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Dear anthropologists
Last week I was at the United Kingdom and European Symposium on Addictive
Disorders (UKESAD) from 19th to the 21st of May, 2011, in London. It was very
illuminating to see so many exhibits for rehabs in exotic tropical paradises. It
certainly brought home how much money there is to be made from other peoples
misery. Another interesting point was that apart from the politicos explaining
the views of the current government, almost every presenter was a recovered
addict, except for those who had a tame one who came on and said how well their
methods worked for them. But there were some presenters who were seriously
overweight, there were others who were outside smoking in the breaks, and they
were all guzzling coffee so they had no real answers. The two methods that
appeared most convincing required a complete life change, starting with at least
90 days preferably in the Far East or the Caribbean. The staff to patient ratio
was 2 staff members to 1 patient, but they were very vague about the total
overall costs. I can't see these ever being available on the British National
Health Service.
Some presenters claimed addiction is all about trauma or early abuse; others
said that it is all about depression, dysthymia or various co-occuring
conditions. Others blame the brain, reduced neurotransmitter production, like
lack of dopamine, or serotonin; and poor parenting is still high on many
peoples' lists. One recovered addict now a PhD had a ‘narcissistic personality’
and blamed this for most problems including addiction. On the other hand low
self-esteem seems more logical.
One group representing a North Korean religion claimed it is all about QI
energy, yin yang and blockages to the body's qi circuitry. They claim to have a
secret to health, long life, and happiness, which can help with any health
problem including my back pain. But it was like joining a cult - seriously.
Another group had a trauma treatment facility, with brain training programmes
to heal the brain damage [which is mainly from alcohol]. It is based on computer
games and a bio-feedback system like Calm Beat (which teaches patients to lower
their heart rate and blood pressure). They had slides of a damaged brain before
and after brain training using QEEG, it was very impressive.
The majority of presenters represented rehabs in tropical paradises that
are basically offering *Rat Park for humans but few claimed that they could
tackle the underlying problems. They insisted that the evidence showed trauma
therapy does not work; and that it can do more harm than good to try to find the
reasons as digging about in the past can have negative consequences, especially
if it is done badly (whatever that means). Nobody really knows why people get
addicted, there are only theories and maybes.
The most terrifying presentation was from the Interventionists who are making a
packet in USA and will soon be found in UK Yellow Pages. Doctors won't do it and
nor will rehabs because they know that forced rehab doesn't work and could do
more harm than good. However, many families refuse to accept this and don't know
where else to turn so these guys have appeared making all the right noises [with
a few hours training and a state licence]. They describe themselves as a cross
between a bounty hunter and something else - I was too shocked to hear what and
it didn't matter, I walked out. I would have stayed to argue with them but there
were five of them, fully committed and convinced they were right. But I cannot
see this practice being sanctioned in the UK. Strangely enough none of them
seemed too keen on the idea of just giving addicts the drugs they need and
leaving them in peace until there is a real cure.
*Alexander, B.K. (1975 - 1985) Rat Park was a series of experiments where
addicted rats were found to reject heroin after they were moved to an enriched
environment. Retrieved from Wikipedia 01/06/2011:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rat_Park
Best wishes Jo Kirkpatrick
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