received from those in and out of recovery that I have learned along the way. I have not only had my own experiences, but have worked in the field of recovery for over ten years.  I will share with you candidly and honestly my own experiences and journey of self discovery.   You will know that you are never alone on this path you have so courageously decided to take. I am here right alongside of you cheering you on each step of the way towards a life filled with joy, peace, and serenity.  If you are struggling with an addiction, don’t know if you have one, know someone who does, or are simply not sure, this blog will hopefully inspire you as well as assist you, in moving you from where you were, where you are now, and where you wish to go in your sobriety.

 

 

 

Although sobriety is at the forefront of my blog, my wish for you is to experience a life filled with purpose and meaning.  I hope to impart many of the tools that have worked for me to help you reach your greatest desires.  Recovery is so much more than just getting clean and sober.  It’s about living a life on purpose and manifesting everything you have ever dreamed of.  Are you looking for a loving relationship?  Are you satisfied in your career?  Are you feeling financially secure?  Are you nurturing your soul?  Are you taking care of your health and well-being?  Whatever you goal is, this blog is intended to move you closer to where you want to go.

 

 

 

An excerpt from my book, “The Law of Sobriety: Attracting Positive Energy for a Powerful Recovery” explains that without a purposeful life, you may even feel justified to use drugs or alcohol again out of despair and lack of fulfillment in your life.  “I believe that without purpose and passion, some type of relapse is inevitable.  Perhaps you won’t drink or use, you will definitely have a hard time maintaining your emotional sobriety…the emotional balance and stability that makes it possible to be happy and productive and feel more alive.”

 

Whether you are struggling with alcohol, drugs, overeating, workholism, codependency, love, compulsive shopping, gambling, or sex addiction, this blog is meant to assist you with your vision of recovery in your life today, tomorrow, and in the distant future. I am here to help you create goals that resonate with what you want to do, where you want to go, and what you want to leave behind.

 

 

 

You can start your day with a Recovery Tip which is designed to help move you closer to manifesting your goals with action steps or an  Inspirational Quote which is offered to encourage you on your path towards self-discovery.

 

 

The greatest way to overcome any addiction is to listen to someone else share their own story of experience, strength, and hope with the same addiction.  I hope this blog resonates with your own story and helps bring you closer to the purposeful life you are meant to live.

Who wrote the Serenity Prayer?

You know this famous prayer

Generations of recovering alcoholics, soldiers, weary parents and just about anybody feeling beaten down by life have found solace in this short prayer: God, grant to us the serenity of mind to accept that which cannot be changed; courage to change that which can be changed, and wisdom to know the one from the other. But who wrote it?

Here's who didn't!

Over the years, the prayer has been incorrectly attributed to Thomas Aquinas, Cicero, St. Augustine, Boethius and Marcus Aurelius.

It has also been attributed wrongly to philosopher and theologian Friedrich Christoph Oetinger (1702–1782). It seems his great-nephew, Theodor Wilhelm, an ex-Nazi who became a respected professor at the University of Kiel, printed a German-language version of the prayer in his book, Wendepunkt der poltitischen Erziehung, but published under the pen-name "Friedrich Oetinger."

Confusion resulted.

A 1695 version?

Author W.W. Bartley has observed that it is very similar to a children’s rhyme published in 1695:

For every ailment under the sun; There is a remedy, or there is none; If there be one, try to find it; If there be none, never mind it.

What about Reinhold Niebuhr?

Respected author and religious philosopher Reinhold Niebuhr is generally accepted as the author.

But did he really write it?

Even he was not sure.

Yale Book of Quotations

In 2008, Yale Book of Quotations editor Fred R. Shapiro wrote that various versions of the prayer seemingly attributable to Nibuhr were in use as early as 1936.

 

Shapiro worked with a law librarian at Yale who used new databases of archival documents to locate newspaper clippings and a book from as far back as 1936 that quote versions of the prayer. All are from civic leaders all over the United States – including a YWCA leader in Syracuse and a public school counselor in Oklahoma City.

Some refer to the prayer as if it were a proverb, while others appear to claim it as their own poetry.

None attribute the prayer to anybody. However at the time, Niebuhr was touring the United States, speaking at YWCAs, youth conferences, churches and social clubs.

The 1937 version

In 2009, Duke University researcher Stephen Goranson found a version Niebuhr's name on it in a 1937 Christian student publication:

"Father, give us courage to change what must be altered, serenity to accept what cannot be helped, and the insight to know the one from the other."

The 1943 version

In 1943, Niebuhr included this version in a widely published sermon. It was picked up in a Federal Council of Churches book for U.S. military chaplains and servicemen during World War II.

God, give us grace to accept with serenity the things that cannot be changed, courage to change the things which should be changed, and the wisdom to distinguish the one from the other. Living one day at a time, Enjoying one moment at a time, Accepting hardship as a pathway to peace, Taking, as Jesus did, This sinful world as it is, Not as I would have it, Trusting that You will make all things right, If I surrender to Your will, So that I may be reasonably happy in this life, And supremely happy with You forever in the next.

The AA Version

Alcoholics Anonymous adopted the prayer early in 1942, according to the group’s co-founder William Griffith Wilson – known to members worldwide only as “Bill W.” since no last names are used in AA meetings. However, nobody knew who had written it.

 

In his memoirs,  A.A. Comes of Age, Wilson tells how a New York member, “Jack A.,” brought to everyone's attention a New York Herald Tribune obituary that read:

 

"God grant us the serenity to accept the things we cannot change, courage to change the things we can, and wisdom to know the difference."

 

They were stunned. It summed up the AA philosophy.

The 1951 version

Niebuhr finally included the Serenity Prayer in one of his magazine columns -- in 1951, long after it had gone into wide use worldwide.

 

His wife, Ursula, has said that she thinks he first wrote it down in 1941 or 1942. His daughter, Elisabeth Sifton, has said that she thought he put it on paper for the first time in 1943 -- but that he included it in lectures and sermons as early as 1934.

Neibur in 1950

Niebuhr wrote in the January 1950 edition of Grapevine, the International Journal of Alcoholics Anonymous, that the prayer "may have been around for years, even centuries, but I don't think so. I honestly do believe that I wrote it myself."

So who did write it?

In his role as Yale Book of Quotations editor, Fred Shapiro has a history of debunking claims about the source of other famous sayings, including Murphy’s Law – “Anything that can go wrong will” – and P. T. Barnum’s “There’s a sucker born every minute.”

He said in an interview:

“Reinhold Niebuhr was a very honest person who was very forthright and modest about his role in the Serenity Prayer. My interpretation would be that he probably unconsciously adapted it from something that he had heard or read.”

So who did write it?

Niebuhr never copyrighted the Serenity Prayer or attempted to make any legal claim to authorship. He died in 1971.

Simple words

Brilliant in its simplicity, the Serenity Prayer is one of the key spiritual tools used by virtually all 12-step recovery support programs worldwide today.

For so many people in desperate situations -- seeking peace, strength, and wisdom -- those simple words have seen them through their darkest hours.

Millions have come to believe that those qualities can come only from a Power greater than themselves. And because they believe, they find the serenity, courage and wisdom they seek to face another situation, another step and another day.

God, grant me the serenity

To accept the things I cannot change,

Courage to change the things I can,

and wisdom to know the difference.

What are the 12 steps to alcoholic anonymous?

Answer:


.


The twelve steps are:

1. We admitted we were powerless over alcohol-that our lives had become

unmanageable.

2. Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to

sanity.

3. Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we

understood Him.

4. Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves.

5. Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature

of our wrongs.

6. Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character.

7. Humbly asked Him to remove our shortcomings.

8. Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make

amends to them all.

9. Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do

so would injure them or others.

10. Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly

admitted it.

11. Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with

God, as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us

and the power to carry that out.

12. Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these Steps, we tried to

carry this message to alcoholics, and to practice these principles in all our

affairs.

 12 Traditions


Traditions characterize a spiritually fit group of recovering addicts who find recovery in Narcotics Anonymous. When Traditions are violated, we have learned that fear has in some way gained a foothold. These fears justify wrongdoings. The only other possibility is simple ignorance. Violating traditions hurts the people involved. The fear makes it seem reasonable and proper for those doing the hurting to feel justified despite the evidence of their eyes and ears. This may be the essence of our insanity, not believing our own witness. If other members are hurting or behaving badly, they need extra love. If we are the ones who care, we are the ones who must pray for the extra grace and opportunity to help them in their difficulty. Newcomers are watchful and they can catch flaws in old-timers as quick as some of our NA scholars can spot a Tradition violation. "If it ain't practical, it ain't spiritual" is an old NA saying that shows how we deal with a good idea if it doesn't appear to be working. To retain a place in the NA program, everything spoken or written must prove its usefulness in the recovery arena. If love and caring are in evidence on the surface, it may indicate love and caring below the surface. If hatred and anger are on the surface, we may need to pray or meditate. If we can't do this, it’s a good sign that our spiritual condition is broken and must be regained before we can go on to anything else.

We do this by going to our sponsor and home group and admitting our need for help. We try to recall what we did as newcomers to get back in touch with the basics that worked for us before we knew what living clean was all about. As we recover from our obstinate opinions, we regain flexibility and spiritual balance. Solutions begin to appear and again we realize that we are safe in recovery. We need to instruct each other in the Traditions. Sometimes we tell the newcomers to only focus on the Steps. However, for someone who is suspicious of the program and uneducated in being a part of a functional group, learning about the Traditions provides relief. Our Traditions give us information about our structure and explain the guidelines to principled behavior. We are careful to avoid using our knowledge of the traditions as rules for others. The usefulness of the Traditions is in learning to guide ourselves and make the right decision for the right reason. We can share our feelings and experiences with others without seeking to dominate or control. Because recovery is an inside job, the principles of the Traditions deal with the outside issues. They help us find ways to be useful as instruments of a loving God and avoid conflicts with others.

Anonymity helps us look at the reality of a thing instead of the labels. So much in life comes to us promising one thing and delivering another. Authentic and real, life presents itself to us as it is. The trick is in being of sound mind and being able to believe the evidence of our senses. Since we are anonymous, we go by self-evident truth rather and authoritative truth. It is what happens and not just who did it. Traditions describe a reality. Awareness of this reality allows a group to relate to other groups effectively and maintain good relations within the group. When we say, "It's good enough" too often, we'll come up short in our Traditions. While Tradition violations may be hard to see at the time, the results are visible when a group becomes dispirited. When a group loses its spirit, no one feels like doing anything to help the group. Words are not kept. If you miss a meeting, you feel like, "So what..."

Due to the nature of our illness, we need special rules to underlie our meetings and services. These rules are implicit in our Traditions and enable the principles of our Steps to be applied more consistently. The first rule is to not allow ourselves to be divided by apparent differences against our many real similarities. We identify these similarities and let go of comparisons that would emphasize our differences. The second is to share what we feel from our higher power when considering or discussing what we do in NA. The third is to include the members of NA by open information and direct participation in any process having to do with NA. Personal commitment in these areas alone will eliminate many of the problems that seem insolvable once they get started. People feel left out, fear is generated, facts get distorted and soon we are at war with our brothers and sisters. We learn to treasure certain values. Among these values are:

1. Trust bonding addict to addict.

2. Loyalty: Acts of contribution and protection.

3. Submission to the Spiritual Life

4. Courage to Change

5. Caring and Sharing

6. Spiritual Humility

7. Courage to Try

8. Sincerity: Honest Intentions

9. Integrity: Honest Actions

10. Perseverance and Good Faith

11. Conscious Contact with our Higher Power

12. Living Clean


Vigilance is paying attention to what is going around you and accepting responsibility for your part in everything. This does not mean that, for example, if someone talks too long in a meeting, then you interrupt them immediately. Show a little compassion. Our rooms are full of people who used to talk too long. We may learn to pause and consider why it's such a big deal. Ask yourself questions, like: "Why do I care? What is he doing that annoys me, and what do I do that is like that? Do I feel I am a failure if someone in my proximity doesn't do well or as much as I expect of him? Do his shortcomings really reflect on the me or the group?" It is our experience that we have trouble accepting in others the aspects of our character that we are unwilling to accept or change for ourselves. Further, when we accept or change those aspects of our character, we will likely become detached or uninterested in those who display those aspects - unless they want help or are sharing their experience with us (this is when fellowship outside the rooms comes in handy).

"In service, I searched for answers to current service issues by studying the Traditions. Next, I ask for help from others who have gone before me, and try out what I've learned. Thing is, by then, I'm usually enthusiastic enough to have a lot of energy to the work, and I've attracted a few other addicts who want to help. I've learned that 'should' and 'could' mean it's not time or it's not necessary. 'It should be this way' or 'they could have' is blaming and judging. This is not vigilance rather it is blaming and judging. People do what they can and learn lessons by scraping their knees and elbows. They have to suffer if they want to suffer - trying to get in the middle of it means I'll probably suffer too. Yet, vigilance (and loving) means I will be watching, on the ready, and taking the first opportunity to help when they are ready to accept help."

We know that addicts will test our love and spiritual strength. We also know that many addicts who haven’t reached the same level of desire will exercise their pain within our ranks. It is up to the members with the desire for recovery and the ability to admit the need for help to provide the strength and love required in order for the recovery process to work. It is easy to underestimate the experience and courage we have developed as a Fellowship. Many people think spiritual principles are just words on a page, meant to sound good without practical value or useful application. Nothing could be further from the truth. The truth we share has withstood all the assaults the disease of addiction could throw at us.

While we come from all backgrounds, we have in common our pain, despair and hopelessness. What holds us together is our common desire for recovery. Narcotics Anonymous is the applied love, experience and hope of a Fellowship that has been succeeding against all odds while the disease of addiction rages and tears apart any who fall into fear, disbelief or manipulation. Our honesty is no luxury - it is a necessity. Those who abandon the Traditions, abandon themselves from the help that gives them a new life on a daily basis. Reality enforces the Traditions in terms of the way things are. Many come to get clean in NA. We have found a place for every addict with a sincere desire for recovery. Sometimes very damaged and disadvantaged addicts are able to achieve ongoing recovery while others better educated and smarter in ways are unable to make their surrender. There is no way for the program to work for us unless we want it to work. The openness of our hearts to change is controlled by our desire and others respond to our need on an instinctual level. They help provide whatever they can to help someone who is honest about their need, willing to try what works for others and open-minded enough to listen to our message. We need all the help we can get. Usually our need for help is to deal with life as things begin to get better for us. We have become so good at dealing with disaster, we have to learn and relearn to function in everyday reality. Many of us continue to create trouble in our lives long after the drugs are removed. These are the reasons we cannot drift of into a dream of normalcy and have to arrange to offset our fear and disbelief everyday.

A member shares, "For example, my issue with gossip is not that it violates the last tradition; it is that I can't stand it when people try to con me or get the facts wrong. (I hate it when people con me because I was such a con - and I was so good at it. When people don't do it well, I want to challenge them to one more round of 'The Game' so I can show them that I will win. Fact is, I lost the last few rounds...) I also get very annoyed when people call me up to b  at me for something I didn't do - and won't accept that someone lied to them about what happened or didn't have all the facts so that they jumped to the wrong conclusion. In my recovery, people stopped gossiping around me when I stopped judging other people and when I stopped talking with anyone but the person I was trying to learn about. I know that people still gossip about me, but it doesn't bother me. All of my friends know they can tell me about myself to my face or can disagree (because they have). I have learned along the way to say, 'I was wrong' and 'I don't know' and 'you'll have to ask him.' Anyone who is not involved in my life and anyone who bases what they think about me on the past is dealing with the disease - theirs and mine. I have changed. If they judge me without the facts or stay away because they are afraid to talk to me, they are limiting themselves - not me. I will continue to recover (grow and change) in the atmosphere of love and acceptance that my home group gives me because of who I am, not in spite of who I am. Yet, the first step is that I have to accept who I am. I have to admit it, accept it, ask for help if I want to change it, and move on through life.

"In my recovery, I have joined groups with the intent of 'saving' or fixing' by making sure the traditions are followed, getting only 'good' speakers, and drafting friends to attend by constantly reminding them of the meeting's lack of support. Those meetings didn't change much and neither did I. I found my Home Group when I'd missed the meeting, and two other addicts asked where I had been. They said they missed me. I decided to change my Home Group. When I told my old group, they complained because they had just spent money on my anniversary cake. (Guilt, shame, blame, judging, manipulation, and moralizing didn't get us much when we were on the streets - it won't get us much in the rooms either.) My 'new' Home Group consisted of me and one other addict who joined at about the same time. The people who had missed me relapsed and disappeared for a while. The two of us held every position, everything got done, and we didn't announce anything about lack of support during other meetings. We did invite sponsees to join our meeting. We did welcome newcomers and made sure they had phone numbers. We did make plenty of coffee and spent a lot of time outside the meeting sharing our recovery with each other and anyone else who wanted to join in. Anyone who bitched about how it 'should' be done was invited to accept responsibility for service in that vein, and we patiently (read quietly and gently) supported them as they learned or when they disappeared for a while. We did love and accept each other.

"Vigilance is as much about attraction, loving and caring, as it is about strength and persistence. Our Home Group one year later had about 15 members, with at least 8 present for any given group conscience. In my personal recovery, when I see someone who has something I want, the first things I do are introduce myself and tell them what I see. If they seem open to sharing what they have (they may be defensive, if they haven't yet accepted their positive qualities), then I ask for their phone number and when we might be able to spend some time. I ask direct questions and about specific things, like: How do you keep from acting out when you're so horny that you can't see straight? (Don’t be around members of the opposite sex, be honest and share about it, accept that it's ok, get lots of hugs from everybody, look for other things that might be triggering me to act out with a 'fix'). I don't expect them to read my mind, explain to them everything I know and have done about the issue (because if they have what I want, they'll know, and I'll bore them to tears.) I don't argue with them. I don't get angry with them for being happy, joyous and free - or in a healthy relationship, or working a great job, or whatever. Another way to be vigilant is to read everything about NA that you can get your hands on -- and read it again. I still often see things in the Basic Text that I didn't see before. And I may find some answers in a service manual or another addict's sharing in writing that I wasn't even aware I needed. In regard to personal issues, I check with my sponsor, read, and share at meetings. If that doesn't bring me peace, I write about it. THEN I start calling everyone and babbling. (Of course, I learned this from trying to do it in opposite order for a few years.)

"

What is opioid dependence?

The signs and symptoms of opioid dependence may include some or all of the following:

An ability to tolerate opioids including A need for greatly increased amount of opioids to relieve pain or get high or when continued use of the same amount of opioid leaves you feeling less high

When you feel physical or mental withdrawal after stopping opioid use

If you have tried unsuccessfully to cut down or control substance use

If you spend a great deal of time trying to get more opioids, use opioids, or recover from their effects

If you have given up or avoid important social or recreational activities and work due to opioid use

Continuing to use the substance even when it's clear that you have a physical or psychological problem that is likely to have been caused or made worse by opioid use

Not every dependent person will have all of these signs or symptoms, but if you think you may have an opioid dependency you should talk with a healthcare professional.

What about relapse if you are opioid-dependent?

Opioid dependence is a chronic condition, which means that remaining opioid-free is a challenge. Research has shown that long-term drug abuse results in changes in the brain that remain long after a person stops using drugs. For this reason, relapse is always possible.

Relapse can happen at any time, even long after detoxification. If you relapse, it does not mean that you have failed.

Definition

Addiction is a physical or mental dependence on a behavior or substance that a person feels powerless to stop.

Description

Addiction is one of the most costly public health problems in the United States. It is a progressive syndrome, which means that it increases in severity over time unless it is treated. The term has been partially replaced by the word "dependence" for substance abuse. Addiction has been extended, however, to include mood-altering behaviors or activities. Some researchers speak of two types of addictions: substance addictions (for example, alcoholism, drug abuse, and smoking); and process addictions (for example, gambling, spending, shopping, eating, and sexual activity). There was as of 2004 a growing recognition that many addicts are addicted to more than one substance or process. Substance abuse is characterized by frequent relapse or return to the abused substance. Substance abusers often make repeated attempts to quit before they are successful.

The National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) is conducted annually by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Among the findings of the 2003 study are the following:

•In 2003, an estimated 19.5 million Americans, or 8.2 percent of the population aged 12 or older, were current illicit drug users. Current illicit drug use means use of an illicit drug during the month prior to the survey interview. The numbers did not change from 2002.

•The rate of illicit drug use among youths aged 12–17 did not change significantly between 2002 (11.6%) and 2003 (11.2%), and there were no changes for any specific drug. The rate of current marijuana use among youths was 8.2 percent in 2002 and 7.9 percent in 2003. There was a significant decline in lifetime marijuana use among youths, from 20.6 percent in 2002 to 19.6 percent in 2003. There also were decreases in rates of past year use of LSD (1.3 to 0.6%), ecstasy (2.2 to 1.3%), and methamphetamine (0.9 to 0.7%).

•About 10.9 million persons aged 12–20 reported drinking alcohol in the month prior to the survey interview in 2003 (29.0 percent of this age group). Nearly 7.2 million (19.2%) were binge drinkers and 2.3 million (6.1%) were heavy drinkers. The 2003 rates were essentially the same as those from the 2002 survey.

•An estimated 70.8 million Americans reported current (past month) use of a tobacco product in 2003. This is 29.8 percent of the population aged 12 or older, similar to the rate in 2002 (30.4%). Young adults aged 18–25 reported the highest rate of past month cigarette use (40.2%), similar to the rate among young adults in 2002. An estimated 35.7 million Americans aged 12 or older in 2003 were classified as nicotine dependent in the past month because of their cigarette use (15% of the total population), about the same as for 2002.

Demographics

In 2003, the rate of substance dependence or abuse was 8.9 percent for youths aged 12–17 and 21 percent for persons aged 18–25. Among persons with substance dependence or abuse, illicit drugs accounted for 58.1 percent of youths and 37.2 percent of persons aged 18–25. In 2003, males were almost twice as likely to be classified with substance dependence or abuse as females (12.2% versus 6.2%). Among youths aged 12–17, however, the rate of substance dependence or abuse among females (9.1%) was similar to the rate among males (8.7%). The rate of substance dependence or abuse was highest among Native Americans and Alaska Natives (17.2%). The next highest rates were among Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders (12.9%) and persons reporting mixed ethnicity (11.3%). Asian Americans had the lowest rate (6.3%). The rates among Hispanics (9.8%) and whites (9.2%) were higher than the rate among blacks (8.1%).

Rates of drug use showed substantial variation by age. For example, in 2003, some 3.8 percent of youths aged 12 to 13 reported current illicit drug use compared with 10.9 percent of youths aged 14 to 15 and 19.2 percent of youths aged 16 or 17. As in other years, illicit drug use in 2003 tended to increase with age among young persons, peaking among 18 to 20-year-olds (23.3%) and declining steadily after that point with increasing age. The prevalence of current alcohol use among adolescents in 2003 increased with increasing age, from 2.9 percent at age 12 to a peak of about 70 percent for persons 21 to 22 years old. The highest prevalence of both binge and heavy drinking was for young adults aged 18 to 25, with the peak rate of both measures occurring at age 21. The rate of binge drinking was 41.6 percent for young adults aged 18 to 25 and 47.8 percent at age 21. Heavy alcohol use was reported by 15.1 percent of persons aged 18 to 25 and 18.7 percent of persons aged 21. Among youths aged 12 to 17, an estimated 17.7 percent used alcohol in the month prior to the survey interview. Of all youths, 10.6 percent were binge drinkers, and 2.6 percent were heavy drinkers, similar to the 2002 numbers.

Rates of current illicit drug use varied significantly among the major racial-ethnic groups in 2003. The rate of illicit drug use was highest among Native Americans and Alaska Natives (12.1%), persons reporting two or more races (12%), and Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders (11.1%). Rates were 8.7 percent for African Americans, 8.3 percent for Caucasians, and 8 percent for Hispanics. Asian Americans had the lowest rate of current illicit drug use at 3.8 percent. The rates were unchanged from 2002. Native Americans and Alaska Natives were more likely than any other racial-ethnic group to report the use of tobacco products in 2003. Among persons aged 12 or older, 41.8 percent of Native Americans and Alaska Natives reported using at least one tobacco product in the past month. The lowest current tobacco use rate among racial-ethnic groups in 2003 was observed for Asian Americans (13.8%), a decrease from the 2002 rate (18.6%).

Young adults aged 18 to 25 had the highest rate of current use of cigarettes (40.2%), similar to the rate in 2002. Past month cigarette use rates among youths in 2002 and 2003 were 13 percent and 12.2 percent, respectively, not a statistically significant change. However, there were significant declines in past year (from 20.3% to 19%) and lifetime (from 33.3% to 31%) cigarette use among youths aged 12 to 17 between 2002 and 2003. Among persons aged 12 or older, a higher proportion of males than females smoked cigarettes in the past month in 2003 (28.1% versus 23%). Among youths aged 12 to 17, however, girls (12.5%) were as likely as boys (11.9%) to smoke in the past month. There was no change in cigarette use among boys aged 12 to 17 between 2002 and 2003. However, among girls, cigarette use decreased from 13.6 percent in 2002 to 12.5 percent in 2003.

Personality

Before the 1980s, the so-called addictive personality was used to explain the development of addiction. The addictive personality was described as escapist, impulsive, dependent, devious, manipulative, and self-centered. Many doctors in the early 2000s believe that these character traits develop in addicts as a result of the addiction, rather than the traits being a cause of the addiction.

Diagnosis

In addition to noting a preoccupation with using and acquiring the abused substance, the diagnosis of addiction focuses on five criteria:

•loss of willpower

•harmful consequences

•unmanageable lifestyle

•increased tolerance or escalation of use

•withdrawal symptoms on quitting

Alternative treatment

Acupuncture and homeopathy have been used to treat withdrawal symptoms. Meditation, yoga, and reiki healing have been recommended for process addictions; however, the success of these programs has not been well documented through controlled studies.

Prognosis

The prognosis for recovery from any addiction depends on the substance or process, the individual's circumstances, and underlying personality structure. People who have multiple substance dependencies have the worst prognosis for recovery. It is not uncommon for someone in a treatment program to have a relapse, but the success rate increases with subsequent treatment programs.

Prevention

The most effective form of prevention appears to be a stable family that models responsible attitudes toward mood-altering substances and behaviors. Prevention education programs are also widely used to inform young people of the harmfulness of substance abuse.

KEY TERMS

Binge drinking—Consumption of five or more alcoholic drinks in a row on a single occasion.

Detoxification—The process of physically eliminating drugs and/or alcohol from the system of a substance-dependent individual.

Reiki—A form of energy therapy that originated in Japan. Reiki practitioners hold their hands on or slightly above specific points on the patient's body in order to convey universal life energy to that area for healing.

Knowing whether someone you love has a problem with alcohol or drugs isn't as straightforward as it sounds. Despite the stereotypes of the staggering drunk or the emaciated addict, most people who overuse alcohol and drugs become adept at disguising their behavior. Shame, embarrassment, and fear of consequences are powerful motivators. And in many cases, the person who's drinking too much or using drugs doesn't want to recognize or admit that he's not in control of the situation.