AA Meeting

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Alcoholics Anonymous

Recently, I attended an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting in Elizabethtown. Initially, I was pretty nervous to attend this meeting, because I did not really know what to expect from it. I went with a friend from the class, so that gave me a bit of confidence.

This AA group was actually somewhat small, with only nine members. The majority of the group members were male, with only three females. Mostly, the group members were middle-aged, however there was one or two younger individuals.

Before the meeting began, group members were milling around the room, sipping coffee. Once the meeting began, the members went around the room and introduced themselves to us. The regular members obviously noticed that we were new to the group, and asked us to give our name and reason for coming.

This interaction made me feel pretty uncomfortable. While the group members were welcoming for the most part, I almost felt as if I was intruding on their meeting because I am not an alcoholic. However, I simply stated my name, and that I am a student from Elizabethtown College participating in the meeting for a class on addictions. A couple of the members seemed to resent my presence because of this. Therefore, I limited my participation for the rest of the meeting, and simply tried to blend in.

After the introductions, an older gentleman led the group; beginning with the serenity prayer. This seemed to be an action that was repeated at every meeting. They then read passages from a book, and stated whether they were able to relate to the passages or not. Afterwards, some of the members shared their stories with each other, obviously gaining support from one another.

It is for this reason that I believe these meetings, and this meeting specifically, are extremely helpful to the participants. Alcoholics Anonymous offers a strong support system to these participants, and gives them people to answer to. Some of the members even voiced that this support system is what got them through to becoming sober, and staying sober.

This experience truly relates to information I have learned in class. For example, we discussed how alcohol withdrawal and addiction may almost be worse than any other drug. Throughout this meeting, I was able to see this first hand. In addition, we had learned in class about 12-step programs, and about the fact that these programs are usually very spiritual. This was also evident during the AA meeting I attended.

Strength-Based Approaches

Narrative Therapy

Founders

Narrative Therapy was first developed by Michael White and David Epston (Van Wormer & Davis, 2008). White and Epston were inspired by Gregory Bateson, an anthropologist and psychologist (Van Wormer & Davis, 2008).

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Overview

Narrative therapy attempts to separate the individual from their problem (Goodtherapy.org, 2012). This process can be referred to as “externalization (Van Wormer & Davis, 2008).” Externalization involves verbally separating the issue from the client, and ensuring that the issue is separated from the client’s personal identity (Van Wormer & Davis, 2008). This process allows the client to address the problem on its own. Externalization serves as a very productive form of therapy (Goodtherapy.org, 2012).

Narrative therapy mainly focuses on attempting to separate the individual from their problem (Goodtherapy.org, 2012). Throughout these therapy sessions, therapists attempt to transform how the problem effects the client’s life (Goodtherapy.org, 2012). By doing this, the individual is liberated from stigmatizing labels, and learns how to deal with this problem in a healthy and productive way (Van Wormer & Davis, 2008).

This approach requires intense listening on the part of the therapist (Van Wormer & Davis, 2008). A large focus of this therapy is the client’s life stories and history (Van Wormer & Davis, 2008). Therefore, the therapist seeks to find evidence of past competence within the individual, through their life history (Van Wormer & Davis, 2008). This therefore gives the clients hope that change is possible, and that they are capable of being competent (Van Wormer & Davis, 2008).

Addiction Cycle

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The cycle of addiction involves use, misuse, abuse, and dependence. In addition, this cycle comes along with frustration about the symptoms, fantasizing about using the drug, obsessing about the drug, actually doing the activity, and then feeling guilt and shame surrounding the drug/activity (Recoveryconnection.org, 2013).

The Narrative Therapy approach may work well to alleviate the cycle of addiction. The effectiveness of this therapy would ultimately stem from the fact that the client could become separated from the activity/substance that they are addicted to. By doing this, the client could see that the addiction is not who they are, or a steadfast part of them. In separating the client from the addiction, the client is able to think clearly about ways to overcome it.

My Thoughts

The Narrative Therapy approach would be extremely helpful to me during the course of my career. I hope to one day become a clinical psychologist, and therefore provide therapy to individuals in need. The Narrative approach seems to be a very effective method of therapy. It gives clients confidence in themselves, and provides them with skills to help themselves in the future, even when they are done therapy.

In addition, this approach seems to be very effective for people struggling with addiction. By separating themselves from their addiction, they are able to see themselves without it, and how well they are able to function. It allows them to see a future without their addiction, and that will help them to overcome it.

References

Goodtherapy.org. (2012, January 03). Narrative therapy. Retrieved from http://www.goodtherapy.org/Narrative_Therapy.html

Recoverconnection.org. (2013). Cycle of addiction. Retrieved from http://www.recoveryconnection.org/cycle-of-addiction/

Van Wormer, K. & Davis, D. R. (2008). Addiction treatment: A strengths perspective. California: Brooks/Cole

Behavioral Addiction

Shopping Addiction

What is a shopping addiction?

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While it may sound slightly silly to some, a shopping addiction can become a serious problem. According to Van Wormer and Davis, shopping addiction comes from the urge to spend money, and to find extremely good sales (2008). Those who suffer from a shopping addiction seek to obtain material items for close to no money (Van Wormer & Davis, 2008). Those who suffer from a shopping addiction suffer from a lack of impulse control (Van Wormer & Davis, 2008). The individual may not need any of the material items they buy, but simply cannot help themselves. The problem lies in the lack of control over the buying of the items, rather than the actual items themselves (Van Wormer & Davis, 2008).


Criteria
At what point does a person who likes to shop a lot turn into someone with an actual shopping addiction? According to Van Wormer & Davis, an individual suffering from a shopping addiction experiences a temporary high from the process of shopping and snagging good deals (2008). This euphoria is what separates regular shoppers from compulsive shoppers. Mental health professionals state that the euphoria experienced by compulsive shoppers is actually similar to a drug-like high (Van Wormer & Davis, 2008). When an individual begins to experience this type of euphoria when shopping, and therefore craves that feeling, a shopping addiction is born (Van Wormer & Davis, 2008). However, the DSM-IV-TR does not currently contain criteria concerning shopping addiction (Van Wormer & Davis, 2008).


Statistics

• Between 2% and 8% of people in the United States suffer from a shopping addiction (Van Wormer & Davis, 2008).
• The typical compulsive shopper is a 31 year-old female, who has multiple credit cards, usually bounces checks, and has spent multiple years overspending (Van Wormer & Davis, 2008).

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Treatment Options

Dr. Donald Black at the University of Iowa has been conducting studies to determine possible successful drugs in reducing and even eliminating shopping addictions (Van Wormer & Davis, 2008). He found that the drug Luvox was actually successful (Van Wormer & Davis, 2008). After taking Luvox, individuals who were compulsive shoppers were actually able to enter a store and not buy anything (Van Wormer & Davis, 2008). Behavioral therapy has also shown positive effects, as has the use of support groups such as Debtor's Anonymous (Van Wormer & Davis, 2008). This group helps individuals to create budgets they can stick to, and to work out a payment plan in order to eliminate their debt (Van Wormer & Davis, 2008).

References

Van Wormer, K. & Davis, D. R. (2008). Addiction treatment: A strengths perspective. California: Brooks/Cole

Sleep Medication

Sleep medication is often used by individuals suffering from insomnia, or sleep deprivation. It is available over-the-counter, or by prescription for a stronger version. The main focus of this research will focus on prescription sleep aids, also known as hypnotics.

            The most popular prescription sleep aids include Ambien (zolpidem), Lunesta (eszopiclone), Rozerem (ramelteon), and Sonata (zaleplon) (Katz, 2012). These sleep medications are often used to help one get to sleep (Katz, 2012). Ambien is the most commonly used sleep medication (Katz, 2012). Each urges the user to take the medication only if able to get seven to eight hours of sleep (Katz, 2012).

            These drugs, such as Ambien, work by targeting the activity of GABA receptors in the brain (Peters, 2011). These receptors inhibit the activity in the brain that keeps you awake at night, therefore allowing you to fall asleep quickly (Peters, 2011).

            However, these sleep medications have been known to come with many side effects. For example, Ambien has been associated with driving, eating, and even making phone calls which one later has no memory of (“Ambien,” 2012). In addition, Ambien has been associated with daytime drowsiness, headache, muscle pain, and impairment of thinking and reactions (“Ambien,” 2012). Other drugs such as Lunesta have shown similar side effects.

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            While these side effects are severe, those who have insomnia and other sleep-related issues often believe the benefits outweigh the side effects. These drugs help individuals who suffer from insomnia greatly, allowing them to finally get rest.

            Unfortunately, prescription sleeping pills come with a large risk of dependency. Sleeping pills are one of the most commonly used prescription medications (Alcohol Rehab, 2011). If used correctly, the risk for addiction is low, but if used incorrectly, it is easy for addiction to begin (Alcohol Rehab, 2011). Individuals can become dependent on sleep medication, and therefore begin taking it even when it is not bedtime (Alcohol Rehab, 2011).

            It seems as though it would be relatively easy to become addicted to sleep medication. For those who are prescribed it in the first place, it is because they need help falling asleep. Therefore, it is easy for them to continue to use their prescription, simply because it is the easy solution.

            However, I recently read a study where relaxation techniques were used to attempt to wean individuals from prescription sleep medication use (Lichstein et al., 1999). It was found that these relaxation techniques were effective, reducing sleep medication use by up to 80% (Lichstein, 1999). Relaxation techniques are a relatively simple way to combat sleep medication addiction. While there are withdrawal symptoms, these relaxation techniques prove to be a simple, yet effective way to fight this type of addiction.

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Alcohol Rehab. (2011). Sleeping pill addiction. Retrieved from http://alcoholrehab.com/alcohol-rehab/sleeping-pill-addiction/

Ambien. (2012, January 7). Retrieved from http://www.drugs.com/ambien.html

Katz, M. (2012, August 02). Drugs to treat insomnia. Retrieved from http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/insomnia-medications

Lichstein, K. L., Peterson, B. A., Riedel, B. W., Means, M. K., Epperson, M. T., & Aguillard, R. N. (1999). Relaxation to assist sleep medication withdrawal.Behavior modification, 23(3), 379-402. doi: 10.1177/0145445599233003

Peters, B. (2011, March 28). Insomnia treatment option. Retrieved from http://sleepdisorders.about.com/od/sleepdisorderstreatment/a/Ambien.htm

Habits

Old Habits Die Hard...

We've all heard the saying 'old habits die hard,' but how true is it? Over the next couple of weeks, I will be attempting to change one of my steadfast habits. Each week, I will be adding updates as to the progress of my change in habits. This "experiment" will consist of what I hope will be a whole lot of willpower, and certain coping mechanisms.

The habit I have chosen to (attempt) to break is playing with my hair. If you were to look at me at any given point during our class, chances are I'd be twiddling my hair between my fingers. I do it so often that I do not realize it is even happening. I feel this is something I should probably work to eliminate as I look to my future and begin working with professionals.

It is likely that this change will not greatly impact those around me; unless of course someone finds this habit wildly annoying. They will therefore be grateful. However, this change will impact me in that perhaps I will take more notes in class. On a scale of 1-10, I am committed at about a level 7. I do wish to eradicate this behavior, but it is not necessarily detrimental to my health or overall productivity, and therefore I am not 100% committed.

In order to carry out this habit-breaking plan, I figure I will need to do one of two things, or both. First, I might need to find something else to do with my hands to keep them away from my hair. Secondly, I could eliminate my hair as the problem by tying it back. The second option seems more plausible, and is therefore the strategy I will employ. Every time I catch myself playing with my hair, I will tie it back to eliminate the stimulus.

Throughout this little experiment, I believe it will be necessary to employ support from my friends in breaking this habit. As stated earlier, I usually do not realize when I am playing with my hair since it is such a deep-rooted habit. Therefore, I will be counting on my friends to point out to me when I am doing it so that I can stop. This accountability to others will also make me less likely to engage in this activity on my own.

Let's get to quittin' ya'll.

Habits Update #1

Progress

This week, I feel as though I have made slight progress in giving up my habit. Since I know I am supposed to be giving up playing with my hair, I have found that I am much more conscious of when I am actually starting to do it. Therefore, since I catch myself more often, I then stop myself much more often. The urges to play with my hair haven't really subsided, but I am becoming much more conscious of just how much I do it, whereas before, I never even noticed when it was happening.

Success

As previously stated, I planned on putting my hair up whenever I feel the urge to play with my hair. I have found that this is an extremely effective plan. If my hair is not there to play with, it does not happen. In addition, I have found myself putting my hair up more in general, therefore keeping my hands away from my hair all day long.

Triggers

Some common triggers I have found that contribute to the urge to play with my hair include lounging around watching television, and sitting in class. I overcame them by sticking to my plan, and pulling my hair back into a ponytail whenever i began to do it. Therefore, I do not believe my plan needs any changes, as it is seeming to be pretty effective.

Habits Update #2

Progress

This week, I am finding it harder to not play with my hair. I thought that the second week would be easier than the first, but it is actually much harder this week. I think the reason behind this is that some of the novelty of kicking the habit has worn off. It seems as though this compares to the gym after New Years. Everyone has resolved to go to the gym everyday, and they do because it is new and they know they want to stick with it. However, by the second week, the excuses and unmotivated feelings return. This is exactly where I am right now; I am less motivated to not play with my hair because I've hit the week two lull. 

Success

I have encountered some success this week, but as stated above, I have also experienced some failures. I am still more conscious of when I begin to play with my hair, but it is much harder to stop it this week than it was last week. Again, it seems as if I am just a little bit less motivated to do so.

Changes

It seems as though my plan to give up the habit of constantly playing with my hair needs a couple modifications. For the first week, I began simply putting my hair into a ponytail whenever I felt the urge to play with my hair. However, coming into the second week, I have found that this may not be enough to get me to break my habit. Instead of preventing me from playing with my hair altogether, I've begun to catch myself playing with my ponytail now, even though my hair is pulled back. Therefore, I have decided that perhaps I should put my hair into a bun instead so that there isn't any loose hair to play with at all. In addition, I am going to try to do something with my hands as well when I feel the urge to play with my hair. I believe these proposed changes will enable me to begin resisting these urges.

Triggers

A trigger that I have discovered this week that makes me want to play with my hair is when I am doing any sort of homework assignment. I have found that I use playing with my hair as a sort of little distraction from my work. For example, whenever I stop to think about the next sentence I am going to write in this blog post, I take my hands off the keyboard and start playing with my hair. Therefore, I should try to focus more on my tasks at hand (pun intended) and attempt to stop taking these short breaks while doing my work. 

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Habits Update #3

Progress

This week, I am making further progress in shaking my addiction to playing with my hair. Last week I was finding it hard to refocus my energy into quitting. However, this week I seem to have re-found that motivated energy. Whenever I begin to play with my hair I find myself catching the action, and therefore stopping what I am doing. Last week I noted some of my triggers that cause me to play with my hair, such as doing homework. Therefore, before I would begin to do my homework, I started putting my hair up in a bun  to remove the temptation. I found that this was wholly effective, as homework time was the time I played with my hair the most.

Success

I have encountered a lot of success this week, in comparison to last week. Last week I found myself struggling to keep up with my plan. However, this week, I regained my motivation, and subsequently made more efforts to stop playing with my hair.

Changes

Last week, I proposed a couple changes to my plan of action. These changes included putting my hair into a bun rather than a ponytail to stop myself from playing with my hair.  Last week I found that the ponytail was only half-effective, as I still played with the hair that hung loose. Instead of using a ponytail, I began to put my hair into an up-do whenever I began doing my homework. These changes proved effective, as there was no hair hanging loose to play with while I did my work. I found that I also got my work done a lot faster since I was no longer pausing to play with my hair. 

Triggers

This week, I have not discovered any other actions that trigger the desire to play with my hair. I think the biggest trigger I have discovered is during homework time, but I have eliminated that issue by putting my hair into an up-do whenever I begin my homework. 

Habits Update #4

Progress

This week, I have continued to work on ceasing to play with my hair. It is getting much easier to resist the urge to do so. As previously stated, I have begun putting my hair into a bun more often, as to take away the temptation. This tactic is providing continued success.

Success

My success in this endeavor continues. My hair is usually up most of the time now, but even when it is not, it is much easier to not play with it. The successes are more common now, and it seems as if I am finally breaking this habit.

Changes

I do not believe my plan of action requires any changes at this point in time. All of the changes I previously instated are working very well. 

Habits Update #5

Progress

I have had a couple of relapses since my last update. With the coming and going of spring break, my usual routines became irregular, and therefore threw off my progress in giving up my habit. While I did not completely relapse into my old habits of playing with my hair, I have begun to play with it again occasionally. 

Success

I  have continued to put my hair up when I feel the urge to play with it. As I previously stated, this has not always worked. I have had some successes and some failures.

Changes

I do not believe my plan of action requires any changes at this point in time. All of the changes I previously instated are working very well. 

Habits Update #6

Progress

I have made a lot of progress on stopping my habit of playing with my hair. I rarely reach for my hair to play with it anymore. I think after refusing to allow myself to do so for a couple weeks, the habit was really broken. I no longer have to remind myself not to do so, and this requires a lot less thought on a daily basis.

Success

I  have continued to put my hair up when I feel the urge to play with it. However, this action is becoming less and less necessary. This is how I know that I am beginning to truly break this habit.

Changes

I do not believe my plan of action requires any changes at this point in time. All of the changes I previously instated are working very well. 

Habits Update #7

Progress

There is not much progress to update simply because I feel as though my progress has plateaued. After the initial first struggles and relapses, I seem to have gotten a steady handle on my habit. Therefore, there is not much more progress to report.

Success

I continue to experience much success with my current plan of action regarding not playing with my hair. If I ever do still feel an urge to play with my hair, I still put it up as to avoid any temptation.

Changes

I do not believe my plan of action requires any changes at this point in time. All of the changes I previously instated are working very well. 

History of Substance Use

Prohibition was the the ban on the sale and manufacture of alcohol. It began in the 1920s, and lasted until 1933 (history.com). Prohibition gained its roots via the temperance movement, which pushed for traditional values, including the ban of alcohol (PBS, 2011).

The temperance movement gained momentum beginning in the 1800s (PBS, 2011). It started within the Protestant churches, who believed that alcohol was the root of all sins (PBS, 2011). These individuals believed that if alcohol was outlawed, that many domestic problems would cease to exist.

Therefore, members of the Protestant church pushed for the prohibition of alcohol. However, the women of the temperance movement were not the only ones pushing for prohibition. The Anti-Saloon League was formed not long after the temperance movement (PBS, 2011). According to PBS, the ASL was led by Wayne Wheeler, who was extremely adamant about banning alcohol (2011).

After the ratification of an amendment that changed the laws concerning income tax in 1913, the ASL movement was able to gain a lot of much-needed momentum (PBS,2011). This amendment reduced the government’s reliance on liquor taxes, and therefore many began to support the Anti-Saloon League (PBS,2011).

The ASL gained popularity, and even began to use the rising anti-German sentiment to turn the country against alcohol (PBS, 2011). As America was faced with World War I, the ASL’s tactics of connecting Germany to beer and breweries proved extremely effective. By 1920, the Anti-Saloon League succeeded in ratifying the 18^th amendment, which outlawed the sale, manufacture, and transportation of alcohol (PBS, 2011).

Prohibitionists had finally gotten what they wanted, an anti-alcohol America. However, not all of America was in favor of prohibition. Soon after the 18^th amendment was put into effect, anti-prohibitionists started popping up everywhere. According to PBS, bandits began robbing whiskey and grain alcohol from train cars (2011).

This new anti-prohibition movement displayed the fact that American citizens were not ready to let go of alcohol. This is where the problem began. It was inevitable that people would find a way around prohibition.

According to PBS, those who supported prohibition expected real estate sales and clothing sales to explode once the sale of alcohol was forbidden (2011). However, this was not the case. Sales actually declined, as businessmen found they were hard-pressed to make sales without liquor (PBS, 2011). Prohibition proved to have many unintended effects.

One of which was the fact that citizens would still find a way to produce and consume alcohol. Prohibitionists thought that the 18^th amendment, as well as the Volstead Act, would completely eliminate alcohol altogether (PBS, 2011). Instead, individuals obtained alcohol through prescriptions of whiskey, and because of religious reasons (PBS, 2011). But it didn’t stop there, many Americans began to manufacture and sell alcohol through their own homes (PBS, 2011).

Thus, speakeasies were born. It seems as though prohibition only worked as far as to make the problem worse. Prohibitionists intended to abolish alcohol altogether, but only succeeded in spurring a large underground movement that promoted hidden alcohol use.

Week 1

I chose to take this course because it sounded extremely interesting. It seems as though we all know people who are addicted to something, whether it be a serious addiction to drugs or alcohol, or a less serious addiction to coffee (like myself). The fact that addiction is so common in everyday life, yet I know virtually nothing about it ultimately spurred my enrollment in this course. I hope this course will not only educate me about addiction, but also help me to better understand those who struggle with addiction.

Therefore, I hope to learn many things from this course. Mainly, I would like to learn why addiction happens and why some people are more susceptible to addiction than others. In addition, I would also like to learn effective treatments for addiction, and how well they work. It will be interesting to observe what we learn in correlation with my small, everyday addictions such as coffee and chapstick.