Reframing Addiction

by Raymond M. Landry

Burned out? Bummed out? Stressed? Discouraged? Cynical? Tired? Exhausted? I will not ask why, but rather say “No Wonder!”.

In the present day conversation about “addictions” in the world, and the tendency to seek more and more pharmaceutical or medically based answers to controlling moods and behavior, we are still not succeeding to curb “addiction”. And whether we argue that we’ve diminished some use, in some ways, for some people, we are, as a society, finding new ways to “amuse” ourselves (i.e. – gambling, internet, porn). I’m not making that about good, bad, right, or wrong. No. To me it’s more about “what results are we getting?”. Are they the results we want, individually, or as a society, or not? And do we even know what else to do, if not what we’re already doing?). We keep adding even more pills and methodologies in a world that believes that there are entirely too many of those already, yet not the right ones at times. So I am left to wonder, “What else?”.

What else are we not paying attention to, by paying attention to the things we are paying attention to?! What else may be just beyond our line of sight that we are not able to see, because of our focused attention on the things we are trained to see?

Have you ever wondered “what else?”. My guess is that you probably have. I have known many of my colleagues in the world of addictions to question the systems, methods, policies, etc… Most of us have been frustrated at one time or another. Maybe that’s because we care! I know I care! I care about the results I get. I care that people are unhappy, depressed, and dying! I care that people hurt enough that they hurt others in the process of their surviving through whatever means.

There’s no reason for me to think that anyone in the “field” cares any more or any less than I do. And that is why we keep looking for the next best or better thing, isn’t it?! I also believe that as long as we focus our conversations on sets of behaviors and strategies, that maybe we are limiting the possibilities of seeing our way beyond the present day thinking. What if addictions were based in a set of beliefs, values, and attitudes about who we are as individuals, as people, and yes, even about who we are as a species! (see Logical Levels of Thinking” in free articles section at www.WEL-Systems.com )

To paraphrase Einstein – “We cannot resolve the problems of today, at the same level of thinking that created them.”. If we are to solve environmental dilemmas, we must behave differently. If we are to solve behavioral dilemmas, we must use different strategies. If we are to resolve capability or strategic dilemmas, we must reconsider the beliefs, values, and attitudes that are driving them, if we want lasting change!

I wonder how effective the present day addiction conversation is in moving us along the path to wellness and “really living” (the statistics and trends aren’t glowing!); and how much of it is geared to simply surviving, accepting the lowest common denominator for being alive, which is based in mediocrity in many ways, and staying stuck, in the repetition of stories based in the past… Is it possible that our models of the world, and who we are in it, are not wrong, but insufficient, in guiding us to “who else can we become?”, and “what else is possible?” when we consider what being human means these days? I believe the “What else?”, or our potential, lies in the difference between seeing ourselves as the “mechanistic parts and matter” we have been trained to believe we are, and the “new science”, that sees us as the “quantum biological, organic beings” that we really are!

I know that for me, there were no other kinds of conversation possible when I considered and continued to learn about and suffer through this thing we call “addictions”, through way too many conferences, training sessions, and courses on the subject. As long as I continued to focus on addictions as the “thing” that it was made out to be; or as a set of behaviors and characteristics that certain people exhibit (including myself), I continued to be frustrated in my efforts at making a real difference in client’s lives, as well as mine. Even when I believed strongly in the programs, structures, and all of the science and best practices that supported my efforts, I was still falling short of making the difference that I held as possible.

So I kept looking for more, for a better or best method, generally acknowledging that I felt alright about the quality of person I was and the skills I felt I possessed. Yet, I could not help feeling like most people coming through “the system” were leaving it prematurely, or not ready, or being set up for the big one, “failure” (which in some cases was a matter of life & death)! I am also mindful now that it was never about good or bad counselors, centers, “systems”, or methods. That through all this, the fact was there was a whole other conversation that no one was having with regards to addictions, and all other behaviors! That conversation that is based in the quantum sciences, that sees human beings as energy, more so than matter, and the process of Autopoiesis (self creating); a process by which the “intelligence” of living is the driving force behind any and all human behavior.

I believe that knowing who we truly are cannot be defined by having conversations at an environmental or behavioral level. Only when we allow ourselves to have conversations at the level of beliefs/values/attitudes can we “start” to have some clue about who we make ourselves out to be and how we shape our worlds. I am left wondering how long and how difficult it will be, if not impossible, to keep addressing issues like addictions at an environmental and behavioral level and expect things to change, when what I believe we are dealing with is the deeply and long held beliefs, values, and attitudes we all carry about ourselves, as people, as a society, and as a species.

As my friend and mentor Louise LeBrun has said in her article “Addiction: Recovery or Re-Discovery?”(see web-site mentioned above for free articles): “We already know – and have much evidence to support – that control is an illusion and will not sustain sanity or sobriety. And yet, not knowing what else to do instead, we persist.”

As I continue to discover what is best for me, in living a life that supports the essence of the being that I am, and I continue to ”de-cloak” into my own truth about me, I am continually amazed and in awe of the possibilities that lie ahead for me in every choice I make; moment to moment, to moment. As with all things in life, up to and until we are courageous enough , and willing, to have a different kind of conversation about what we see, what we hear, what we think about addictions, we will continue to create the same results…or worse! Are you willing to come play with me; in a curious and potentially life changing conversation about what it might mean to be human in the 21st century?

I hope so! The quality of our lives, and that of many others, may just depend on the courage of the questions we become willing to ask!

Creating at the rhythm of my breath,

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This article was sent to us by Raymond Landry is a Certified WEL-Systems® Catalyst and CODE Model Coach™. He is the Owner Operator of  "Self Power… Finding Your Way to Excellence". Ray has worked for over 18 years in the fields of health and social services, specializing in the addictions field.