by T. Lynn Wright

Created on: August 23, 2009

Drug addiction is a disease of the brain. It is not a failure of will or a character disorder. Alcohol, like many drugs, affects the neurotransmitters in the brain.The disease may not completely exonerate or absolve alcoholics of behaviors, but it certainly lends credence to the fact that most alcoholics just can't stop. Addiction affects the entire body on a cellular level. Like any other addiction, such as smoking, eating, gambling or other drugs, it is easy to return to the source of the addiction when faced with stress, returned to the unhealthy environment of the behavior or when all other coping mechanisms fail.

The recovery is successful. The alcoholic attends meetings or therapy and has learned new coping skills. What no one may have told the alcoholic is that the brain chemistry can't be altered back to the way it was. Alcohol fools the addict into believing that all is well, there is no issue with things like dopamine or serotonin. Even when a recovered alcoholic thinks he or she can take that one glass of wine and stop any time they want to, it is rare that this is successful. Some alcoholics slowly return to the drinking, hiding the increase in the number of drinks over time. Many take one drink, thinking they'll have just that one beer, and wake up with no memory of what happened after the first drink.

Alcoholism is different from other addictive behavior such as eating, shopping gambling in that there is no substance affecting normal brain function-certainly the behavior or the reason for the behavior can affect brain function, but not a foreign substance introduced regularly into the brain like alcohol or drugs. Addictive eaters certainly have to have food to live, but are acutely aware that a return to previous habits and environments may sabotage their recoveries.This is largely true of alcoholics, but they have altered brain chemistry due to the effects of alcohol. Alcoholics face one of the most difficult recoveries of any addict. Drinking is a societal expectation, a norm, it is present in almost every setting of life. Alcoholics are seen by peers as weak and inferior. This is unfortunate and unlikely to change. The recovering alcoholic can certainly avoid these encounters but not completely. A new way of life is a choice by someone who will need support and help; the choice to try to drink socially is a return to the wasting disease of alcoholism.

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