Posted by hrguru on May 10, 2010, at 0:41:11
In reply to addiction + untreated MI » hrguru, posted by floatingbridge on May 9, 2010, at 11:44:23
Hi Floatingbridge :)
Thanks for the encouraging words and insight. My doctor is the best in the state for treating those with substance abuse problems, and because of this, he has many patients. He has saved many lives, including mine (I am forever indebted to him for that). That being said, I understand it's nearly impossible to express empathy w/ so many patients. *Side note: I understand him, b/c being in HR, I work in a field where it's important to feel empathy, but not to openly express it.* When I said he didn't say he was glad I was doing better with my med combo, I probably should have explained a little better. I meant he actually seemed to be almost "bitter" (lack of a better word) about me feeling better. He made it known that he was not happy that I didn't go with his drug of choice, even though my suggested drug ended up working so well. My thought: Who cares if it was his med or mine, as long as his patient is feeling better? Isn't this the "goal" of treatment? Weird.
It freaked me out when I first rc'd the dx of BP. It was a shock to the system, understandably. I know that it is considered to be life-long now, but they still don't know what the exact cause of BP is, so I'm holding onto the hope that with advances in medical research, maybe someday I won't have to live with this. Until then, I'll gladly take my meds and do the therapy so that I can feel well :) I think that's the best approach for now.
"Anyways, (enough of that!), my belief is that substance abuse stems from mental health issues that deserve the same respect and treatment accorded other disorders. And that also means that one size does not fit all substance abusers regarding treatments and therapies. I am not convinced that all substance abuse /addiction is in the same category as BP. Some people can recover. However, when a person experiences something so deeply as to effect them down to the cellular level, the 'memory' (maybe a tendency ) remains.
All the above is opinion. :)"
----I completely agree with every single thing you stated above :) - couldn't have said it better. To add to that: I guess it's just that I don't care for the "disease" term as it applies to substance addiction. Here's why: when docs use that word, and tell people in recovery that they "will relapse, because it's part of the disease,"- it makes it that much harder for them to quit abusing. It really does. When I did my outpatient program, they started treating my ADHD, anxiety, and depression- which took away my "cravings." Once I detoxed, I didn't relapse, so they would d-test me and literally interrogate me about it to no end. Which was okay, because I wasn't using. One day a girl in the program had a positive test- and was promptly kicked out. So I wondered, if it's a disease, and they were expecting her to relapse- why would they kick her out after making one mistake? It makes no sense to me. That's why I feel strongly about this. My opinion is- if it's a "disease" treat it as such. Docs need to make up their minds about this.
I will check out that book- thanks so much for recommending it!
Hope you had a nice weekend! :)
HRGuru
poster:hrguru
thread:944334
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20100504/msgs/946952.html