Addicted?? Me??

[[ma...]]

How many on this site? Didn't know that they was addicted?

[[Tr...]]

How many on this site? Didn't know that they was addicted?

 

Me

[[so...]]

Most of us figure it out when we try to stop taking the damnable pills and the shit hits the fan.

[[Fi...]]

Addicted or dependant?! 

[[sq...]]

Most of us have a dependency on this class of drugs and not addiction ie. obsessive behaviors about getting the meds, criminal records due to trying to procure them etc.  This is not an insignificant issue as I found out when going through detox and then rehab (briefly) to get off of Valium.  Addictionologists also make a clear distinction between dependency and addiction.

[[Li...]]

I found out when I tried to stop taking it. 

[[Fi...]]

Most of us have a dependency on this class of drugs and not addiction ie. obsessive behaviors about getting the meds, criminal records due to trying to procure them etc.  This is not an insignificant issue as I found out when going through detox and then rehab (briefly) to get off of Valium.  Addictionologists also make a clear distinction between dependency and addiction.

 

I agree, but it's not just about 'addictionologists', it is about we, ourselves.

 

The difference, as I see it, is that those with an addiction problem are craving for a fix of the medication 24/7 and will do anything or almost anything to get it. Their craving is a big issue all in itself and must either be constantly fought or endured. The knock-on effects of that kind of compulsion on the individual, the individual's family and close people is enormous. An addict will have a long-term problem, even if free of the drug.

 

People who are merely dependant, on the other hand, do not want the medication and are actively taking steps to be free of it. They endure horrifying withdrawal effects, but with a clean, clear and final purpose - to be truly free of the drug.

 

This distinction is important, for while withdrawal symptoms are held in common, the route and strategy and eventual relationship with the medicine is entirely different.

 

Everyone ought to be aware that addiction and dependence are two very different things.

 

 

[[Do...]]

I was on HUGE doses of pain medication (as prescribed) after a botched surgery.  I had no trouble stopping the narcotics.  I also had very little trouble stopping the antidepressant and non-benzo anti anxiety pills.  When I mentioned to my doctor concerns about klonopin, she said I had a NON-addictive personality and would have an issue.  Benzos are their own special hell.  Whether you have an addictive personality or not, it is strictly a matter of how quickly the GABA receptors bounce back to their original pre-benzo state.