Addiction is a behavioral phenomenon that has touched many of us. Whether it be through our own relationship to it or through our family or friends, addiction often leaves us feeling helpless, stripped of agency and robbed of our capacity to help those we care about most.
Addiction is perhaps most notably manifested in a person’s relationship to drugs, during which their desire to consume and experience a specific drug overrides their desire to participate in meaningful interactions with the world and others. According to the CDC, drug overdose deaths in the U.S. increased by more than 28 percent from 2020 to 2021. But addictive behaviors can come to dominate lives in a number of different ways: gambling, watching pornography, compulsive shopping and even spending time on social media, for example.
Historically, such addictions were viewed as a moral failing. Tightly coupled to how western monotheistic religion viewed our relationships with alcohol, individuals who excessively engaged in drinking were expected to be punished for their irresponsible behavior. But with the rise of western medicine, and with it clinical psychology, addiction was redefined as a disease.
