Hmmmm...addictive personality...hmmm

[Geekteeth]

So, I bumped into a "friend" today that I had not seen in a while. He asked me if I was still havin problems with drinking. I explained that yes it is still an issue, but it's been a week or so since I have had a drink. He then proceeded to say..."Ben, you know what it is don't you, you have an addictive personality". Now I'm not sure what to think of this anology. Maybe yes he is right, but then it got me thinking....now I loooooove strawberries, but you don't see me fighting with my mind..."ooo, should I or shouldn't I take that first bite of the juicy red stuff"? Or waking up in the middle of the night and head to the kitchen to get my hit of strawberries!!! Just wondered what you think of the term...you have an addictive personality??

[Guitarista]

Hmmmm...addictive personality...hmmm

Hi Geekteeth,

The mind is a complex thing to be sure. Not sure if i have an addiction, but i do know i have an ever present and strong desire to get numb, and my preferred numbing agent is alcohol. When i drink, like many of us, something happens chemically in me brain that get's me wanting more and more. Another factor in there for me, is i love to give the finger to any form of responsibility. Thing is, i'm sure most people on the planet would love to shirk responsibility, and get numb too, but maybe they're a little more 'grown up', less lazy, and more responsible than me? lol. But i also acknowledge that our brain chemistry is most likely a little different than most other folk. I was 'addicted' to cigarettes, but decided to stop that 15 yrs ago, because i wanted to, so i changed my thinking. I could have been 'addicted' to heroin, but wasn't, because i knew it is the end of the line, the last stop, on that drug, so i decided not to go there in my head. I am not 'addicted' to shopping. Having said all this, i cannot find any logic in the fact i love to drink. All i know is that overall, i don't like what it does to me, so my thinking has to, and has, changed. Our thinking, and general day to day mindset though, is also a huge contributing factor to our 'addictive mind/personality' i think, and we may not be able to change inherent brain chemistry, but we can change our thinking. The 'addictive mind/personality' sure is a complex one. Simple, but complex.

Best wishes on your journey.

[Nichau]

Hmmmm...addictive personality...hmmm

Hmm. Good question, Geekteeth.

I agree with everything that Guitarista said (well done, Guitarista!). I too have a desire for "comfortably numb"...I also wonder if other people are a little more grown up, less lazy and more responsible than I am. I'm still 'addicted' to cigarettes. I quit coke back in the 80s cold turkey with no problems. I don't have a 'problem' with pot—I can take it or leave it. Because I *suspect* that I have an addictive personality, I'm really glad that I never got into pills or heroin, etc. (I do know several people who have used heroin 'recreationally', too.) I think it's part brain chemistry, part genetics (my entire family has a history of alcohol abuse), with maybe a little 'what happened growing up' thrown in there. (But then again, what family DIDN'T have cocktail parties a la Rob and Laura Petrie in the 50s and 60s?)

Me? I wish I were addicted to exercise! Need to rearrange those endorphins and start liking myself and my body more!

P.S. I still find 'addictive personality' people to be highly intelligent and usually very creative. Well, unless you huff paint or something. Just sayin'...

[RingingCedars]

Hmmmm...addictive personality...hmmm

I've always said I had an addictive personality, from the time I was given valium for back pain at 17 and knew that I could get to like them too much and flushed them. I've never had valium orally since. I've tried various recreational drugs(some highly addictive)over the years and would never allow myself to get caught up in the culture. Alcohol was much sneakier for me. I was always what I consider a normal drinker until I decided I needed to use it for medicinal purposes(refusing to go pharmaceutical route for my emotional pain). Within a few years of self medicating I was losing control. It's a good question. I guess being aware of having this type of personality has allowed to be extra careful with addictive substances.