You are correct to an extent maybe. Mine was trauma induced and once the trauma healed, the psychological and emotional need to self-medicate by drinking passed as well as the physical withdrawal symptoms. My excessive drinking occurred over a 10 year period of unhealed traumas. Before then I always knew when to say when and didnāt have a problem with drinking. However, somewhere during that 10 year period, my drinking developed into binge drinking. Iād have one drink and couldnāt stop with the relapses getting worse in worse. Now that Iāve stopped drinking altogether and the trauma has healed, Iām not willing to test whether I can drink like I used to before I crossed the line into binge drinking. My best guess is that I cannot and if I am correct about that, which I think I am, that is where the progressive disease part comes into play.
I agree with you have said. The environment that I grew up in was very traumatic. And it was from this drama that my addiction was born in. Once you can go back and right these traumas or even better yet come to terms with them. You can release your need for addiction.
Oh, it definitely is a mental disease, not that it matters. At least it fits all the criteria of to be a mental disease, and the CDC classifies it as a disease. Not that they have the slightest idea how to fix us. Not that it matters.
The whole trauma thing was created by a clown named Gabor MatĆ© whose own childhood trauma was so scarring, he figured addiction and alcoholism MUST also be the result of childhood trauma - so sure he was, he didnāt bother to test his hypothesis.
The fact is that most addicts and alcoholics werenāt traumatized as kids and most traumatized people donāt become addicts or alcoholics.
Not that any of this matters. No one needs to know even a tiny bit of this to stay clean and sober.
All they need to do is connect with recovered alcoholics and addicts who already know how to stay clean and sober. Common problems have problem solutions, and that means what works for them will work for you!
God bless!
Trama, decease, genetics - doesnāt matter because we have it - working a program of spiritual action as you mentioned will help with the need to self medicate. Attending meetings, working with a sponsor, talking to other alcoholics, developing a connection with a higher power of whom I understand so I can turn over the issues/problems I wish to not deal with with, praying and saying thanks helps me stay sober. How about you?
When I first got into recovery. My doctor told me itās a disease. Members of my family either died or still suffered. I guess they all have their own thing. Then the words āAcute Alcohol Use Disorderā was all over my hospital papers.
Honestly it doesnāt matter what the correct terminology is we all are Alcoholics and we need to fight daily not to pick up that first drink. Call it what you want. Those were the two words used for me. Believe me I was so physically addicted in such a short period of time I just couldnāt go without it even when I didnāt want it. Thank god for over 3 years of continuous sobriety. But will always have āthe diseaseā āAcute Alcohol Use Disorderā so one drink or better yet on SIP will send me spiraling again. Not happening