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This paper will discuss addiction
Essay of causes of addiction
Essay of causes of addiction
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There are so many dysfunctional cycles that are continuous throughout generations within families. Some are worse than others but just as detrimental. Family members should recognize the repetitious cycle that may cause damaging consequences. There are positive traits like love, compassion, courage, leadership and genetic skills. These traits produce people who are driven to succeed and may become leaders of our future as an inspiration to others. The negative traits may consist of drugs, alcohol, mental disorders, teen pregnancy, gambling, gluttony, and even shopping which can result in financial burdens, greed, anger, complacency and fear. The way to break dysfunctional generational cycles in families is to confront the source of negativity. …show more content…
At the same time, families may not recognize the unusual abnormality. When people hear dysfunctional family, they automatically assume the worst. Deranged and psychopaths are a few terms that may come to mind because that is the worlds portrayal of a family who is unstable with unresolved issues. A dysfunctional family can be any family in the world. People who are well known also carry dysfunction in their homes. For instance, Bill Clinton cheated on his wife with an intern while serving as President of the United States which eventually led to his impeachment. Jesse Jackson also cheated on his wife and he paid his mistress not to speak to the media. Other families such as the Kennedy 's and the Jackson’s deal with the same issues the average family deals with. Are these all these families dysfunctional? How can they not be …show more content…
Today, on the other hand, Americans perceive addiction as an illness - an infection that can be dealt with. Alcohol abuse and drug reliance can influence all parts of a person’s life. The long term effects of alcohol and drug usage, both licit and illegal, can cause serious health complications affecting every organ in the body, including the brain. It can also damage emotional and mental stability, finances, careers, and impact family, friends and the entire community in which an alcoholic or drug abuser lives. This type of dysfunctional cycle is passed down from prior generations and the cycle is never
What exactly is dysfunctional? Who wrote the rules for proper family or societal behavior? How does one know exactly what the proper reaction is? Every family has its crazy members and every city it’s insane citizens, but many do a great job of covering it up. Especially when it comes to being high in social standing.
“The harmful use of alcohol is a global problem which compromises both individual and social development. It results in 2.5 million deaths each year. An intoxicated person can harm others or put them at risk of traffic accidents or violent behavior, or negatively affect co-workers, relatives, friends or strangers. Thus, the impact of the harmful use of alcohol reaches deep into society.” This is a scary statistic which figuratively states that every thirteen seconds someone dies in a death related to alcohol. CBS news reported that more than 30 percent of American adults have abused alcohol or suffered from alcoholism at some point in their lives. This is a staggering number which is widely overlooked because alcohol is legal. Those who suffer feel helpless and trapped by their addiction being unable to stop and quit on their own. Thankfully a man named, Bill Wilson, lead a group of men to write how to become set free from the slavery of addiction.
Alcohol is the most commonly consumed harmful toxin. It is to be assumed that by the time the average person reaches the legal drinking age of twenty-one, they have heard most of the warnings and horror stories that go along with this notorious party favor. People frequently have a drink after a hard day or just a couple rounds with friends at a social gathering; yet it is when alcohol consumption goes beyond moderate drinking that real health problems can arise. Health problems are not the sole concern individuals should consider before taking their next sip. This is because alcoholism does not just affect the alcoholic; it can involve those who love and support them as well. Scott Sanders describes his father in his essay, “Under the Influence” like a stranger and as fearful as any graveyard lunatic when drunk (Sanders 235). In reality, this form of alcohol abuse has an increased
“I’m never going to act like my mother!” These words are increasingly common and yet unavoidable. Why is it that as children, we are able to point out every flaw in our parents, but as we grow up, we recognize that we are repeating the same mistakes we observed? The answer is generational curses: un-cleansed iniquities that increase in strength from one generation to the next, affecting the members of that family and all who come into relationship with that family (Hickey 13). Marilyn Hickey, a Christian author, explains how this biblically rooted cycle is never ending when she says, “Each generation adds to the overall iniquity, further weakening the resistance of the next generation to sin” (21, 22). In other words, if your parents mess up you are now susceptible to making the same mistakes, and are most likely going to pass those mistakes to your children. In The Absolute True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, Sherman Alexie shows the beauty of hope in the presence of a generational curse. Even though the elders are the ones who produce the curses, they are also the ones who attempt to break Junior from their bond forming mistakes. The curses that Arnold’s elders imprint on him lead him to break out of his cultural bonds and improve himself as a developing young man.
Having a family is no easy task, especially when you are faced with many challenges that are unforeseen. Sometimes one imagines or hopes for an ideal family. The ideal family would consist of a spouse, one or two kids and live happily with little to no conflicts. The reality is that even if one tries to avoid conflict by all possible means, conflict is inevitable. Stressors and strengths within a family can be seen in almost every situation. Although stressors tend to be more noticeable than the strengths. Some of which will be discussed later on, although it will be mainly focused on the strength and stressors faced after a divorce for children. But if one focuses on the stressors more than the strengths, one will only see stressors rather than solutions.
It focuses on the multigenerational and intra-familial relationships of the family system. This theory suggests family members are so dependent on one another that they have the ability to profoundly affect each other’s feelings, thoughts, and actions. They appear to be “living under the same “emotional skin” (Kerr, 2000), and need to learn differentiation of self, which is the primary concept of Bowen’s intergenerational family therapy.
Family dynamics are the relations between family members as well as the unpredictable interactions that can occur within a family. Every family has its own dynamic. There are so many things to judge when you think of family: there is the order of their birth, siblings that tend to fight, or the single child in a family. It all seems to become apparent through the years. There are four main roles a dysfunctional family. There are Hero, Scapegoat, Lost Child, and Clown/mascot. Realizing that you were a part of a dysfunctional family will certainly aid you in understanding how and why you act the way you do, as well as give you reason to appreciate and view your family differently.
When we view substance use disorders, alcohol is the most widely used drug within the United States and 11 percent of workers have drinking problems (Frone, 2006). Over 20 million people used illegal substances in 2006 and 7 million people abused prescribed medications. Of the 18 million drug abusers, 18 years or older in 2006, 13.4 million (74.9 %) were employed full or part time (SAMHSA, OSA). These addiction problems have an expenditure of $276 billion dollars per year with most of this cost from loss of productivity and health care (H. Harwood, D. Fountain, and G. Livermore, 1992).
Many do not clearly understand how serious alcohol abuse really is. According to CDC (Centres for Disease Control and Prevention), “Excessive alcohol use is responsible for approximately 88,000 deaths in the United States each year”. In addition to that, the NIH (National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism) claims that alcohol is a risk factor for cancers like liver, breast, mouth, esophagus, and many more. According to Steven Reinbersg’s article titled as “Third of Americans Have Alcohol Problems at Some Point”, more than “30 percent of Americans say they have had problems with alcohol”, proven by studies. Numerous Americans take advantage of alcohol frequently, but do not realize what kind of side affects it can bring for themselves. Though, alcoholism is often brought to awareness, one may feel like they are not educated enough about it.
Everyone’s story begins with family, every experience within this complex system is integrated into who one becomes and what one values. In constructing a genogram of my family of three generations, starting with my grandparents, my parents and myself I have been able to identify patterns on both my paternal and maternal sides of the family. The patterns found were language barriers, affaires, divorce, abuse, anxiety and miscarriages.
Currently about twenty-three point five million people in the United States are addicted to alcohol or drugs. However, only about eleven percent of these people will seek the treatment that they need. The remaining eight-nine percent of people live with this incurable disease. There are various reasons why they are not being treated, some can afford the cost, some lack the support and family and friends and others are still in the state of denial. In the book Clean by Amy Read, the Documentary, Russell Brand from Addiction to Recovery and the short story, A Counselor’s Personal Narrative On Drug Addiction, By Lauren Armstrong comment that until society accepts that addiction is a serious disease, the issue will never improve.
“For every family that is impacted by drugs, there are another 10 to 15 families impacted by alcohol abuse. It's a pretty big deal. We have a tendency to only look at part of the puzzle.” (Kevin Lewis). As a society we tend to categorize the severity of addiction in a way that drugs are the most dangerous and alcohol being just a problem. Because alcohol addiction can be a slow progressive disease many people don’t see it in the same light as drug addiction. An addiction to drugs is seen as being a more deadly and dangerous issue then that of alcohol because a drug addiction can happen more quickly and can kill more quickly. Alcohol is something that is easy to obtain, something that is found at almost every restaurant. People with an alcohol addiction can not hide from alcohol as easy as a drug addict. Approximately 7 million Americans suffer from alcohol abuse and another 7 million suffer from alcoholism. (Haisong 6) The dangers of alcohol affect everyone from children with alcoholic parents, to teenagers who abuse alcohol, then to citizens who are terrorized by drunk drivers.
The actual first stage of the family life cycle is the family of origin experiences. During this phase the main task are building of a solid foundation, and maintaining relationships with parents, siblings, and peers. The family of origin is basically the family you grew up in, which is the center of what shapes who we are. A healthy family of origin exhibits a strong foundation that will be the center piece of that family unit. If effective the family will have a strong sense of togetherness, communication, separateness, and connectedness. This all helps the family to establish healthy boundaries between parents and their children, as well as resolve conflicts in a healthier and productive way. It is stated that when parents exhibit emotions like warmth and caring connections, it tends to promote individuality and
Drug abuse dates as far back as the Biblical era, so it is not a new phenomenon. “The emotional and social damage and the devastation linked to drugs and their use is immeasurable.” The ripple of subversive and detrimental consequences from alcoholism, drug addictions, and addictive behavior is appalling. Among the long list of effects is lost productivity, anxiety, depression, increased crime rate, probable incarceration, frequent illness, and premature death. The limitless consequences include the destruction to personal development, relationships, and families (Henderson 1-2). “Understandably, Americans consider drug abuse to be one of the most serious problems” in the fabric of society. And although “addiction is the result of voluntary drug use, addiction is no longer voluntary behavior, it’s uncontrollable behavior,” says Alan Leshner, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (Torr 12-13).
In today’s society, a dysfunctional family is a concept that is taken lightly, because our society has been desensitized to it, and we have become so numbed by the idea. There are children who suffer greatly because of the families (or parents) who raised them. A dysfunctional family is defined as a family that encounters “problems that tend to be chronic and children [who] do not consistently get their needs met” (Benton). This includes negative, abusive, addicted, and neglectful parents. Individuals who are raised in a dysfunctional family can be impacted psychologically in many ways, such as participating in crimes, alcohol abuse, and drug abuse.