Fragments by Art Verdiano When we talk about addiction, the first thing that comes to mind is addiction to illegal drugs or substance. T...
Fragments
by Art Verdiano
When we talk about addiction, the first thing that comes to mind is addiction to illegal drugs or substance. This is especially true with the campaign of the administration against illegal drugs such as methamphetamine (shabu), opium, ecstasy and marijuana. But there are other forms of addiction whose substance can be legally obtained – and these causes almost the same ill-effects as illegal drugs to the society and families of those who are affected.
According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), a book published by the American Psychiatry Association (APA), addiction is basically defined as “substance abuse” and “substance dependency.” It is both psychological and behavioral. It also relates to harmful effects of relying too much on substances. Addiction refers to compulsion, craving, and inability to stop substance use resulting to lifestyle dysfunction. By substance, DSM also meant a thing we always use.
These are heavy words indeed. But come to think of it, addiction really leads to dysfunction or abnormality not only on bodily organs or system, but also leads to the deviation from the norms of social behavior. We may not realize it, but everyday decisions of those who are addicted sometimes revolves around that addiction.
A good example are cigarette smokers. Instead of having coffee inside an airconditioned café, they will choose to stay outside where it is hot but smoking is permitted. Normally, the choice should be on where we will be most comfortable. But on this case, the decision of the smoker was deviated from the norm to accommodate nicotine addiction.
Another example will be those who take selfies too much. According to a study made by Mark D. Griffiths of Nottingham Trent University in the UK, people who obsessively take selfies may have genuine mental illness. It is a form of behavioral addiction. The study revealed that six factors which underlie “selfitis” or selfie addiction. These include need for self-confidence, attention seeking, mood modification, environmental enhancement, subjective conformity or social competition.
There are also three levels or scale from those who suffer from selfie addiction. They are (a) borderline – taking selfies at least three times a day but not necessarily posting them on social media; (b) acute – taking at least three selfies and posting them on social media; and, (c) chronic – those who have uncontrollable urge to point the phone at their face and post on social media at least six times per day.
DSM listed alcohol, tobacco, video games or gadget use, and even selfies as addictions. There is not much emphasis on how to resolve these issues as of the moment. But while it is true that they don’t involve breaking the law or syndicates hoarding millions of money, it also has adverse effects to society as a whole. The thing that we can immediately do is to be aware of these other forms of addiction and admit that it is a problem. By starting with ourselves and at our own homes, maybe we can lessen them.
When we talk about addiction, the first thing that comes to mind is addiction to illegal drugs or substance. This is especially true with the campaign of the administration against illegal drugs such as methamphetamine (shabu), opium, ecstasy and marijuana. But there are other forms of addiction whose substance can be legally obtained – and these causes almost the same ill-effects as illegal drugs to the society and families of those who are affected.
According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), a book published by the American Psychiatry Association (APA), addiction is basically defined as “substance abuse” and “substance dependency.” It is both psychological and behavioral. It also relates to harmful effects of relying too much on substances. Addiction refers to compulsion, craving, and inability to stop substance use resulting to lifestyle dysfunction. By substance, DSM also meant a thing we always use.
These are heavy words indeed. But come to think of it, addiction really leads to dysfunction or abnormality not only on bodily organs or system, but also leads to the deviation from the norms of social behavior. We may not realize it, but everyday decisions of those who are addicted sometimes revolves around that addiction.
A good example are cigarette smokers. Instead of having coffee inside an airconditioned café, they will choose to stay outside where it is hot but smoking is permitted. Normally, the choice should be on where we will be most comfortable. But on this case, the decision of the smoker was deviated from the norm to accommodate nicotine addiction.
Another example will be those who take selfies too much. According to a study made by Mark D. Griffiths of Nottingham Trent University in the UK, people who obsessively take selfies may have genuine mental illness. It is a form of behavioral addiction. The study revealed that six factors which underlie “selfitis” or selfie addiction. These include need for self-confidence, attention seeking, mood modification, environmental enhancement, subjective conformity or social competition.
There are also three levels or scale from those who suffer from selfie addiction. They are (a) borderline – taking selfies at least three times a day but not necessarily posting them on social media; (b) acute – taking at least three selfies and posting them on social media; and, (c) chronic – those who have uncontrollable urge to point the phone at their face and post on social media at least six times per day.
DSM listed alcohol, tobacco, video games or gadget use, and even selfies as addictions. There is not much emphasis on how to resolve these issues as of the moment. But while it is true that they don’t involve breaking the law or syndicates hoarding millions of money, it also has adverse effects to society as a whole. The thing that we can immediately do is to be aware of these other forms of addiction and admit that it is a problem. By starting with ourselves and at our own homes, maybe we can lessen them.
No comments