tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6154923121857389373.post5754568256838438873..comments2023-07-07T05:11:26.707-05:00Comments on Substance Matters: More on "process addictions"Mark Willenbring, MDhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10556707753571367243noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6154923121857389373.post-42992525908292326672010-05-13T00:35:15.109-05:002010-05-13T00:35:15.109-05:00Dr. Willenbring, I believe you still need to bette...Dr. Willenbring, I believe you still need to better define this idea of disease. You point out with alcohol that there exists mild, moderate and chronic drinkers. You state that disordered behavior means a disordered brain. But, it is much clearer to understand that a person who drinks excessively to the point of death has indeed damaged their brains. But, what about these process addictions? It makes sense they too must must vary. The chronic shopper. You would say what? They have a disease? You would say this because their behavior is disordered so that their brain brain is disordered, right? So are they going to die from their shopping disease because they have no control over it? Can you see how cynical most people are going to be when you suggest that everyone has a problem in their brains because they do compulsive things? If a person shops to the point of maxing out all their credit cards and going into debt, it seems silly to suggest that this person has a disease, no matter how you define disease. Don't you see the harm that comes with 12 Step programs that tells everyone no matter what their compulsion that they are powerless and diseased? I don't get this. Can you please explain the nature of process addictions in the same way you explained drinking behavior?Adam Lesternoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6154923121857389373.post-48299614530559003592010-05-12T15:46:45.625-05:002010-05-12T15:46:45.625-05:00I understand the need for animal research, but the...I understand the need for animal research, but the study itself should have stated they worked on rodents and not generalized to sound like it was something found in people. I believe in one of your posts you state that everything cannot be reduced to biology. While science is always trying to find these biological explanations for people's problems, as you also stated you have to factor in a person's ability to think, feel and behave. People have subjective experiences. If they are unhappy and depressed they will eat. There are many other factors. To know that dopamine receptors are involved the same way as drug addiction in rodents does what again? I believe they already have done brain imaging on people that showed the same areas of the brain lighting up whether it was for drugs, listening to music, having sex, etc. Again, so what does any of this tell us that is useful? Is the goal to create new medications to interact with the D2 receptor?Lynn Morgannoreply@blogger.com