The Pros And Cons Of Addiction

What is the first thing that comes to mind what you think of the word ‘addiction’? What image pops up in your head when you picture a heroin addict, or intravenous drug user, or user of other opiates? People in rags, dirty, living in alleys or squatting in an abandoned building with others in the same circumstance. These questions are hard to answer, and you don’t always know why your imagination jumps to conclusions when associating with certain things or groups with one another; it just does. It may be especially difficult to understand why those associations occur when thinking about addiction. This is probably because images, stigmas and exclusion of addicts from society have been centuries in the making, slowly becoming the inherently linked. Although it is hard to fully understand our inherent beliefs, as our knowledge and understanding of drug addiction grows, it is unfair to continue to stigmatize addicts according to ancient stereotypes of addiction. If we continue to stigmatize addicts and addiction, it will only push addicts further into the underground subculture, away from any help they may need. Deeper social internalization of the stereotypic labeling will ultimately lead to the addicts continued use and unsuccessful freedom from the drug.
Today, it is known that addiction is something usually caused by a multitude of factors either controllable and/or uncontrollable by the individual. Generally speaking addiction has been accepted as a disease and should be treated as such. And although continuing to offer help and funding for a group of people seemingly unwilling and unyielding to the services provided, makes it extremely difficult for one’s inherent stereotyping of a group of people to change; it does not disreg...

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...internalized by those who identify with the drug-users subculture, and especially by individuals addicted to their drug of choice, who begin to believe in the stigmas and stereotypes placed on them; trapping them into the mindset and subculture of addiction, without the confidence, support and dignity to try to re-enter into a society who considers them worthless anyway. So, although pushing addicts into treatment may be more harmful in the long run, not offering harm-reduction and/or treatment opportunities at all, will only facilitate addicts’ continued usage of drugs. Not offering treatment or rehabilitation opportunities for addicts, only leads to addicts’ deeper internalization of the addict stereotype the belief that they are ‘undeserving losers’, ‘failures’, and ‘social-rejects’. Consequently creating the inevitable cycle of drug abuse, treatment and relapse.