323 Comments

1. Anonymous on December 24, 2014 at 11:13 pm

   Might be an addict. Have severe back pain and had been taking percocet for 3yrs until I became used to it. Now I’m on oxy. I’m not going to dealers or selling my meds (also on morphine and muscle relaxers…all 4x/day) but a quiet panic sets in when the bottle becomes less than half full. Dreading the day I will have to cut back because the doctor will want to wean me off. I know that won’t happen for a while because the damage to my back can only be helped so much, but still I’ll hoard pills.
   When I think about it, really think, there is addictive behavior. Does it stem from the need to have the drugs? I’ve never used them the way some addicts or recreational users do; snorting or smoking, injecting, but am I an addict or afraid of the pain? When the relief comes I can walk and concentrate. When I’m in pain I lay in bed and sweat and can feel it through my legs. I’ve tried to cut back, afraid of going to that dark place; the streets or stealing to keep the pain away but I’m not so sure that the pain is the only thing that makes me feel like shit after 24-55hrs of not having any medication.
   Damned if I do, damned if I dont.
   I did get lucky and have my left hip fully replaced and was off all meds for about 2yrs. I was only 34. That first bout with percocet was short, about a year and because I took less than prescribed I was fine. But this… this is a bitch.

2. Caldera on December 10, 2014 at 1:39 pm

   Fun that comes from substances can be toxic if you let it. I’m moving to Laguna Beach in a month and I am excited to make friends that do not want to drink or smoke all day. I see more in life than that. I’d rather make drawing all day a habit rather than being stoned, because lets face it; regardless of how “harmless” marijuana is compared to heroin, cocaine or ever booze, it is still not good for your sense of reality to be inebriated all day every day. That’s why I condone heavy stoners, people who claim pot is not addicting, because it is. I can’t work buried under the haze of any high, no matter how mild. I’m getting my wisdom teeth pulled soon and I’m not letting them put me under because I can’t bear the thought of being stoned again. I need to stay away from pot. Its only going to hurt me.

3. Misery on December 7, 2014 at 10:50 pm

   I. Want. A cigarette.

4. AJM on December 6, 2014 at 11:08 am

   I started using drugs when i was 17 years old. I started smoking marijuana loved it and then started popping pills like painkillers and i loved benzos. It was not long until i started getting into hard drugs and before i knew it i was a full blown heroin addict shooting up around 4 bags a day. I hated my life and i hated myself the dope turned me into a person i did not even recognize. Everytime i tried to get clean and sober up i could not get through the dope sickness and i always went back to the shit. In the beginning it was all about chasing that rush.One time I fell out on it and almost died and the very next day i went back for more. That is how powerful addiction is it means i would do anything to get my next fix because that is all i cared about. Now i am 25 years old and a substance abuse counselor helping other addicts like i was helped. I still battle this addiction everyday and there is not a day that goes by when i dont think about it. It is like a monkey on my back that never goes away and i will be battling this demon for the rest of my life. I have had several relapses along the way but i refuse to let this disease beat me.

5. Brooke on December 6, 2014 at 12:43 am

   Smoking for 20 years, tried giving up twice. I now plan on trying to be a non smoker the day after my 36 birthday. Third time lucky I hope. All that money that has quite literally gone up in smoke. If I had never smoked I wouldn’t have had to wait so long to go on that holiday from staring from home in the UK to New York, Philadelphia and Washington DC. I need to make this time count, I need to visit Maine!

6. Anonymous on December 2, 2014 at 7:22 am

   My father was an alcoholic, my mom died when I was 7 and eventually we were scattered to foster homes. All of the children each and everyone has behaviors of Adult Children of Alcoholics. Mine was finding abusive men. My abandonment issues caused me to stay in these relationships for a long period of time. It was not until someone pointed out to me that I did not have a fear of being abandoned, but I refused to abandon other people. Epiphany! Thank goodness I was in a mental place to hear this and see it for the truth.

7. Anonymous on November 30, 2014 at 1:04 pm

   Lost my family. Lost my friends. All due to drinking. And I did not even bother them, they just knew to stay away. I never did anything crazy.

   Lost my life, job and everything to it. And it makes me upset that they can all just turn away, when they were there with me doing the same thing.

8. Anonymous on November 28, 2014 at 8:36 pm

   I would like someone to talk to. It’s just so hard.

9. Anonymous on November 23, 2014 at 11:23 pm

   I just wish people could understand that it is not fun

10. recovered on November 22, 2014 at 6:18 am

    i started smoking pot in high school along with LSD and others, graduated to cocaine my senior year of college, and it took another decade to do heroin. I lost it all when it came to heroin. I have been recovered for three years and still cant believe what it did to my life. I am happy to be sober, and sorry for all the people I hurt when I was sick

11. H on November 21, 2014 at 8:34 pm

    Destroys love. Money. Lies. Never being able to trust the sweetness because when the drug is calling the lies flow so easily and are so unapologetic. Working several jobs and going to school full time and still being thousands of dollars in debt because the man I love can’t get his shit together and always needs money for cigarettes, bud, cocaine and that’s all that makes him happy. Loves designer clothes and nice brands but I have to buy them. I pay for EVERYTHING provide EVERYTHING and feel trapped and angry inside. Fights break out all the time. There has been violence. Loving an addict can be an addicting process in itself!

12. Anonymous on November 20, 2014 at 12:57 pm

    Addiction is much, much harder on the people around him/her than it is on the addict.

13. Gayle G on November 20, 2014 at 7:04 am

    Addiction almost destroyed my family. I was so out of control I couldn’t see it. I finally got in a 12 step program and became sober. I could then see all the damage I had done and most of it to myself and my dignity.

14. Stella on November 19, 2014 at 8:24 pm

    It’s a never-ending loop…alcohol is a depressant, I use it to get happy yet feel so sad the next morning. I am attempting to recover and be sober, yet the sadness brings me to my knees. If I could only skip over the withdrawal and be happy I would be good. It’s the sadness that leads me to have the next drink. I have no will-power. My family is so supportive, my husband and my littlest child, I only want to be happy and cheerful for them. If I could just get over the addiction and be clean and happy, the sadness would go away. It’s the alcohol that is making me sad. It’s the alcohol that is making me “happy”. I want a clear head.

15. pn on November 19, 2014 at 1:52 am

    I am hopelessly addicted to cigarettes. I’ve smoked for 32 years and have no intention of quitting. I know it is affecting my lungs, I get bronchitis more often now and forget walking up a lot of steps, but that is my addiction and honestly like I tell everyone I love smoking and I’m not going to quit.

16. Anonymous on November 18, 2014 at 4:48 am

    Addiction has rocked my life to its core. My daughter is an addict. The hardest thing I ever did was to distance myself from her and her addiction. After 15 years of trying to help her, I had to walk away because I couldn’t take her lies and watch her self-destruct anymore. Her addiction has hurt me and broken my heart. Her addiction has broken her life and her health. Once again, at 30 years old, she is trying to pick up the pieces and put them all back together again. All the King’s horses and men can’t help her because she has to do it herself.

    In many ways, my father the preacher was an addict. He had all the same symptoms of an alcoholic except it was God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit who dominated his life and soul. As did his “constant struggle against the Devil.” It wasn’t pretty to watch. My childhood was spent being afraid and hoping to stay under the radar. Otherwise, you’d get the sin beat out of you.

    In Doctor Sleep, you wrote in the author’s note: “…people change. The man who wrote Doctor Sleep is very different from the WELL-MEANING alcoholic who wrote The Shining…” (Emphasis mine). You have no idea how much that adjective pissed me off. Well, la-tee-da, aren’t all alcoholics well-meaning when you corner them in their addiction? Self-pity bleeds out of them and spreads all over everything and everyone while they scramble to put the blame of their fuck-up life on anyone or anything. Well-meaning, my ass. I’ve never met a substance abuser yet who was well-meaning about anything except where their next hit or drink was coming from. They don’t know well-meaning from a hole in the wall.

    Yes, addiction has made me somewhat bitter and cynical. This is how addiction has affected my life.

17. Bill Kelly on November 17, 2014 at 4:41 am

    This is something that is very near and dear to my heart after being sober for 5 years now. I have been addicted to drugs and alcohol and I’ve seen it cause nothing but problems to all of my family and loved ones. While drinking I was bent on self-destruction and didn’t care if I died or not. For my loved ones to watch me was a painful thing for them to do. Knowing that they were helpless they just wanted what was best for me. Addiction has also affected me personally simply because I have “meth mouth”. I’ve had to lose all but two of my teeth because of smoking methamphetamines. Not a day goes by that I regret not having my teeth in.

18. Anonymous on November 16, 2014 at 10:30 pm

    I took my first drink (wine) at age 9 & IMMEDIATELY wanted more. It took all my emotional pain away. I didn’t know how much pain I was in until that first drink relieved it. I started stealing it from my alcoholic mother.
    The years went by & I became the alcoholic mother. Alcohol & drugs were now the SOURCE of pain instead of the cure. I finally stopped & with the help of Alcoholics Anonymous, that was 31 years ago. Life is life, but thanks to AA, I have tools to handle ANY situation without a drink or abusing a drug.

19. Bucking the monkey on November 16, 2014 at 2:58 pm

    My addiction affects me and my loved ones every day. From the time I wake up until I go to bed I’m fighting the addict in me who says things like “Come on, being clean isn’t what it’s cracked up to be so who cares? Besides you’re still miserable and have no money anyway”. It’s a never ending fight. I’m looking forward to reading about the character’s addiction in Revival. I read and could very much relate to Danny’s alcohol problems and N.A. experiences in Dr. Sleep. Steven King has unfortunately had experiences with opiates so I’m sure he understands.

20. Robyn on November 15, 2014 at 10:25 pm

    Addiction is the demon inside of you that takes all rational thought away…it grabs hold of you and only through much prayer and the grace of God can you overcome it

21. Anonymous on November 15, 2014 at 1:06 pm

    addiction is when you are negatively affected by a habit that you cannot stop

22. Anonymous on November 14, 2014 at 8:41 am

    I called in sick to read the book I just bought. Am I an addict?

23. SDM on November 14, 2014 at 1:46 am

    Addiction is just that. Something you have no control over, it’s nice to think you can stop whatever the addiction is at any time in your life, but I well know, since I am a smoker and have quit countless times, that just isn’t the case. An addiction has complete control of your soul, even if you do manage to quit whatever the addiction is, you will always think about it for the rest of your life, no matter how you try to deny to others that it doesn’t effect you anymore. Deep in that brain of ours, it’s there, just waiting to be let out again.

24. Anonymous on November 13, 2014 at 5:10 pm

    I recently quit smoking… lets hope this time for good!

25. Jennifer on November 12, 2014 at 11:56 am

    After working with people with addictions and working with suicide prevention – I am beginning to believe that many of the drugs out there are the problem not the people with the problem. Once a person has their brain functioning altered (depends on the drug and the person) there may be a way to remove the drug from the person, but not the craving for the drug. It has little or nothing to do with a weakness of character or lack of self control. Consider pain, how much pain can you take? When the pain is removed, would you willingly return to that pain or would you fight for relief? Now consider hunger, real hunger, starvation. As I learned in Anthropology – once you cross that threshold of starvation, you are no longer human but more animal seeking to find relief as your body consumes itself.

26. Brian Fooshee on November 12, 2014 at 10:39 am

    Addiction has been one of the things that I have struggled with the most in my life. My younger brother struggled with it until it took his life. It is so hard when you are under the influence of the addiction, whatever it might be, to look at what life is without that addiction. If you can get away from it long enough sometimes you can get some distance and see that you are truly better off, but the craving remains and it can be a bitch. I have two addictions that I am currently working on and I cannot ever foresee a day when I won’t be. I would like to think that there is a possibility that I can get away, and I believe that because of hope I might make it.

27. Anonymous on November 12, 2014 at 9:49 am

    Addictions residual effects have diminished my ability to make money/get a good job. I have worked myself up to a fairly good wage, but am limited on jobs that offer retirement, benefits, any large company or company that does background checks. Felony DWI has severely affected my confidence in going out and making a living on my own. I stay in a defective relationship for security of finances and a place to live. It’s pretty tough to live on a 10 year probation at 51 years old, I do it, and it was my mistakes that made it happen, but still tough.

28. Anonymous on November 11, 2014 at 12:42 pm

    Addiction is part of human nature. Our society definitely promotes addictions. Food, drugs, exercise, social media, activism, news media, self pity and the list can go on. I do not think there is a person alive who does not have at least one addiction the difference between one addict and another is the substance and how heavy the addiction is. Some people are just more prone for severe self destructive addictions than others. Lives adjust around the addictions. Allowances are made and circumstances are altered to allow the addictions to continue. When in a persons life allowances can no longer be made and the circumstances will no longer change the choice is then made to let the addiction go or embrace the consequences. I have viewed addiction (severe addiction) from both sides of the coin and the one word I can think of to sum it would be exhausting.

29. Anonymous on November 11, 2014 at 11:28 am

    Addiction to substances negatively impacts my life; less so than it used to, but still. I deal with it in my own, stumbling way. A few who are close to me help me first by loving me, then by holding me accountable. I’m high functioning but will always need the structure of others’ support.

30. Anonymous on November 10, 2014 at 1:45 pm

    Addiction is a disease. I am an opiate addict. Started out partying as a teen just smokin’ spliffs now and then. Progressed into LSD, Mushrooms, and mescaline.. Had some friends that would eat painkillers by the handful to get high, so I started eating a few here and there. Then years later I had a surgery and then a broken leg somewhat back to back, which lead to multiple refills.. Then mysteriously I wound up with back pain (which is a withdrawal symptom of opiates) so, I sought out doctors and friends to medicate me. I created a network of people who all shared my illness and we all supported each others habits for years up and until I was spending three or four hundred dollars a week on oxy contin, methadone, opana, and even heroin. Began only using the drugs to keep from being sick. Watched some of my best friends die of overdoses. Finally I sought help for the addiction which lead to another medication called suboxone. Suboxone allows you to lead a somewhat normal life and supposedly isn’t as dangerous as methadone. Either way the drug companies win until I can get clean from Suboxone. They say, “Once and Addict, Always an Addict!” I suppose that’s a true statement. Fiction has been my best and mostly only therapy. I will continue with therapy and let Ka take me where it will.

31. Raphaela on November 10, 2014 at 1:35 pm

    Most people have one or two addictions. Meth, weed, smoke, sex, porn, the internet, games, parties, TV, movies, food, snacks, books, religion, science, nerd-rage, celebrity hate, conspiracy theories. Some are just more socially acceptable and less destructive than the rest. Addiction, at the core, is probably a coping mechanism that numbs the pain of tragedy, despair, and disillusion.

32. Queenie on November 10, 2014 at 12:05 pm

    This remains to be seen.

33. kingfamilyfan on November 10, 2014 at 11:36 am

    Having a child who has been addicted since her teen years,brings issues to the family. it has caused many of heartaches,legal trouble for her and a whole new life for the children she gave birth too. A sad journey.

34. Rocco on November 9, 2014 at 9:03 pm

    It all starts with surgery. That surgery you out off for years doing the minimum you can to maintain the pain and drive on. But like an old reliable vehicle, your body eventually stalls and breaks down. Then its time for the body mechanics to step in and get you squared away. But also like a vehicle once you start to run a bit below peak performance it is time to do more maintenance, and in this case that maintenance consists of a handful of pills of the opiate category. The pain is gone, but new pain fills the voids. Alienation from family and friends, lack of attention to the wife and kids, loss of focus at work. Just a general sense of failure that can only be driven back by the taste of a chewed Percocet. It becomes a cycle, a wheel. Everyday revolving into another day that is exactly the same. Caring only for the addiction that has you so completely within its grasp. Pills at my parents funeral. Pills at my sons first day of school. Pills to get up in the morning, pills to get through the day, and pills to fall asleep. Sweet dreams of the days before they were needed, waking in horror knowing that you’ve run out…

35. Anonymous on November 9, 2014 at 3:41 pm

    4 times in rehab. I feel so good and safe in there. Healthy and I eat.!
    Come home alone again and drink again.

    Terrible. Just drink and sleep. And then have bad dreams when you sleep.
    Lost jobs. Lost all self respect.
    Lost my family, friends., No one want to hear from me anymore.

    I cant help it. I get really sick when I don’t drink. So I must keep a steady small amount in my system. I know how bad that sounds. It’s true.

    I am alone and I don’t have anyone to take care of me.

36. Anonymous on November 9, 2014 at 12:53 pm

    I havent been addicted in my life but I have lost lots of friends to various addictions. I have a really strong contempt for publicans and shops that sell alcohol because of the fallout I’ve seen in people I love. I don’t forgive them I think selling alcohol to somebody dying of toxic alcohol poisoning is criminal as any other criminal act.

    I have seen high spirits brought very low and the publicans put that money in their till. Often too I see addiction as a way in which evil takes possession of people, often young people.

37. Anonymous on November 8, 2014 at 9:12 pm

    I have never been an addict, however, most of my friends are dead from it. How many talented artists,musicians, actors have we lost? Hundreds? Thousands? How many Under The Influence Drivers have killed loved ones?Put us in danger? Robbed us, raped us, assaulted us, killed us on the operating table?? It touches us all, whether it’s ourselves, or in the world. It’s everywhere and if anyone thinks it does not affect their lives they are not living in this world.

38. chris20141107 on November 8, 2014 at 6:16 am

    I am addicted to information. I am not sure if this is a bad thing. I feel I must evolve beyond being an automaton.

39. synwave7 on November 8, 2014 at 1:17 am

    Whew! Loaded with pure lead this one. Addiction has brought me and anyone around me to the brink of incomprehensible demoralization. It took my son he was only 25. Death is its maker and it has both hands around my throat. 5 years sober tomorrow, 28 years married also, add that up. Our 23rd anniversary, yes I did the math for you, was a strained one to say the least. I am going to stay off my soapbox and stick to answering the question. As I’ve said we as humans have choices. I for one don’t always make the right ones. I’ve fought addiction since 1983 and it has kicked me in the teeth since. Once the craving sets in, unless I actively fight my disease everyday all choice is lost. On the other hand when I do what millions of other sober people do, the ones with any kind of long term sobriety, when the craving sets in, my ability to choose not to use is strengthened and I am able to say no. I have a disease called diabetes and I take medicine for it, I arrest it’s ravaging affects on my body. I have addiction/alcoholism I go to A A meetings, talk to other addicts like myself, take direction from those with years of sobriety and I am able to stay sober. If I don’t take my diabetes medicine I quite likely die a painful death. If I don’t go to AA meetings, work with other addicts, read sober literature, find spirituality I die a painful death.

40. Anonymous on November 8, 2014 at 12:06 am

    90 days alcohol free today. Never thought I’d be one of those day by day’ers…….

41. The Voice of Truth on November 7, 2014 at 11:38 pm

    How has addiction affected your life and the lives of your loved ones?
    I began drinking at the age of 16. I had always been a shy, withdrawn child. When I drank I discovered that I was no longer afraid of interaction with my peers as I was when I was sober. This led eventually to addiction to alcohol and the dire consciences that overindulgence to that substance can bring. Between the ages of 16 and 25 or so I was in and out of all sorts of trouble as the result of my drinking. Jail, car wrecks, lost jobs, ended relationships and more came with addiction to alcohol. My life was on an alcohol fueled roller coaster!
    My parents were devastated! I was their only child and I was a drunk! Would that I could take those years back and live them differently knowing what I know now, but I cannot. I eventually like Stephen King’s Danny Torrance in his novel Doctor Sleep found my way into AA and quit drinking with the help of some fellow sober alcoholics on the same journey. That was over 30 years ago. I haven’t been to AA since. I no longer need it. However without it in my life at the time I did need it I would very be dead today.
    The Voice of Truth

42. Anonymous on November 7, 2014 at 12:38 pm

    Misery. Pain. Suffering. Death.

43. Doc on November 6, 2014 at 8:19 pm

    I stuck a needle in my arm for the first time when I was 38. My tour through the gutter stopped just short of death and jail. I was a wonderful and loving doctor who lived for my patients. In the end they saved me.

44. Anonymous on November 6, 2014 at 11:21 am

    I have been sober for 13 years. It is the best thing I have ever done. I now have a life beyond my wildest dreams. Truly. I got sober right after 9/11. The day of 9/11 I felt no connection with anyone. I didn’t understand what the big deal was. I just wanted to know if I would have the next day off, as I sat drinking in a bar. I lived in NYC, but never thought to call anyone to tell them was okay. I was self-centered and selfish. Today I am a member of society. I love people and feel compassion. My drinking and drugging robbed me of the ability to connect. I thank God I have that back today. It is my deepest wish that I never go back to that dark place.

45. Anonymous on November 6, 2014 at 10:23 am

    A cigarette smoker for 25 years, quit, very difficult, but in comparison to heroin, twas nothing – embarrassing to say “oh I was addicted to cigarettes” big deal. As I wheeze while climbing the stairs I still want to light up one of those fuckers.

46. Anonymous on November 6, 2014 at 9:08 am

    My brother passed away last year from a drug overdose. He was 43. He was already dying because his liver and kidneys were failing from long time alcohol use. He had been dead for about 12 hours before they found him.
    Alcoholism has effected three generations of men on the paternal side of my family.
    My mom is still an active addict. She is now 65. She often cancels plans to see my daughter (her only grandchild) to be with her addict and abusive boyfriend. She lives 20 miles away but sees my daughter only 4 times a year at most. She has been like this my whole life. I try hard to be respectful and forgive her for how she acted when my brother and I were young, but it’s hard when she still acts the same way. She even used with my brother! I cried yesterday when she called me at work. I could tell she was high, her boyfriend was with her.

47. Tommie Drechsler on November 6, 2014 at 8:10 am

    I did my share of most drugs. What kept me from becoming an addict was the strength I received from my parents; the strength to say enough is enough

48. LWS on November 5, 2014 at 11:27 pm

    No – fortunately.

49. Anonymous on November 5, 2014 at 9:37 pm

    Addiction has consumed my family as my husband has been addicted to drugs of varying sorts and alcohol since I met him 30 years ago. In those young formative years I did not realize the impact this would have on my life and children, of which I have three. Now he has paid the ultimate price as he has destroyed his lungs with recreational drugs and is slowly smothering to death. It colors our life now as he is addicted to prescription drugs that most would not pay for such as inhalation solutions, oxygen, and anti depression medications. Life is full of disappointments but we make our happiness as we go. The addicted do not get a choice, as I have come to see it as a true disease, and those who are addicted or live with those that are, understand this as reality even though we blame them for choosing.

50. bjm on November 5, 2014 at 8:52 pm

    Addiction. wow. one word that encompasses so much.There are so many types of addiction.My dad was a severe alchoholic =broken family.
    My sister loves drugs and alchohol more than her children
    Now my husband of 25 years is showing signs of addiction and I kind of hate him for it.I really am tired of dealing with all the bullshit that comes with it .Especially the lies.

51. Jim on November 5, 2014 at 8:21 pm

    Watching my 17 year old daughter fall into the pit of drug addiction is the most excruciating thing a parent can witness. You think you can help them but you can’t. Any normal form of support is enabling. To have to stand by and watch them disappear into a nasty filth riddled neighborhood because that is their choice is just heart wrenching. She is 22 now and it is still going on. She will not stop and we can’t make her. To anyone who thinks meth or heroin should be legalized have not seen or lived through this nightmare.

52. G.R. on November 5, 2014 at 2:05 pm

    Well, I used to be a chain-smoker (for 19 yrs) but I quit 3 yrs ago and for the rest I don’t have big issues, really. My mum however, she died from longue-cancer recently after a smoker’s life. What makes it even sadder is that she finally found the strenght to quit smoking – and then was diagnosed with the big C 9 weeks later.

53. LifeIsAGrayArea on November 5, 2014 at 12:19 pm

    Addiction is a myth perpetrated by the Recovery Industrial Complex. 12- Step fellowships are designed to keep people in line with a bunch of rhetoric and dogma that is entirely black and white in a world full of grey. There isn’t some magical gene that predisposes anyone to anything. It’s simple, you take an opiate long enough and your brain shuts down production of endorphins, therefore relying on the artificial source. When that source stops coming, the brain/body react on a cellular level. There is no demon monkey on your back, it’s chemistry. You let your brain/body readjust, and you’re physically in the clear. Same can be said for any other substance that changes the bio-chemical production in your brain. Sometimes people have chemical imbalances, therefore when they take the same substances they react differently than other people. Speed calms them, opiates amp them up, etc. Adapting some black and white, “don’t take a drink or a smoke or your life will end, needles will fall from the sky and you’ll be strung out in a day.” Maybe some people, but that has to do with underlying psychological issues that cause them to drive all-out for the brick wall once a certain line is crossed. No magic to “addiction” just biology. Get over it, recovery was SO 2002. Handle your drugs, or let someone else handle them. Simple.

54. Anonymous on November 5, 2014 at 11:30 am

    For the worst, I guess. Most addictions aren’t good for you in the long run. My biggest vice is smoking and nicotine, feels good in the moment but when you look at the bigger picture, how much money has this addiction cost me in terms of money, time, health etc. And I’m always saying I need to quit… but just can’t do it…. I always live in the here and now, it makes me feel good in the moment but I don’t look at the long term effects.

55. Pip on November 5, 2014 at 11:15 am

    My father gave up smoking after fifteen years. I respect his willpower. I witnessed his battle against addiction as a child and I learned that prevention can save us from a lot of suffering. I suppose everyone has an addiction. Sometimes I’m itching to play video games however I know I’ll waste all my free time. It doesn’t seem to be a severe addiction at first hearing, but I feel that it can ruin my life bit by bit if I can’t control myself. After I played several hours I realize how much time I spent for nothing and I become sad or nervous. Addiction is a serious thing. We should help addicts instead of judging them.

56. Anonymous on November 5, 2014 at 10:14 am

    Addiction has effected me for 30 years. My husband is an alcoholic and he has been through treatment
    3 times. He keeps failing and I am not sure why. Some people get it the first time and some people do not. I wish it were easy but it is not. It hurts everyone. To watch someone killing themselves is the saddest thing. Not being addicted myself I find it hard in a way to understand why someone cannot just stop. But…..I know it is not easy. What is it that makes someone want to escape reality and what darkness lurks in their mind. Some authors describe it well and Mr. King is one of them.

57. Jamieson Wolf on November 5, 2014 at 9:51 am

    I was a smoker since my teens. I finally quit last year. Hardest thing I have ever done, still is. My father is an alcoholic and it shaped the family around him. I just remember being afraid when ever a bottle was opened. Because of that, I’ve only been drunk twice in my life.

58. A. Dick Tive on November 5, 2014 at 7:26 am

    Pleasure, relief, satisfaction. We all have our Needful Things and it is natural for us to seek them. The trick is to moderate, and some of us have trouble doing so. When we cannot control our action in this regard, be it physically, emotionally, mentally, chemically, or whatever, we are “addicted”. Most times we need help to overcome addictions, some times we don’t get what we need.

59. Nat on November 5, 2014 at 5:52 am

    I’m a smoker, so addict. I’m also a former drug addict (LSD).
    I know quite well the addiction because I also suffer from bipolar disorder. Addiction is one of the comorbidities of bipolar disorders.
    Like any good bipolar, I tend to hold on to a lot of addictions : smoking, affection mine (affective dependent), my meals on time, foibles…
    I think addiction blights the lives but also helps to discover an iron will when you want to get rid of.
    The strength is in us !

60. Kerry on November 5, 2014 at 5:24 am

    Addiction made my world explode.

61. Josh on November 5, 2014 at 12:37 am

    Addiction killed my father, in a way. He was a very loving man.

62. Anonymous on November 4, 2014 at 11:38 pm

    Addiction caused the loss of my soul mate. I found my soulmate at young age, but my drug addiction drove her away. She stuck around for seven years but then left after trying for years to lift me from my darkness.

63. Anonymous on November 4, 2014 at 11:00 pm

    Asking inappropriate questions about things that are supposed to be accepted without question.

64. Anonymous on November 4, 2014 at 10:17 pm

    I’m a recovering nicotine addict. Not much of an addiction, I know, until you try to give the damn stuff up. It’s 5 years and counting. I feel really sorry for anyone who’s life is controlled by anything outside themselves. They choose that first cigarette, beer or joint themselves, but don’t imagine it will come to be the sole focus of their lives.

65. GreenQueen on November 4, 2014 at 8:33 pm

    Destroyed it for my son, with luck, love and strength it won’t be destroyed permanently. It has been almost 15 years and he isn’t even 29. As a parent I can never give up hope that “this” time will be the one he gets better. It has brought an entire family to it’s knees

66. inkartchick1 on November 4, 2014 at 7:42 pm

    It’s a crutch used by the weak who cannot accept responsibility for the poor decisions they have made. They have no accountability.

67. inkartchick on November 4, 2014 at 7:40 pm

    A crutch!

68. Anonymous on November 4, 2014 at 6:32 pm

    Addiction is evil. It affects my brother and I, we both know it, but are functioning in responsibly in society. I haven’t figured out how to end my addiction but I know that my brother will be there to support me when I do, addicted or not.

69. Faith Works on November 4, 2014 at 5:56 pm

    I struggle – I can relate to not asking for help because I don’t know if I can stop. I don’t want people to know its a problem. My drinking stands in the way of what I could be – how I could be so much more. and it’s really a depression that makes me drink, but the alcohol is a sedative and makes me more depressed. I wake up and my head is fuzzy – and I vow to stop, but that hunger (Thirst?) comes with that setting sun. I have stolen pills from my family – even taken the dogs pain medicine. Any time whip cream cans come into the house they get abused. It’s me just trying to escape, to get away – or to just deal with the anxiety depression fear. and hey – fear and faith can not exist in the same place, so if I can have faith, I can be healed. It’s just hard because I have to stay away from it, but my wife always likes to have her glass of wine. As so a glass for her and the bottle for me, and off I go again. If I explained this I am sure she would support me, but then I would have to quit.

70. Anonymous on November 4, 2014 at 5:18 pm

    Addiction is a means of escape from the realities that terriorize, but you must weigh the consequences of escape and the affect it has on others.

71. Fear of Constant Reading Stephen on November 4, 2014 at 12:28 pm

    I believe addictions are reactions to many forms of fear; all kinds of insecurities, not enough money, good looks, shame, guilt etc. 12 Step programs are a design for finding a Higher Power that is greater than ANY fear. It has had phenomenal success since 1935 & religious groups have had some success before that. It requires that the addicted one have a “spiritual awakening”. WHAT IS YOUR FEAR??

72. Anonymous on November 4, 2014 at 11:26 am

    We all have addictions, some worse than others. Wether it is coffee sugar sex or smac

73. Anonymous on November 4, 2014 at 8:15 am

    Addiction is insidious. As I have aged I have seen some terrible things done in the name of addiction. It is every where. My mother was an alcoholic and I never realized it until I became an adult. I married someone with that same addiction without realizing it. I guess I was pretty naïve. My daughter is an addict as well…hers is drugs. It has ruined her life and left me broken hearted. It has taken me years of counseling to understand that I cannot blame myself or control anyone’s addiction. They must do it themselves. It has opened my eyes to evil. It has given me the ability to understand where these addicts are headed before they can damage me. I must protect myself to be myself. Very sad.

74. Anonymous on November 3, 2014 at 10:59 pm

    My father was an alcoholic so I lived with it growing up. He was still a good person and was able to support his family and provide for his family. I guess they say alcoholism runs in the family likes it’s a disease but I don’t know I kind of think it’s a choice. For me I can take it or leave it. I guess I had an addictive personality but was able to over come it.

75. Anonymous on November 3, 2014 at 10:36 pm

    When I was too young, it affected my life in the form of adults abusing me or causing me to become abused. When I was a teenager, I knew many who and I partook in many drugs and of course alcohol. I have been fortunate not to be addicted to anything. However it has affected my life by taking friends too soon.

76. Anonymous on November 3, 2014 at 8:36 pm

    My nephew has a severe addiction to drugs, such as meth and heroin. The family has tried to get him help, but has been unsuccessful. The end result is sadness. Sad for the life he is leading. But unfortunately it is his choice, and he is the only one that can change it.

77. J.B. on November 3, 2014 at 6:13 am

    I have been fortunate to not have addiction hit too close to home. I have however worked with addicts and recovering addicts for years. For me it is a difficult concept to fully grasp. I understand the myriad reasons and the biological etc… reasons for addiction. However I value control of my life too much to surrender thar control to anyone or anything.

78. Tanesa Sanchez on November 3, 2014 at 2:07 am

    Addiction is in so many forms I have seen addiction break up families, I have seen addiction cause pain. Addiction is genetic it all depends on the person dealing with that personal demon. We are human we are all addicted to something it just depends on each individual, some addictions are harmful so are not.

79. e.n.o.o.n.e. on November 3, 2014 at 1:43 am

    zero equals two

    you’ll know your addicted if

    you miss it when it’s gone and

    you hate it when it’s home

80. Anonymous on November 2, 2014 at 7:31 pm

    I didn’t accept I had an addiction until almost 2 years ago. Since that acceptance, my life has changed in ways I cannot describe except to say I am once again someone with hopes, belief in a positive future and I like myself again. I guess I was a “highly functioning” alcoholic as I accomplished much and had never had any legal trouble. Thing was, I didn’t notice how unhappy I was and how much I had isolated myself. There was no longer any purpose to my life. Thank God I realized what was happening and got help. I’m no kid; I’ll be 60 on my next birthday, but I feel like I got a second chance at life. My kids are happy for me and my grandchildren will (God Willing) never see me drunk. My addiction shaped who I was and my recovery taught me to accept that. I can’t complain.

81. Steve on November 2, 2014 at 3:32 pm

    I was discussing this topic at work with a co-worker the other day, and my question was, “Is it possible to have a positive addiction?”. Like for instance, addicted to exercise. We decided that addicted, regardless of what to, is by its very nature, detrimental. Addiction, in my opinion, is the inability to positively function in daily life without the presence of the addictive source. Even exercise can be overdone, and overdoing it and becoming totally dependent upon something can never be a positive in the end. I have never experienced true addiction in my life or the lives of my loved ones, but had someone get what I felt was way too close to addicted. It almost cost him everything.

82. Anonymous on November 2, 2014 at 12:58 pm

    I am an alcoholic who has suffered for years. I need something to numb the pain of reality. I’ve been in and out of AA for a few years now. I have trouble multitasking life’s demands and my own responsibilities with recovery. I know these are all excuses.

83. Shaak Ti on November 2, 2014 at 10:58 am

    I was addicted to drugs.
    And I don’t recommend it…
    Actually, I should say that I still am an addict as it never really goes away and even after many years you still have to be very careful…

84. Anonymous on November 2, 2014 at 9:06 am

    Addiction is what happens when you choose to avoid pain. You take whatever offers you the escape, and do it again and again until you can’t do anything else. The problem is that you can’t see that the addiction has now become worse than any pain you were avoiding.

85. Constant Reader VLvr on November 2, 2014 at 7:16 am

    Everyone is addicted to something. So many of us have experienced the devastating effects of hardcore addiction through our family, friends, or our own experiences.

    What about the ‘softer’ types of addiction?

    Examples such as:
    Working an extra five hours every day and missing your kids sports championships, for the fourth time.

    Accepting religious indoctrination without questioning its impact on your children’s lives.

    Giving a secret dominatrix mental space while listening to your boss drone on about tightening the companies belt, pushing the envelope, or sustainable mediocrity?

    We all have addictions, every person on earth.

    Addictions = Vampires.

    They suck the life and hope from all participants. If permitted to roam unchecked, they will consume your very spark.

86. Anonymous on November 2, 2014 at 6:55 am

    Addiction a cure for the world we live in.

87. Amber on November 2, 2014 at 1:47 am

    My father is an addict. His vices are alcohol and gambling, so I have had experience with addiction and the effect it has on a family. It has made me very aware of the temptations I face. I have never been an addict and I think that is because I have seen how my dad can be. It is like I can tell when I am on the verge of taking a vice too far. I enjoy drinking every once in a while, but especially when I am stressed or struggling with my depression I can feel the temptation alcohol has on me. It can get to the point of feeling almost like a physical pull to just take a couple shots of rum and go to sleep to stop my mind from functioning for a few hours.

88. vlm on November 2, 2014 at 1:19 am

    addicts run ram pit in my family, I myself am addicted to food. I tried alcohol but found I was allergic to it, run a fever and puke for days, not a pretty site. I probably should have stuck to the booze and I wouldn’t weigh over 300lbs now, but I might also be dead by now, but then again that might not be such a bad thing either. But if I were dead I would miss the next King novel and that would be a shame. lol!

89. Anonymous on November 1, 2014 at 11:12 pm

    I am in love with an addict & he can be the sweetest man as long as he has his drugs but the second he is out it’s like he doesn’t even see me. I just disappear. All he can think about is getting more drugs. I see him justify it in his mind but it doesn’t make me feel any less shitty.

90. Frank on November 1, 2014 at 5:12 pm

    As an addict, I’m self centered. When I allow it to take over my world becomes very small. The self centered part of my disease tells me that my needs are more important than anyone else’s. When I’m living in self obsession I tend to see everyone else in my life as an obstacle, keeping me from letting me do what I want and get what I want. It makes me dishonest and very selfish. It affects the lives of those around me, especially the people I love the most. When I’m running on self obsession I want to be understood, rather than try to understand. I lack empathy for other people. I’m rarely present and in the moment: I’m always worried about the past and afraid of the future.

91. Anonymous on November 1, 2014 at 4:51 pm

    I have dealt with several family members with addictions. It is sad that a substance can hold that much power over a person, but some people are powerless when it comes to drugs, alcohol, shopping, hoarding, lying, etc. those people struggle and fail or succeed day by day, and that is how I deal with them, day by day.

92. Dave Benneman on November 1, 2014 at 2:46 pm

    Fascinating how all these headings tie into each other. I’m a recovered addict and alcoholic. My life was tragic, and I hurt everyone who ever loved me. I recovered through AA where I found my faith in a loving God. The delusion that I had control was my obsession and it nearly killed me. Which brings us to death. No one gets out alive, but I no longer fear death. It has no power over me. I believe in an afterlife, but what if I’m wrong. I get to live the remainder of my life drug and alcohol free, without fear. I don’t cause nearly as much pain and suffering. That’s not a bad way to go out.

93. Anonymous on November 1, 2014 at 2:38 pm

    Drug addiction: My youngest brother and his wife have been using drugs for many years. I myself have been right beside them on many occasions. They have had the misfortune of not knowing when to stop. I have watched them transform into people I don’t know anymore. They have been in and out of jail for theft and several drug related charges.

    The saddest thing to watch is the affect it has on my nephew. He has been living this life for 14 years and it has been extremely hard. He has us, family who love him, but we can’t provide the parental aspects he needs. He was 2 years old the first time they went away and has watched them go away many times in his 14 years. This has left him with anger and abandonment issues that have to be controlled by medication! I can’t scream loud enough at the irony in this!

94. Anonymous on November 1, 2014 at 1:50 pm

    I’m addicted to sex and porn, because I never get any. Lol. Seriously.

95. Kim on November 1, 2014 at 11:17 am

    Still going to therapy once a month and take Suboxone every day for what was once a raging opiate addiction. Tried the cold turkey method but found out opiate withdrawal is a lot worse than what they show in movies and on TV. Haven’t “used” in almost 7 years but I’m still dependent on a substance that just keeps me from being dependent on another substance. Looked down on my mom for years because of her alcoholism until I caught my own habit and now realize it was only a matter of time before I succumbed to the weakness. It’s manageable but I haven’t come close to accepting it yet and don’t know if I ever will.

96. Bonnie, 65 on November 1, 2014 at 11:12 am

    The most personal time I had with an addicted person was my 2nd husband who was a recovering alcoholic and drug abuser turned substance abuse councilor and did I mention, a “Christian”. He never touched anything while we were married for less than two years, however, he exhibited no control over his interest in other women. He claimed that those in recovery trade one addiction for another, and his trade was sex. After 14 years divorced from him, it’s still painful to remember. I am fortunate that I’m not or ever was addicted to anything so I can’t claim to truly understand other than how I saw him “behave”.

97. LP on November 1, 2014 at 10:55 am

    I’m addicted to food. Can’t help it.

98. Gavin Wilson on November 1, 2014 at 8:26 am

    I was an addict for a long time and suppose i still am in a way. I wrecked my life and affected a lot of my loved ones lives along the way. Things are looking up now but nothing Will change the guilt i feel for what i did in those dark days and we also Will always have to live with the effects of my actions. Not just me but my whole family. Think twice before you dip your toe because before you know it you’re up to your neck in it.

99. charla podany on November 1, 2014 at 7:17 am

    I have been very lucky. My children never got into drugs or alcohol. I have known a lot of people in my life who has their demons but has not affected me. I could never understand addiction to drugs or alcohol. I have tried both and didn’t care for it.

100. Anonymous on November 1, 2014 at 6:52 am

     Today is day 2. Again. Last time I made it three months. Maybe this time…

101. Dilligaf on November 1, 2014 at 5:48 am

     I am addicted to tobacco only. I do not see the point of drugs at all.

102. Anonymous on November 1, 2014 at 5:48 am

     It’s not really affected me, but I might just not know about it because I’ve been too young most of my life.

103. SK Vet on November 1, 2014 at 1:33 am

     Fear…numb it, change it, don’t want to feel it. Have to numb it out. Don’t like the feelings of failure, loss of love, guilt. Blackness as deep and dark as death. Drowning in it.

     That’s how it felt. However, He pulled me out of that cesspool, saved me again, and again. With other addicts in recovery, I am walking a new path, listening to His will for me every minute of every day.

     Work, work, work.

104. Anonymous on October 31, 2014 at 10:08 pm

     My sister-in-law was molested by her step-father when she was young. To forget this horrible experience, she turned to alcohol. Some 30-years later, she drank herself to death.

105. Anonymous on October 31, 2014 at 6:15 pm

     A lot of my family have addiction issues; like most families. My addictions were never so deep and once I quit trying to live my life according to the ridiculous standards imposed by all religions and spiritual practices, my sense of well-being opened up.
     I was finally able to live my life knowing I had it within myself to live a good life. The guilt and depression I constantly felt for always failing to live up to impossible expectations fell away and I lost the need to fill some void I felt from constant failure.

     I’m sure my family and friends appreciate that I am a balanced and reliable person now.

106. Thomas on October 31, 2014 at 6:02 pm

     Addiction is a metaphorical hell.

107. Anonymous on October 31, 2014 at 5:21 pm

     Addiction is control I have lost control with my addiction

108. Tammy on October 31, 2014 at 4:33 pm

     Addiction to alcohol and narcissism in my husband destroyed our family. Addiction to comfort food has had its effects on me, overweight, diabetic, addicted to sugar. Addiction makes you feel helpless, angry at the person who choses the addiction over everything else, bitter.

109. Anonymous on October 31, 2014 at 3:57 pm

     Addiction is your spirit being overridden by the ego . It enslaves your spirit and convinces you that delusion is real . It’s being possessed by something that’s contrary to your own well being . It’s insidious

110. Anonymous on October 31, 2014 at 2:26 pm

     It’s quicksand. You helplessly watch it pull those you love under. You either succumb, or watch it, paralyzed with the fear that you’ll fall too.

111. Anonymous on October 31, 2014 at 1:38 pm

     i wish it would just kill me already. wish i could make t stop and go away. in 2 years my life has turned to complete shit

112. wendy on October 31, 2014 at 12:31 pm

     I have an addictive personality and , fair enough , that’s a cop out. Its just that some addictions are socially acceptable and some are not. Mostly that is related to how damaging the addiction is to self and others but not always. My most destructive addiction was 10 years on heroin(illegal obviously). My least destructive addiction is probably caffeine(perfectly legal). If I had a severe heart condition caffeine would also be damaging. My most enduring addiction is undoubtedly smoking (legal and highly damaging). Isnt it odd how society views addiction?

113. gordon on October 31, 2014 at 11:14 am

     Addiction is a sign of weakness and a lack of self resect I have known alcoholics and drug addicts and various other sad people with addictions and I can only conclude it is a matter of genes and self respect we are born with it and only supreme willpower can overcome these things even a loving family or friends can’t help as anyone with an addicted person in their family will tell you, however I do feel after watching various imported tv programmes from the U.S.A that their view of addiction is stronger than ours they view a couple of beers as alcoholism. Addiction is in the mind. There is no cure just management.

114. King 4Ever on October 31, 2014 at 10:38 am

     How do you stop consummate evil? Why is addiction allowed to exist? I have lost 2 brothers, one at 42 and one at 55 to alcohol. There have been three suicides in my immediate family, all directly related to drinking. Our family is mired in problems that never go away because someone else chooses their addiction over anything…even feeding their kids. The humiliation and shame, the eternal feeling of fighting a useless battle and the pain of losing family members is too great. How do you get out of the cycle? My grandfather, his father, my father and all of his brothers are (or were, if now dead) alcoholics. I am sick of having to constantly pay for the “sins of the fathers.” I never drink at all because I have to be so much in control as I am afraid of slipping into the abyss myself. What to do, what to do? I guess just wait until madness overtakes me. I feel bad for the children though.

115. Cjw on October 31, 2014 at 10:32 am

     Addiction is genetic . Those that have a goal and help can overcome it no matter how far down you go. I personally have wasted much of life through addiction and watched those I love do the same. Humans are really very fragile in many ways but they have tenacity and can overcome.

116. StarChilde on October 31, 2014 at 10:01 am

     Addiction. Something which has affected my family. My father became addicted to smoking and died from lung cancer. My cousin’s eldest daughter is a heroin addict, and it has been hard to watch her destroying her young life.

117. Anonymous on October 31, 2014 at 9:53 am

     Addiction is supposed to happen to someone else- lower income, limited education, lower class. Not my handsome, college educated, intelligent child with professional working parents. We have seen a side of life that we never thought we would belong in. Courts, in patient, out patient, jail, house arrest, visiting hours, pawn shops, despair, hopelessness, anger, and helplessness. But the one thing I have learned above all and wish more people would recognize- people don’t abuse drugs or alcohol because they want to become addicts. They do it because they are hurting- there is almost always an underlying issue or problem. Addicts aren’t bad people- they are smart, loving, wonderful people who need help not punishment. Don’t pass judgement – it could happen to anyone.

118. Anonymous on October 31, 2014 at 9:45 am

     My addiction was not drugs or alcohol, it was a person that I thought I was in love with. He took up every one of my thoughts and I wanted to spend so much time with him that I would just push my responsibilities aside.

119. Just B on October 31, 2014 at 9:21 am

     Addiction comes in many forms. Not all addictions are bad. But never be afraid to seek help to overcome an addiction.

120. BT on October 31, 2014 at 8:39 am

     My addiction is being in control. It has affected my life because I have a drive I can not explain to others. I have a thirst for knowledge which others tire of. My addiction of needing to know has caused me to lose relationships both family and friends. My addiction is not to fall into a destructive addiction.

121. Anonymous on October 31, 2014 at 6:35 am

     I have been addicted to one thing or another my entire adult life. I was stealing alcohol from my parents liquor cabinet at 14 and I just snorted two crushed Oxy pills a minute ago and I’ll be 54 this month. I’m what they call a “functioning addict” because despite my addictions I own a successful business, I’m married (27 years) and have two great kids who graduated college and have their own lives. Sometimes my addictions do take over and dominate my life but most of the time they are just part of who I am. The hardest part is the loneliness that comes from never being able to really let anyone know this side of me and so subsequently I think that no one really knows who I am. I sometimes wonder what life would be like if I wasn’t addicted to some type of mind altering substance but then I look around at the things that people are doing like football fans, auto enthusiasts and crafters to name just a few and I think that these are all addictions just like drugs and alcohol so why give mine up? Granted being a crafter isn’t bad for you unless you’re sniffing the glue but I’ve never allowed my addictions to get so out of control that they were destroying my body. So my point, I guess, is that all things in moderation and you never really know anyone.

122. kohalakirk on October 31, 2014 at 5:13 am

     Addictions are a barrier between us and our loved ones and the rest of the world. Lies to ourselves that no one else believes.

123. Melanie111 on October 31, 2014 at 1:58 am

     Addiction can start off as one thing and end up another…the best way I can explain it is for you to imagine if there was a door to Narnia in the back of your wardrobe…No doubt here are some of us who would freak out and call the police or move…then there are some of us who would go check it out. We would then Ofcourse love it…it would be very difficult to come back and Stay back in the ordinary world, let alone do things like homework, dishes and go to baby showers…the whole time knowing Narnia lay waiting for you behind that door…

124. Anonymous on October 31, 2014 at 1:46 am

     It’s scary in and of itself. I can’t stop hurting myself

125. deldergod on October 31, 2014 at 1:12 am

     Addiction to reading, especially everything Stephen King writes, has done little to improve my social life.

126. Jeannie on October 31, 2014 at 1:01 am

     My parents were alcoholics. I had to become mature at a very young age and take care of myself and younger siblings. To this day I feel robbed of my childhood. I didn’t get to have the experiences common to most of our American society (dropped out of high school, no socialization) so although I am late middle aged and returned to school as an adult, I still feel socially inept. Although I don’t drink or use drugs I don’t think I set a very good example for my children. With a misfit for a mother they also grew up feeling like outsiders. My daughter and younger son grew up and moved away, and I rarely see them. My oldest son became an alcoholic and heroin addict in his teens. He stole from his brother and sister and from me. He robbed a restaurant and was sent to prison where he died of an overdose at age 36. He left behind 2 children (age 7 and 9) who, although I hate to say it, are better off. If he had lived he was clearly not going to give up heroin. The grief they had to endure when he died was hard, but living with a chronic drug addict would have been harder and I believe would have negatively impacted their lives. They live with their grandfather in a stable home, and have a shot at a better life.

127. Kittens McTavish on October 31, 2014 at 12:36 am

     I grew up with two heavy smokers, and I vowed never to become addicted to something that could control me the way it did them. I never tried illegal drugs, and kept my drinking to a minimum, eventually giving it up altogether.

     Which is not to say I don’t have addictions. Caffeine is essential, as is salt. I’m okay with needing those; I won’t die without them or even get the shakes, and I’m pretty sure they’re not killing me. My enormous collection of Stephen King books, on the other hand…

128. Sue on October 31, 2014 at 12:15 am

     I consider myself an addictive individual. I do smoke and have for over 30 years. That is a big indicator for me. When I get into something I am compulsive about completing or developing it. In some ways I drive others crazy. Unfortunately I found that my desire to make things right is also an addiction.
     I married; missing all of the obvious traits, he was an alcoholic and ended up also being abusive. His problem surfaced slowly over a period of time all the while he was convincing me that I was inferior in many ways. This of course set me in a mode of trying to change everything to make myself perfect to him. In this endeavor I completely lost who I was. It took me a couple of years to figure out that I was not the problem and I left, taking my 2 daughters with me.
     Months later a co-worker confided in me that they liked the person who I had become because most people did not like the person I had been. This statement was something that has stuck with me.
     I am still an addictive individual, however my addictions are not harmful to others. I have to have my computer time; I have to have my sewing time; I have to have my building, painting, creating, reading, and studying time. I believe that addictions are controllable in that we can work on which ones can benefit us the most. I also think that when they are no associated with drugs or alcohol society just calls them compulsions.

129. Anonymous on October 30, 2014 at 11:08 pm

     Its not an illness, its just a weakness. These must be people who have never wanted to so escape from the pain and hatred for self. That some would do anything to just escape for a while from the self-destructive thoughts that plague us. Not an excuse, as i haven’t used for years. Just things that there are no coping skills for. They were stripped from us as children or later, and an addiction whatever kind it was helped us cope or so we thought at the loss of everything we held dear to us

130. DrownedKing on October 30, 2014 at 10:58 pm

     You want to talk about addiction? Fast Food. That’s addiction. People in this country would kill over a #2 go large because we are taught addiction to fast food, and addiction can cause people to do horrible things.

131. Gabriel Orr on October 30, 2014 at 10:46 pm

     In all reality, my previous addiction to Cocaine/NyQuil and other drugs didn’t really affect my family; I was the one affected by my addiction. Doing insane amounts of different drugs, prescription & non-prescription, and finding the edge where death is a possibility was what had an impact on my life. If I hadn’t had those drug induced meditative states I don’t believe I would be as interested in Spirituality/Faith, as I am NOW. I’m patiently waiting for REVIVAL, I know I will be able to relate and it will strike a nerve…. Which is what I’m looking for!

     Much Love!

132. Anonymous on October 30, 2014 at 10:32 pm

     Any single work day that I don’t have a beer at 6 am, in the shower, is now a day that I view as an “experiment”…

133. Anonymous on October 30, 2014 at 10:20 pm

     Everyone does have an addiction of one sort or another. Whether it is drugs, alcohol, texting, chocolate, food, television, or any of a million other things, everyone has one, even if they don’t label it as such.

134. RavenLake on October 30, 2014 at 10:17 pm

     You yourself make what it is. You don’t have to do anything if you don’t want to.

135. Anonymous on October 30, 2014 at 10:00 pm

     This “everyone has an addiction” thing is bullshit. Drug addicts and alcoholics say it to make themselves feel better.

136. Bill S on October 30, 2014 at 9:29 pm

     I have addiction coming from both my maternal & paternal sides of my family. I myself am addicted to food. I don’t know when, when I was a teen I think, started using food as my drug of choice. It’s now my “drug” & stress releaser as I now stress eat.

137. Anonymous on October 30, 2014 at 9:09 pm

     My ex was an addict (of any substance/alcohol he could get his hands on) who was also bipolar. His diseases caused all kinds of craziness in so many people’s lives. The ultimate was when he decided to “rub” a car on a country road, then sped around in front of the car and slowed down so that the car almost hit him, only for his own twisted pleasure. The ultimate payback for this? Ex pulled ahead, got out of his car and aimed his gun at the guy. Just so happens the guy he was messing with was a paranoid schizophrenic and he ran the ex over. If that isn’t the basis for a horror novel, I don’t know what is. Broken leg and head trauma resulted. This was also when I finally realized something wasn’t quite right with my ex and after getting him diagnosed, medicated, stabilized and supporting him while he got sober I left. My live has been so much better ever since.

138. Anonymous on October 30, 2014 at 8:34 pm

     Addiction is a huge gaping hole in your heart, I hear it is hard on the addict as well.

139. RedOctober on October 30, 2014 at 8:31 pm

     I struggled for a blessedly-brief time (about 5 or 6 years) with crippling, chronic and near-fatal alcoholism. I saw nothing but devastation come from the bottle and yet I couldn’t stay away. I couldn’t turn it down. God knows I couldn’t put it down once I had picked it up. I lost my home, my husband, my driver’s license, my freedom and every dime I had to my name. More importantly, I lost my self-respect and dignity. I dreaded waking each morning and prayed for death each night because I was sure death was the only relief I would ever find. Thankfully, I found the rooms of AA, a sponsor and my Higher Power waiting for me. In less than 4 years, I regained everything I had lost – and then some. I am now equipped to reach out to those who are struggling. I gotta say, rock bottom is a bitch.

140. TAP on October 30, 2014 at 8:26 pm

     Addiction creeps onto you like ivy on a tree. It seduces, and feels like silk on your soul. Addition is exciting, promising, handsome, beautiful, until it chokes every promising hope you ever had and leaves you drained. IF you survive addition you become a fragment of wisdom that can only be obtained from experiencing a fling with the creep.

141. danicus on October 30, 2014 at 8:23 pm

     I’d say smoking has taken a toll on my health. So did drinking, when I was able to. I don’t miss the booze, but every now and again. Some things are just TOO good, and the brain is a powerful organ. WARNING: Do not put this in your body, unless you prefer enslavement.

142. Anonymous on October 30, 2014 at 8:10 pm

     Reading, watching horror movies(time-loop types being my favorite) and my benzos.

143. Brandy Jae on October 30, 2014 at 8:00 pm

     I am a recovering addict and know to the very bottom of my soul how powerful it is. We all have a path, a journey that life takes us on and mine took me down a long dark road. When I got to the end of that road I had lost my kids, my husband, my home, and my self respect. I was a lost person. I am grateful that there was another road there for me to take which has given me those things back. I am so grateful for the escape from my life I get when I pick up a book and lose myself I. It’s pages. Thank you Mr. King. You have no idea how much your written words have allowed me to move away from the things in my life that cause me stress so that they can work themselves out.

144. Ms. J on October 30, 2014 at 7:43 pm

     Addiction can take many forms. I have been addicted to video games, food, and reading. I think I could become addicted to alcohol if I let myself. When I find myself wanting to drink more I won’t let myself. Both of my grandfathers were alcoholics. Both my parents grew up with verbal abuse. Thankfully neither one of them followed in those footsteps so I grew up with two sober wonderful parents. I know I am fortunate. I think addiction to drugs, alcohol, and porn can be very harmful and bad but we must be careful because addiction can really take any form.

145. Anonymous on October 30, 2014 at 7:42 pm

     Drug addition caused my daughter to not care about anything even her children, destroyed so many lives

146. Mia D. Rose on October 30, 2014 at 7:41 pm

     Cutting myself is my addiction. There is nothing else like it. It pisses me off that it isn’t as socially acceptable as smoking or drinking. It brightens my world instantly, angels sing etc. Addiction messed with your mind, makes you think there’s nothing wrong with what you’re doing.

147. Jas on October 30, 2014 at 7:27 pm

     Addictions have many forms. My addictions are writing and reading – in that order. It’s enough to see a scene, hear a dialogue, think “what if” or let my head play along with the reality. The stories just come and burn me inside out until I let them take over. They let go when I sit in front of my PC and let the stories come out: letter by letter, word by word, paragraph by paragraph.

148. Invisible on October 30, 2014 at 7:27 pm

     Addiction…hmmm. I’ve done drug, lots of drugs, after all, I’m a child of the ’60s. The first drug I did was LSD. I loved it. My nickname, in my small circle, was “The Acid Queen.” (apologies to Ms. Turner.) And by first, I mean I didn’t drink alcohol, smoke cigarettes, or anything else, I didn’t even like coffee. Pot was never even a question. I didn’t like the downer feel. I took Quaaludes once. I was shocked and disapointed since the friends I did it with were all so in love with it. Why would anyone want to sit around and wonder who was going to fall asleep and fall out of their chair?
     Then I met cocaine. Actually, I was hired as a mule. At one point I was offered some and as I was coming down from an acid trip, I figured, WTF why not? I like it.
     I did it and sold it for about 5 years. From that first tab to going clean was about 7 years.
     I was clean for 12 years. No counceling, nothing. I stopped because It was time.
     Then about 16 years ago I was introduced to Crystal Meth. I used, alot, for about 5 years, got caught, lost my job and quit using.
     Now, today, we are back to it. I will stop soon. I’m more aware of my body slowly failing.
     So, addiction…. No, I don’t think I’m an addict, but, then it’s likely most addicts don’t think they are.
     The consequences… yes, it’s hurt me and and my husband. Losing a career that pays about $100,000/year hurt us. Even though he was with me snort for snort, he still blames me for losing 1/2 our income.

149. Anonymous on October 30, 2014 at 7:23 pm

     My spouse began using drugs and I was clueless. I thought he was becoming mentally ill. It caused us to lose our home and marriage. My son was grown, but he distanced himself from me and has never totally recovered from it.

150. Sarah-Constant Reader on October 30, 2014 at 7:00 pm

     Looking up my brow at you,
     I wonder what you see…
     Can you find the child lost,
     Wandering inside of me?

     Addiction doesn’t have to be drugs or alcohol-I started cutting myself when I was 12, and didn’t stop until I was 28-in an institution-that was 3 years ago. That little child inside me is who I fight for-she’s frightened, but not alone. I will always fight for her-for me-for my family, but make no mistake-it will always be a fight. A never ending one.

151. Anonymous on October 30, 2014 at 6:45 pm

     My dad was an alcoholic and my brother is a recovering heroin addict and has been clean for 9 years. I am addicted to cigarettes. I try to quit and fail constantly. At the moment I am not smoking but this can change on an hourly basis. I find it hard to understand my addiction. I am a strong and determined person in every other aspect of my life but nicotine is my Achilles heel and has been for 30 years. But I also find my addiction fascinating. Why do I persist in smoking when the odds are that it will result in me dying a premature and horrible death?

152. Anonymous on October 30, 2014 at 6:44 pm

     Addiction is the very definition of weakness. Alcoholism a disease…give me a break. Put the bottle down.

153. Rick Green on October 30, 2014 at 6:16 pm

     Drugs are bad mkay.

154. kittykittymowmow on October 30, 2014 at 6:08 pm

     Addiction has murdered my faith in humanity. A mother drives her children while she is loaded up on Oxycontin and no one will do anything about it. They are more scared of the foster system than they are of her killing her own children. Too bad the foster system would at least keep them semi safe until they are 18. The way things are looking, my nieces-in law will be dead before they can vote. I hate pills. Wake up, take care of your children. If you can not, they are honestly better off without a mother.

155. Lori on October 30, 2014 at 6:04 pm

     Reading Stephen King books is my addiction.

156. Ted Williams on October 30, 2014 at 5:34 pm

     Addict – I am and with all its tragedy there is light.
     Would I change? Probably not but then if I did I might be you!

157. Anonymous on October 30, 2014 at 5:29 pm

     I have had two brothers-in-law die by age 60 from alcohol addiction, and have known several other people who have passed by the same evil.

158. Anonymous on October 30, 2014 at 5:15 pm

     Addiction has made my life hell

159. Anonymous on October 30, 2014 at 5:14 pm

     I saw my nephew lose his “growing up” teen years. Although he is much better (I don’t think he’s entirely given it up) and is now in his 20’s, I can see where he missed the guidance and learning and brain cells that develop in that time. And I really resent that it affected all of us, especially my relationship with my sister. Many times I would talk to her and hear how anxious and frazzled she was, stating she couldn’t talk because she was waiting for a call from the police or some teen house where he would spend the night. He was no longer welcome at their house due to his stealing and lying. And yet we would all be so worried about the state of him. I can’t imagine how my sister felt. I wasn’t sure how to ask her how he was, or the rest of the family. Addiction affects all of us, and I know that is why I feel so apart from my sister’s family.

160. Anonymous on October 30, 2014 at 5:00 pm

     Only after beating an addiction did I realise how much of my life I had missed.

161. Anonymous on October 30, 2014 at 4:53 pm

     My brother is an addict. It has cost him the respect of his wife and sons, the loss of his business and I am sure his self respect. It has cost me my best friend, my brother. I hate drugs.

162. Anonymous on October 30, 2014 at 4:52 pm

     I come from a long line of addicts. My father is currently homeless from it, my mother not far behind. Addiction is most definitely hereditary. I am your ‘normal’ mom and wife, I live in a beautiful home in an upper class neighborhood, my kids go to the best private school in the state. I do volunteer work. But I have a secret, I too am an addict. I’ve been sober 3 years.

163. Anonymous on October 30, 2014 at 4:44 pm

     Addiction can come in many forms. My husband can kick some habits that most are addicted (ie smoking) yet, his addiction is spending. He can’t seem to help himself. If he has a penny in the bank, it will get spent. Now, he’s not a bad person for this because he does make sure we’re taken care of first, and I always put something into my savings, so its not like we’re broke. But he is addicted to spending his money…… or maybe it’s the thill of buying something….. maybe just a shop-aholic?

164. Constant Reader: S. Madder on October 30, 2014 at 4:39 pm

     My father is an alcoholic. My mother was an addict (was because she died from an “accidental overdose”, not because she got clean). I am trying not to be like them. Sometimes I succeed. Sometimes I don’t. It depends on the moment, really. At this moment, I’m ok. But give it an hour or two, it can change…

165. Anonymous on October 30, 2014 at 4:29 pm

     Addiction can take many forms. Mine are dark chocolate, mysteries and reading. I can probably give up chocolate if I thought it was bad for me, but I will never give up reading and trying to figure things out.

166. Another Constant Reader on October 30, 2014 at 4:23 pm

     Addiction is an illness, like any other, and should be treated as such. Our society looks down on people who are addicted, which makes it that much harder for them to recover and stay in recovery.
     I’m a mental health and addictions nurse and have seen the devastation (at work and in my own family) all kinds of addiction can do to a human being and their loved ones. But we are all equals nonetheless. If we think we’re any better than the person who is so addicted to drugs that they will drug their baby to get ‘sympathy’ money from passers-by, then we are addicted to our delusions. We are not here to judge, but here to help.
     An excellent (and short) book to help understand the nature of the illness is: “The Addictive Personality” by XXXXX XXXXXX. I highly recommend it; it has helped me to understand how a person can become addicted to anything…and explains that we are not born with an addictive personality, but once it has developed within us, it’s there for life and we must learn to manage it. Chew on that…if you dare.

167. chaos-consultants on October 30, 2014 at 4:19 pm

     I am addicted to reading and collecting the works of Stephen King. I am a completist and proud to be one. Tak

168. Anonymous on October 30, 2014 at 4:14 pm

     Addiction is insidious and relentless. It feeds on self-loathing and self-doubt; it promises happiness, but delivers unbearable pain to the addicts and those they love. My daughter used heroin for four years and has been clean for one and a half. She’s still struggling to forgive herself, even though we have all forgiven her. The worst part of it is that there’s always that fear that she’ll relapse and it will all start again. You’re always a little bit on edge, always afraid to feel too happy or complacent, always watching for signs.

169. Constant reader J on October 30, 2014 at 4:12 pm

     Addiction has almost destroyed my life. It has cost me the respect and affection of one of my children, the trust of my spouse as well as my ability to look at myself in the mirror. Nut has brought me to the darkest parts of my psyche with no end in sight. Disgust, weakness and hate color every aspect of my life.

170. Anonymous on October 30, 2014 at 3:40 pm

     Addiction destroys life, like a giant black bitch of an animal eating you alive from the inside out. Cruel and hurt and pain and hopeless and black. And just when you think you’ve crawled free, made it out, scrabbling your intestines and what’s left of your hope in one bloody hand, you look up to see that bitch waiting there for you. Laughing. You thought you were free.

171. Anonymous on October 30, 2014 at 3:38 pm

     It is too easy to become addicted to SOMETHING in this life. I’ve watched close family members succumb and die. I’ve watched family members die of bodily harm inflicted from their addictions twenty years after they kicked their habits. You can get addicted to technology, too. To bad people. To bad thinking. But the physical addictions are the worst, because they rewire your body from the inside to suit their own ends. If you don’t struggle with this or love someone who does, count yourself lucky.

172. Missy on October 30, 2014 at 3:13 pm

     I’ve watched as my father, brother & numerous cousins have been consumed by their addiction to drugs and alcohol. Not only did it serve to rob them of their lives in most cases, it robbed them of their purpose and families. Addiction is the cruelest of all diseases as it affects not only the addict, but everyone they come into contact with. Addiction and mental health should be at the forefront of all public health concerns and not a dirty little secret to be swept under the rug lest someone find out!

173. Anonymous on October 30, 2014 at 3:12 pm

     I’m an addict, cigarettes and food. So I’m fat and I smell like an ashtray. I think the only effect from it will be how ticked off my family will be when I croak from the smokes.

     I’ve had addicts in my life too, I have a brother I haven’t seen in over 8 years because his addictions made him a dangerous person to be around. My late husband was addicted to cigarettes and alcohol, he was a wonderful man and we had a short but beautiful time together. His addictions took him away from me way too soon. I miss him more than words could express.

174. Violet on October 30, 2014 at 2:04 pm

     I am addicted to food. As a child, we were very poor. I was hungry all the time, and I was physically, emotionally, mentally and sexually abused. My only comfort came when I managed to get something to eat, especially if it contained sugar. I think my brain was shaped around that concept.

175. Jonathan on October 30, 2014 at 1:51 pm

     Addiction is a cruel bitch.

176. Elizabeth on October 30, 2014 at 1:33 pm

     It has turned my father into another creature – something that skulks in his chair and picks fights as I walk by.

177. Anonymous on October 30, 2014 at 1:28 pm

     It rips, tears, and eats everything in it’s path.

178. Rick on October 30, 2014 at 1:27 pm

     I can’t really say I’ve been negatively touched by addiction (thank god).

179. Anonymous on October 30, 2014 at 1:17 pm

     Addiction is hell on earth for those afflicted and those around them.

180. Anonymous on October 30, 2014 at 1:12 pm

     Addiction runs in my family. My paternal grandfather was an alcoholic; my mother’s brother was an alcoholic; and my brother died from complications of alcoholism. I have an addictive personality. When I was in my 20’s it was pills and alcohol. Then when I decided to stop that, I became addicted to working out to the extent that I was ignoring friends and family and would actually get mad if someone would call or come over while I was working out. These days I think I’m managing to keep everything in check although I do still have to watch myself with wine.

181. Thomas on October 30, 2014 at 1:03 pm

     I do believe everyone has one sort of addiction or another. Not all addictions are bad unless taken to extremes. For example, love is one of the finest addictions I can think of. Most of us experience love in our lifetime and few, save for the brokenhearted see it as a bad thing. Other forms of addictions can have negative effects both physically and mentally. You must choose which direction your life will head and if it is heading toward an addiction which has negative connotations, you must give up the addition.

182. Win McManus on October 30, 2014 at 1:03 pm

     It hasn’t affected me personally but I do know addicts. I think we all have a propensity to addiction but we must exert will. x

183. Anonymous on October 30, 2014 at 12:52 pm

     It hasn’t although I do know some addicts. I think we all have a tendency towards addiction but need to excert will. x

184. Anonymous on October 30, 2014 at 11:19 am

     Everyone has an addiction, to some degree or other. Many are harmless, many are kept in check. In my own life, it has almost destroyed all chance at a normal life of a close family member. Hopefully, this will change soon, but I don’t hold out too much hope. This destruction has given other family members much pain and financial sacrifice.

185. Anne on October 30, 2014 at 11:16 am

     I’m an alcoholic in recovery. Sober 14 months through AA. There are times when it’s glorious and I pray and I’m happy and I love my marriage and my life now. Then, there are times that I think nothing would be more glorious than sitting in my car and drinking a bottle of vodka until i pass out. My husband is much happier with me, but am I happier with me?? I don’t know. I kind of miss the old me – angry, sarcastic, funny, bitter. Now if feel kind of dull. I guess its the price you pay for passing out in the yard once too often.

186. Robert on October 30, 2014 at 9:18 am

     Everyone has their Achilles heel. For me it was cigarettes. I did finally get past them and in my case it was Roger Ebert who cured me (who later I found out didn’t smoke, actually…but hey, whatever works). One day I woke up and said “Do you want to end up like that? Seriously? Wake up, pal…” And I quit just like that, after nearly 30 years and endless ‘cures’. That was a valuable lesson: all I needed was the right motivation. At the end of the day, the addiction was all in my head.

     That said I’ve seen alcohol and drugs destroy lives of some of my friends and family and it’s a terrible thing. And on a few rare occasions, I’ve seen some of them get past it.

187. Anonymous on October 30, 2014 at 4:59 am

     I had messed around with painkillers in high school and after college I would only use on the weekend my dad was diagnosed with cancer one November by January he had died rather than deal with his death I chose to get numb it was four years later that I finally delt with his death I had done a lot of things I was ashamed of in those four years I had to deal with those also fortunately I have been clean and sober for almost two years now

188. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 11:27 pm

     I am an addict, but I am recovered – on day at a time. I actually work a 12 step program every day. I do things that I maybe don’t want to do every day but I know that if I don’t I will relapse. Ok so…I blame no one for my addictions; no my parents or family, not my Doctors, not my circumstances, not God or religion. I made choices that triggered my addiction and I continued to make choices which brought me to a hopeless condition from which I saw no way out. But I did find help and I did everything they suggested and I just took a risk – and it worked, it continues to work. Haven’t had a drink since 1987. Lost 258 pounds. I do have a Higher Power. However, I can ask for help (or pray) all day long but it doesn’t just rain down like fairy dust. The saying goes: You can stand in the garden all day praying for potatoes but if you want to eat you better grab a hoe and start digging.

189. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 11:17 pm

     I’m 39 years old, and I’ve been sober for six years. I used to drink a lot. A case of beer a day, sometimes more. One night I finished six bottles of wine by myself. I drank to disappear–to be knocked into oblivion. What I wanted more than anything was to set somebody down and just ask them, “How do you live life?”. But what I really wanted was for them to live mine for me, because I was terrified of being alive. That’s a tough gig and it damn near wiped me out. When I finally got my ass into rehab in 2008, getting sober seemed harder and less worthwhile than dying, although dying, even for a no good drunk like me, was still pretty hard to come by. As someone once said, “I couldn’t even do that right.”

     So here I am. I guess I’m getting more right than I’m getting wrong, because my life is good and I don’t want to take a drink. I go to AA meetings, I talk with other drunks, and we do our best to stay sober, to stay alive. Life is messy; life is hard. I still get scared. I still struggle with love. The neat part is that I get to feel these things now. I’ve never been so happy to be afraid. This is turning into a brilliant life. I hope it stays that way.

190. cs601 on October 29, 2014 at 11:12 pm

     I believe everyone is an addict. And that’s not always a bad thing. I have 2 friends who are addicted to helping others. They are compassionate and caring. But it consumes their time and energy. Others must have the latest doodad to keep up with the elite, getting them in financial trouble. Then there are those who can’t make a break away from someone who is poison to them. It is up to the individual to determine whether to control the addiction or let the addiction control them. Before you give advise, walk a mile in their shoes!

191. onemorepage on October 29, 2014 at 11:08 pm

     My ex was an alcoholic who didn’t work and liked to take his anger at life out on me with his fists. Beyond the obvious, this caused me to distrust and live a fairly insular life. I have been remarried for 26 years, but he is not a very affectionate or social person. This has suited me as I have been able to live a life separate from him while still being together. I control the finances, I will not allow anyone else to do that. I protect myself financially, physically, and emotionally at all costs.

192. Ms. Blank on October 29, 2014 at 9:37 pm

     Addiction runs in my family (maternal and paternal). My dad was addicted to codeine. My mom is a secret binge drinker. My dad’s mom was the meanest drunk I’ve ever met. I feel cold and scared when I think of her. Her mother was a nurse who ran an old age home and would inject herself in the thigh with morphine to get through her work day. My dad’s father was an alcoholic but from what I remember was a generally “nice” guy who just chose to look the other way when his wife beat the kids or abused them psychologically. My dad is a pretty screwed up guy but I am discovering a generosity in him that he never revealed to me when I was a kid. My mom managed to hide her drinking from me until my brother told me about it when I was in my early 40s. I still can’t figure out when she did it when I was a kid. My mom seems very healthy, organized and pulled together. No one I know would believe it if I told them. Since raising my own children though I have come to realize that my mom was a pretty selfish parent. She used my brother and I as a buffer between her and my dad. She let my dad get away with crazy, violent behaviour toward us. She kept everything very controlled and tidy on the outside but on the inside I think she was a terrified mess who was willing to sacrifice her kids if it meant she could avoid being in my Dad’s line of fire. I think her binge drinking may have been motivated by a strange combination of self-pity and guilt. I don’t think I’ll ever talk to her about it. I moved far away from my family and see them once every few years. I spent many years in therapy and I’ve reached a point of being OK with who they are. I don’t really need anymore than that.
     As for me, I drink in moderation and I smoked pot in my 20s. I don’t have any strong urges to drink or use drugs but I think I’m likely genetically loaded for addiction. When my son was in his early teens, I told him about our family’s problems with addiction and talked with him about the risk that he has a high chance of being an addict or alcoholic. He is in his 20s now. As far as I know he doesn’t seem to drink much or use drugs. He is a happy, productive and compassionate person. I feel really great about the fact that he didn’t grow up in a home where addiction was a issue. I’m hoping by giving him that I was able to break the generational pattern of substance abuse.

193. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 9:08 pm

     A young man’s addiction to (unknown) substances and the allure of the underworld in an unfortunate circumstance that places him in the physical area of the perpetrators of illegal substance traffic and affords little else in the way of substenance, activity, recreation, and even survival — this above all other reports has set my mind onto the injustice that is our justice system. Time to decriminalize pot.

194. CDH on October 29, 2014 at 8:18 pm

     My brother has had some problems with addiction, but God is seeing him through his problems and, for the most part, he is clear now.

     My addiction hasn’t been drugs–although I have done drugs. If I’m addicted to anything, its sexual stuff. Sex, masturbation, porno…I am a man, so its somewhat natural, and I’m not a deviant and really I’d suppose I’m not addicted, as it were…but I really, really like sexual stuff…perhaps moreso than others, perhaps not. I’m not too worried about it though.

195. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 8:10 pm

     People who blame addicts for their habits, and say ridiculous things about “help” being available, are living in a fantasy world.

     I’m addicted to a Benzodiazepine prescribed to me 5 years ago, for PTSD. It’s ruined my memory, I sleep all the time, and every time I ask for help I am prescribed something to make them work more. I cannot go a day without them. Thanks, Doc!

     Because of the cocktail of medications I am given, I can’t stop taking them suddenly or I could have seizures or even death. I obviously cannot work, therefore I cannot pay for insurance, making it impossible for me to enter an in-patient rehab facility. I need to be monitored while I taper off the meds.

     I pay $80/month to see my psychiatrist. I’m lucky to have the support of my Father, but that’s all he can afford to help me with.

     I’m a 38 year old woman who has never been married, no kids, no job, no friends, and I struggle to even leave my apartment. PTSD and the meds have really ruined my life.

     So for those of you who say, “It’s your choice if you are addicted to something; get off your ass and get into rehab”, wake up. There is no free help and AA or group meetings aren’t going to help me beat this. Those people are just completely ignorant on the issue, and they are very much like the last ten pages of ‘Flowers For Algernon”.

196. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 7:48 pm

     I am addicted to nicotine. It’s a stupid thing I did when I was young and didn’t realize what I was doing to myself. It will most likely kill me. And my loved ones will probably never forgive me for it.

197. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 7:22 pm

     Dont think ive been addicted to anything. I have had a friend who was addicted to alcohol and who eventually took his own life. It left me feeling helpless to stop the downward spiral.

198. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 7:02 pm

     I come from a long line of alcoholics so I’d say addiction has f’d up my life pretty good.

199. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 7:00 pm

     Ended a marriage and possible ruined a child’s life. But I have faith that he will pull himself up and put his addictions away

200. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 6:15 pm

     I’m such an addict, I can’t get through an hour without appeasing my addictions. I’ve lost everything as a result. My loved ones hate me.

201. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 5:59 pm

     I make my life a balancing act and try not to be an addict.

202. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 5:50 pm

     Well, I am an addict. I have been since I was a child. I had leukemia and meningitis when I was 3 and got addicted to food from being medicated. I got fat. All the way up to 360 lbs. This weight effected my life significantly. I started cutting as a teen to help with my emotions and deal with the suicidal death of my bipolar aunt who I loved dearly. When my parents found out my secret in late high school, I was given the ultimatum of stop cutting or be institutionalized. I stopped cutting. I swear I had actual withdrawal from stopping the act. I laid on the floor sobbing, wanting nothing more than to bleed. I still struggle with this issue over 10 years later. Next, I decided that I wanted gastric bypass surgery because I thought being skinny would solve all my issues. The hospital educated me on healthy eating and I took it to the extreme. I lost well over 100 lbs in months. I basically convinced myself that hunger was pain and, therefore, I shouldn’t eat. anorexia was my new addiction. After surgery, I started eating again. Determined not to gain weight, I became bulimic. Food was my need yet again, only this time I was purging after binging. I slowly have gained back weight and am around 300lbs currently, about 5 years post-op. Food is my addiction to this day. But that is only a minor addiction. After I lost a bunch of weight, I got addicted to sex. I had multiple partners weekly and a steady “casual” for over two years. I met him on a site dedicated to hooking up. During this time I was some scary situations with men and started drinking to have sex. When I met my husband, I settled down. Although it was not the end of my addictions. I have struggled with Alcohol and Pot and Pain Killers and cigarettes. I (like my aunt) am bipolar so I take a shit-load of drugs for that as well. I am an addict. Pretty much, I am just addicted to hurting myself.

203. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 5:46 pm

     Thank God, my worst addiction has been to nicotine & I have managed to kick that one. I have seen friends & family members go down a much harder road. Some are still with us, some let their addictions win & they have died from them. In my job, I deal with people with different addictions that are in many different situations. So although I have been blessed enough not to have to struggle through addiction as I have seen others do, by witnessing these struggles I am affected on a personal level. It makes me very sad to see someone throw their life away. It’s just such a waste.

204. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 5:37 pm

     Generally ruins lives and families

205. expression on October 29, 2014 at 4:42 pm

     Addiction happens. Normally because of a real or perceived threat, hurt, sadness, rejection etc that happened in your life. Sometimes people drink or usr or eat something and their brain won’t let them leave it alone. Even with all the help available, I was addicted to heroin for 7 years. I wasn’t able to clean up until I was ready, even after rehab and jail. It was a personal decision I didn’t want to be that way anymore. But let me tell you, I jad some amazingly fun times and many horrible lows. I wouldn’t change my past for anything, it was my experience and I appreciate every part of it.

206. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 3:29 pm

     I have no sympathy for addicts of any sort – addiction if a life choice, no one forces you to drink, smoke or take drugs and if you do become addicted we live in a society where help is available though I dont believe many addicts deserve this help as self abuse is their own choice

207. Soda Pop on October 29, 2014 at 2:59 pm

     Addiction is a reflection. Addiction is weakness. I am addicted but constantly struggle to be otherwise. I want to love myself enough, but it is a darkness which helps us to walk away from the light within us which scares us. Sometimes it helps us to define ourselves as less which enables us to be less. And I love love love people who are addicted, they understand the cataclysmic reflection.

208. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 2:33 pm

     My father was a drunk. And it makes me sad. He drank because he hated my mother, but he loved me so he stayed. I think divorce would have saved his life, and my sanity.

209. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 1:35 pm

     I heard once that everyone is just one or two relationships away from someone that is addicted to abusive substances. I grew up in a super suburban town in the 70’s-with 5 siblings. Everyone called us the Brady Bunch-we all grew up to be educated, happy people, never realizing our brother had been addicted to crack for more than 15 years until he got arrested and was sent to prison. We were totally shocked, but we pulled together as a family and provided the love and support he needed to beat it. He’s been clean for many years now-not so many have the happy ending that my family has had-sadly. It’s a terrible disease that can destroy families and lives-as a society we need to offer more services and support for those suffering.

210. Lara on October 29, 2014 at 1:12 pm

     I personally have a cigarette addiction, but because of another person’s addictions I have experienced fear, physical pain, financial difficulties, embarrassment, and interactions with the police and justice system. Thankfully, that chapter in my life is over. Be careful who you let through your door…

211. Amethyst on October 29, 2014 at 1:08 pm

     My father in law was a very successful professional and an alcoholic. The unpredictable behaviors that he brought to his family have left many scars and low levels of self esteem. That progressive disease infects all those around.

212. Maria on October 29, 2014 at 12:09 pm

     Addiction runs in my family. Most of my family on my mother’s side has either alcohol or drug addiction. I lost my mom to alcohol addiction when she was only 43 and I was 20. Now that I’ve just turned 40, I realize just what a short life she led. Especially since about 15 of her 43 years were spent fighting this addiction. My mother was lost in her addiction through most of my childhood years. It was almost as if she wasn’t there. Which in a way, is true. This has affected me in many ways. The most important one is that I want to break this cycle of a long line of addicts. I will not put my daughter through the life that I lived as a child, the life my mother lived when she was a child and her own father was an alcoholic. In the end addiction gave me the best teacher, although she will never get to see the lessons learned.

213. Pandora on October 29, 2014 at 11:15 am

     Addiction is a disease that affects everything and everyone near the addict. Loving an addict is like getting sucked into a black hole. The worst part is that the only one who doesn’t seem to understand that is the addict.

214. Joe Seer on October 29, 2014 at 11:08 am

     I don’t have any addition to really speak of (aside from reading), but to me addition encompasses all of the topics listed (test of faith, tragedy, disillusionment, curiosity, obsession, death, and maybe even the other side. (listen to the song “On the Other Side” by Dailey and Vincent). Addition is a long deep dark hallway with only a small window of light at the end. In that hallway you’ll find a door to each of these topics. The goal is to get to, and thru, the window with the fewest number or doors opened.

215. Andy on October 29, 2014 at 10:48 am

     One of my oldest friends is an alcoholic, I “got” to watch him go to prison (he got sober in there but it was a long haul). I had an uncle who was one of the greatest musicians I’ve ever seen, he could play the guitar, the banjo and the fiddle like he was born with one of each in his hands. He played with Johnny Cash in the early days and would’ve been with him to the end but he couldn’t beat the bottle. I watched alcohol steal his talent, his lust for life and his love of family. I watched my aunt and cousins try to help, to intervene and grieve when they realized that he’d made his choice. I watched them bury him after he wrapped his car around a tree because he drove drunk.

     Addiction is evil, it’s opportunistic and it’s waiting and watching for any weakness that it can exploit to steal us from the ones that we love and to bring them along on our drive to destruction.

216. B on October 29, 2014 at 10:27 am

     My husband is an Iraqi War Veteran and came home to me wounded in 2006. He was on painkillers for a few years before he got addicted to them and eventually moved to Meth and Heroin. It almost destroyed our lives (financially, emotionally and physically) and I almost lost him completley twice. Once he stopped breathing in my arms during an overdose and I had to revive him with my own breath. I would have “died” right along with him and never been the same. He’s been clean now for 19 months and I thank God everyday.

217. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 10:14 am

     Somtimes living whit an addict is hell!!

218. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 9:57 am

     Addiction to alcohol has been the downfall of my family for generations. I managed to give it up but still have the addictive personality. Does anyone manage to totally get rid of that?

219. holly on October 29, 2014 at 9:46 am

     I think everybody has the ability to get lost in addiction. I lost my sister to it. my daughter is lost in it and my husband is trying to get past it.we see a lot of good people get lost in addiction and I think that part of the human condition. That’s where faith comes in.we all I want to get off the world once in awhile those who are addicted don’t want to get back on.

220. suzeeqew on October 29, 2014 at 9:45 am

     oh boy.lol.wellllll,i’m married 31 years now.simply put,my hubby likes his weed.always has.i used to enjoy it myself.but its hard to be a mom and function with all the kids activites,so….but i did enjoy it.it relaxes you.takes you away from your problems.same thing with my husband.but he’s never missed a day of work.never been in trouble with the law or anything.BUT,it does make his butt lazy here at home.its so hard to get him to do anything.and it causes a lot of arguments.and thats really my only complaint.on the other hand,my brother has been a prescription pill addict for 25 years now.its cost him 3 wives,and 4 kids.a job.a house.a life wasted.its pitiful too.i’ve got tears in my eyes right now for that sweet little boy i grew up with.my sis in law has been an acholic for 30 years.her husband,my other brother is in a nursing home due to a brain anerysm and NOone,friends or family,would let her come and live with them.even her own 2 kids.she is a nightmare to be around.actually brings sprite and vodka into her husbands room.another completely wasted life…such a shame…

221. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 9:33 am

     Cigarettes are expensive.

222. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 9:30 am

     Addiction is greed, consuming everything yet never satisfied. Family dismantled, children stuck in a mental age they could not outgrow for some time because a parent threw their navigational map away when the love of
     “ice and snow” became more important than the sunshine in their hearts and faces. I will always wear a scarlet letter on my chest because I never told the children(or anyone, til now..) why divorce. Small towns, small minds- worse on my kids than hopefully a temporary growth stunting. They are grown now and it would serve no purpose whatsoever to shed a light back on days that demanded they merely survive with misunderstood mother…the kids are alright, wounds have healed and as for sunshine- all have it again in their lives. It is too hard to forgive the past, it cannot be done- the present is the place for mercy. (Especially for addicts who do change somehow, perhaps when the rocky bottom hits their rear ends finally- there in that lonely dark place they long for love- and addiction has not an ounce of it they eventually hopefully learn…) Our addict did finally learn- at great cost to his family and too late for the union that promised in sickness and in health- but not too late for a new union that brought and brings peace to all of us.

223. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 9:26 am

     I’m addicted to the feeling of fear and anxiety. Not for real things, but for things that can happen. I have this feeling for such a long time, that I can not live without it. A short time I can go without fear and stress, but then Im searching for the feeling and the stress returns.
     I don’ nt like it. But I need it. To long without it makes me mad.

224. Happy on October 29, 2014 at 9:04 am

     Everyone has some kind of addiction. The question is whether the addiction is in charge or you are. My husband and I are functioning addicts, and we just feel that Iit makes our lives a little less boring. He has never missed work, been late or left early in 6 years and he makes enough money so I can stay home and work on my writing. We pay taxes, don’t get in any trouble, contribute to society. The bills are always paid first and if we don’t have the money to have it every day, then we don’t. We still love our lives and each other on those days.

225. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 9:03 am

     The things I’ve given up, the things I’ve done, for drugs would make your skin crawl. It does mine. The fight for sobriety and cleanliness in the stronghold of addiction seems like an effort in futility. It’s only by the grace of God that I’m going on 3 years clean. Today I have my kids back, a loving husband, a great job, and a library card. I’m all good.

226. Anon on October 29, 2014 at 8:58 am

     Addiction is a coping mechanism for things that suck. Things like Tragedy. Faith won’t help Addiction, that only leads to Disillusionment. An Addict still has the mental faculties to choose between coping and fixing. Coping is eaiser and humans are hard-wired to find the easiest way to do something. It’s all in your head. Experience has afforded me the luxury of being able to say things like this.

227. One-Eyed Jack on October 29, 2014 at 8:18 am

     Addiction is a surrender of all human willpower and greatness. But take no shame in that, for even the strongest of men will feel the fatigue in their labor. We do not have an endless supply of will and resilience, for the will and the weakness are all human.

228. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 8:15 am

     Addiction has had a profound effect on those around me. Having a husband who is an alcoholic, and a son who is at the very least a Spice addict, but probably an alcoholic as well, I have seen first hand the damage it can do. It is a constant struggle to fight those demons on a daily basis, to stay clean, to learn how to deal with the realities of life WITHOUT dulling any of the pain. Because honestly the pain may be dulled for a moment or two…but it also dulls the happiness, the excitement, the joy. And when you wake up from that high, or that blackout drunk, the additional guilt and pain makes it so damn easy to turn to the bottle or the pipe once again.

229. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 8:12 am

     My story of addiction is so similar to so many others. Pain pills for surgery became pain pills for fun. I entered recovery almost 5 years ago. I now find myself in an in-between place. 12 step programs and the people in them helped me clean up. Now, I am trying to live a life as a functioning member of society. The 12 steppers are for the most part judgmental that I do not want my life to revolve around their version of recovery where I immerse myself in “the program”. Members of society who have not ever struggled with addiction look down on me for becoming addicted in the first place. I feel as if I am stuck somewhere in the middle.

230. Jan on October 29, 2014 at 7:52 am

     Addiction is emotional procrastination. Deal with your feels tomorrow, not today. Erase today and feel really good about it. Only thing, tomorrow never comes, like some kind of endless Groundhog Day loop. And then there’s that pesky mirror that reminds you that you’re living in the harsh reality of the present. Even though people told you and told you that you were not living in the present, and you didn’t believe it and probably let them all down, there’s still that stupid mirror that tells you that maybe they are right.

231. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 7:46 am

     Chain smoker …. who wants to become old not me.

232. Writer Z on October 29, 2014 at 7:34 am

     There are all kinds of addiction, and they not be exclusively of the chemical variety.

     For some time, I was a person who was wary of letting others get too close to me. And yet the hollow space this reticent behavior left needed to be filled (or so I thought then) in some way. It was about a sense of intimacy devoid of elongation. I would let myself get just so close, but then I would readily withdraw.

     During this rather dark period of my life, I confused emotional intimacy with physical intimacy. The result was that I was, for a time, addicted to sex. I had a number of partners, some of them people with whom I got together for nothing more than to have sex. Sometimes we talked, but it often felt like filler: going through the motions of having a relationship that wasn’t mired in something merely physical. It seemed to help for a minute, but afterwards that hollowness would return, and in so doing, it would be more acute than before. I would be disgusted with myself… and confused. Why wasn’t it working? I would think. And then I would feel stupid as well as lonely. I was also concerned about the various diseases one might contract. Thankfully, upon breaking the pattern of this self-destruction (of quitting the addiction cold turkey), I underwent a battery of tests and found that the results were negative.

     What I’ve come to believe is that addiction is a signal that people are trying to fill voids in their lives. Something is missing, its absence needs to be filled, and so we begin to do things that we think might make us feel whole again. But we never do. Addiction is a symptom, not the cause.

     As for my loved ones, some of them have suffered from addiction. They’ve had to learn to deal with it in their own way. Some have been successful; some haven’t. But all one can do is offer support, love, and constructive advice.

233. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 7:28 am

     When most people think of addiction, they think of an alcoholic, or a drug junkie. The truth is that an addiction can be anything, and we’re all addicted to something. Caffeine, cigarettes, pc gaming, love, attention, TV, sex, facebook, texting, food, even message boards of popular writers can become addictions.
     Personally, I think addiction is weakness. A thing becomes an addiction when we no longer have control, but the thing controls us. An addiction becomes dangerous when you lose all concept of right or wrong, or maybe it causes you to lose your job, or it hurts those around you.
     Addiction can be overcome, but you have to be strong…..and you have to want to end it. It can’t be done for you.

234. CSP III on October 29, 2014 at 7:17 am

     Addiction to me is anything, be it Drugs, Alcohol, Sex, Gambling, etc, etc that grips you and drives you on a everyday basis. It consumes your thoughts day and night. We all have one, and many have several. Mine was and is pills. They took my life over and sought to destroy my life. I, on a daily basis, am one of the lucky ones who seem to have gotten a handle on it but only after I proceeded to lose just about everything of any importance or value to me. back on the right track now, 5 years going. Addiction needs to be thought about daily, for once you forget and look left or right, it’ll be standing right there next to you, or me. Grinning, of course and saying welcome back I knew you’d return.

235. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 6:32 am

     I believe addiction is an excuse for people who are too weak to pull themselves away from something. There is an addiction to everything today, from food, cigarettes, alcohol, sex, you name it. People seem to be weaker than in history, now everyone wants an easy pill or an easy button. Its easy to say, I’m addicted to drugs. Well you knew they were addictive,why did you do them to begin with? The only addicts I feel bad for are the ones who are addicted to prescription pain meds, I’ve seen so many people have major injuries and become addicted. I feel so sorry for families of addicts. My husband has lost his brother to drugs , and I’ve seen so many families torn apart. So many babies born addicted ,or with a defect due to their parents inability to care more about their child than the drug. I wrote in tragedy that sometimes bad things happen to good people because they are strong enough to handle it. I believe people also bring things on themselves and their loved ones by their weakness.

236. anon on October 29, 2014 at 6:24 am

     I think that most people have some forms of addiction to either a substance or a way of life it’s just that the majority of people who are addicted are in denial.you can’t deal with an addiction until you admit to it.

237. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 6:13 am

     As they say in the recovery circles I am a double winner. In reality I am probably much more. Daughter of an alcoholic father and narcissistic mother, recovered alcoholic, and depressive. Also I am still hooked on caffeine and nicotine.

     I lost my husband and sons’ trust. Its been tough. I am grateful I made it to the other side. Some would say I havent yet but screw ‘em. I am working on my childhood stuff now and that hurts but my husband is emotionally by my side again and my sons have forgiven me so I keep moving forward. Its tough but the alternative is death and I dont want to die yet

238. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 5:48 am

     My Mum is an alcoholic. My Dad is her codependent, ie. clearing up the hidden bottles, pretending like nothing is wrong, unloading his worries on to me when I was older to talk about it with him. Growing up in a household like this affects you in ways you don’t realise. At the age of 32 I started having panic attacks for no conceivable reason. It scared me so much that I booked myself in for counselling. Six months on I have learned so much about myself, about the emotions I have learned to suppress and the frightened, lonely child that is still trapped inside me, struggling for a voice, to be heard. Counselling is difficult but talking about my childhood has helped me to process a lot of what went on, and I am learning how to deal with things much better, putting barriers in place where I need them. My Mum is now in her early seventies, shakes uncontrollably, has to drink her tea through a straw, has to hold a fork in two hands just to eat. She still insists that nothing is wrong and my Dad just ignores it like he always has. I know I can’t change them now, so I’m concentrating on looking after myself now, like they never have.

239. Elsa Mars on October 29, 2014 at 5:32 am

     Though I can really easily become an addict of this or that, anything that can make me a little numb really, I never really tried to know if someone in my family also has such kind of tendancy.
     My grand-parents, who mostly raised me, sure don’t.
     As for my mum… She’s a shopping addict – seems harmless, but it isn’t at all, I can tell.
     She’s always trying to fill a hole, and have things around her for people end up leaving her.
     That’s not the same for me.
     I get bored easily so I want/need something to keep me from thinking.
     There’s a void I want to avoid ((a)void – never thought about that before, fun thing !).
     I take way too many meds, I drink too much. The only moments when I don’t is when I am writing, but isn’t it another addiction ?
     Oh and of course, you just get even more isolated, but… you don’t really care anymore.

240. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 5:30 am

     I’m blessed that it hasn’t really

241. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 4:31 am

     Functioning addict. Take any amount of anything.I now have no life I’ve reverted back to cavemen times where all I do is hunt for my fix. I am not human anymore. I have no feelings just a need

242. Michael on October 29, 2014 at 4:15 am

     You can’t get by without one – even monks with self imposed renouncements have that as their addiction, seeking to maintain the imposition and being personally afflicted with shame, remorse, contempt traits just like a deprived addict…

243. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 4:02 am

     Once you’ve missed out on times that you should cherish, you can never get those times back, and the regret eats away at you every second of every minute of every day.

244. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 3:46 am

     Addiction (to alcohol) took my mum away from me, I was 19 years old when she died. This changed me fundamentally as a person, I’m now in my 30s but find myself limiting the depths of my feelings for friends and family so that I can’t be so deeply hurt by loss again. I know that I am doing this but am powerless to stop it.

245. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 3:37 am

     Finding ten methylphenidate tablets in my room has been the highlight of my week. Thinking about crushing them up and snorting them has been the happiest I’ve been in months.

246. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 2:11 am

     i’m addicted to painkillers. it started with my wisdom tooth surgery in 2009. i have been on and off addicted since then. i can’t bring myself to do anything other than swallow them whole, thankfully…

     p.s. before that surgery, i’d taken maybe 3 sips of alcohol my entire life (all at weddings) and never done any type of drug, not even pot. I’m 30 years old.

     I wish I could stop. I want to be healthy and whole.

247. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 1:55 am

     Addiction is a killer. I have been addicted to cigarettes for over 30 years. I tried everything to quit but I can not seem to control it. I watched my brother die of emphysema at 57. Then I watched my sister die of lung cancer at 56. I knew I had to quit, but I couldn’t. I thought cigarettes helped me with stress. I found out 2 days ago I have cancer. I am about to find out what REAL stress is.

248. Lilith on October 29, 2014 at 12:58 am

     I’m a magnet to addiction. My first husband was an addict. He eventually died. My brothers are addicts. My last boyfriend is the worst addict. Functioning pill popping, booze swilling addict. It is devastating…

249. D.P.P on October 29, 2014 at 12:43 am

     When I was 18, a senior in high school, I tore a ligament in my shoulder as well as fractureing the ball joint. Immediately the doctors prescribed me Percocet. I did not abuse the medication and started out only taking it when absolutely needed. Not long after I had shoulder surgery and was given a greater quantity and strength of pain medication. Not even 6 months later I completely shattered my right pinky finger and had to have extensive hand surgery to repair my severely injured pinky. Once again I was given pain killers. Later on that year I developed a condition that required me to have surgery twice on my tailbone. You guessed it, even more pain pills were given to me. At this point I was still getting pills from the two previous docs plus pills from this new doc. I was well on my way to being a hard core addict. The docs I saw continued to give me strong pain pills for another 4 years. It got to the point that I could not even get out of bed in the morning without my morning “fix”. Then one day my opiate hazed world came crashing down around me. Almost all at the same time, all of my doctors decided that I had had enough and cut me off cold turkey. Well I just wasn’t going to have that. In my mind I still “needed” those pills even though the afflictions that had once warranted the use of them had long since healed. So I took to the streets to feed my habbit. This in all went on for 7 years. I finally had enough. I knew I could not stop myself so I got help. I am now taking suboxone and have been for over a year. I am making great progress. I started out taking 2 and a half suboxone strips a day and I am now down to just one a day. I see a counselor as well as a psychiatrist. People say suboxone doesn’t work and in a lot of cases they may be right. You have got to want it though. And you can’t just take the medication alone. You have got to get help for the mental side of the addiction as well. If you dont treat the mental side of the addiction as well as the physical side you are just setting yourself up for failure. I lost so much during my addiction. Jobs, relationships, self respect just to name a few. I am so thankful that I pulled my head out of my ass and started to pick up the pieces this addiction left behind. I will always have to fight to keep this ugly monster at bay but I do the only thing I am able to. Take it one day at a time.

250. sara cicek on October 29, 2014 at 12:33 am

     Meth can be like food sometimes. It feeds into the heart of you and makes you happy agian. It never last. Life needs to change to make things better humans want to feel better now we have no time for change

251. Anonymous on October 29, 2014 at 12:28 am

     I ll never be free

252. kal on October 29, 2014 at 12:00 am

     I have a friend who is a sex addict.. He craves it. Not sure if he craves the sex or the love he feels from a woman. That being said, even when he is with a woman, he is wondering about the next one, the next thrill. The sad thing is, he says he loves each one..just a little, but is he really missing out on the human beings that they are?

253. CB on October 28, 2014 at 11:52 pm

     Mother was a functional alcoholic. Her mother was an alcoholic. Ex-husband drank himself to death. Grandmother addicted to pain pills prescribed for arthritis in the 1960s. Husband has battled stimulant addiction for years. Adult son has a worrisome dependence on booze. I am a compulsive eater. Life hurts, and most of us look for a way to soothe the hurt.

254. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 11:51 pm

     Addiction is that elusive powerful seducer lurking in the dark.

255. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 11:49 pm

     My husband is addicted to prescription meds. For the most part, we act as if there is nothing wrong even though his world revolves around his need for it. I am ashamed because I am not strong enough to confront the situation and too weak to deal with it. I just live in denial about it rather than disrupt what we do have together. Sad.

256. Addiction on October 28, 2014 at 11:37 pm

     Addiction destroys. It is the arch nemesis of willpower, and it is deadly. It hurts the cognitive abilities of humans. Every smoker who says, “I’m not going to quit because someone tells me to quit: I have the right to smoke,” provides adequate evidence of the dangers of addiction. Addiction overpowers reason. They cannot see it until they get to the other side of the addiction. Addiction is blinding

257. Addict's Mom on October 28, 2014 at 11:26 pm

     I grew up with an alcoholic father and was so jealous of my friends who had a Real Dad. However, the reason I am no longer afraid of anything I read or see in movies is the very real life nightmare of having a child addicted to drugs. Your every waking thought is completely focused on what your child is doing and if they are still alive. Waking at night to a nightmare doesn’t even touch on the waking in the morning terrified that your child has died during the night and mentally preparing how you are going to handle finding him/her dead. Wondering how you will react when feeling the cold skin and seeing the vacant eyes of your baby. This is a true life horror story that replays every day, every hour and every second of your life. I am one of lucky ones. My child has over a year in recovery but too many parents have had to live the what ifs.

258. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 11:15 pm

     I pray every nite for god to help me overcome my addiction to pain killers and for my children to never ever become addicted to drugs. Still waitin. FAITH ???

259. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 11:06 pm

     I’m addicted to everything I try. That’s my problem. I haven’t done any hallucinogens in two years and haven’t done any speed for over a year, but I still haven’t kicked the drinking habit. I like to drink and have a good time. Thankfully, I’ve never shot anything. Too scared to do that stuff I guess.

260. Christina on October 28, 2014 at 11:06 pm

     I have only had experiments with cigarettes. It sucked. I quit. My father-in-law, mother-in-law, and my own father all died from smoking-related illnesses.

261. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 11:01 pm

     My life has been ripped apart by the addiction of others. Their choices have severly limited mine. Rehab , for most, is a joke. They should treat rehab like jail. Lock the addicts up until they beat the addiction or die.

262. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 10:50 pm

     Well, have you ever loved an addict? It’s a monster of a roller-coaster ride. I think that’s the best way to describe it. When things seem like they’re getting better and finally at the peak, they often come crashing down. There’s a lot of fear on the way down. Loving an addict IS love/hate, heaven/hell, the light and the darkness. You live in limbo. Too scared to stay, too scared to leave…

263. Dan on October 28, 2014 at 10:46 pm

     If I could just quit smoking, I can go back to being mad as a shithouse rat

264. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 10:39 pm

     Seeing people do the same things knowing it will end in disaster, but going through those motions again and again has been the worst kind of torture. Seeing a woman I loved die because her damage was brought to her when we were both so young, and her not being able to outrun those old memories. Losing her, knowing I will go to my grave without her light for the rest of my life has been one of the worst things that I will ever know. Knowing there was nothing that anyone could ever do to change the outcome, that she could not make any other decisions or choices to stop, that is the hardest part of it all.

265. Bob on October 28, 2014 at 10:36 pm

     It was terrible for me. It was worse for others when I quit and was honest. And that made it terrible , again, for me.

266. Jane on October 28, 2014 at 10:32 pm

     My dad has been an addict for more than 40 years. I have an addictive personality. Watching my dad as I grew up made me more aware of my own issues.

     How has it affected my life? I’d love to say that it hasn’t. I refuse to lay any blame for where I am in my life and the path I took to get here on my dad and his addictions (or my mom and her staying with him as long as she has). But I’m smart enough to realize that it did have an effect on my. I hate dealing with conflict – because growing up, it was easier to just stay quiet when my dad came home drunk. Arguing with a drunk isn’t really effective.

267. trish on October 28, 2014 at 10:24 pm

     others addictive personalities have hurt me when I have had to step away from them-let them go in order to survive.

268. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 10:12 pm

     I used to be addicted to pain killers, qualudes, valium, demerol, joined the service and quit cold turkey. I used to be addicted to alcohol. Got pregnant and quit. I relapsed with alcohol several times, but finally quit. It didn’t affect my family too adversely thankfully. We are in a good place now. Very blessed.

269. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 10:10 pm

     I realize now that once an addict, always an addict. When people say they are 987 days sober, I understand why they still count and why they are alcoholics for life. It never goes away. My mother is a sometimes recovering addict. But all of her life’s choices are informed by her addiction, though she doesn’t see it. She will eat one food only for months at a time. She is addicted to foods, drinks, clothes, songs, routines. When she’s not using a drug, she’s still acting as an addict. It’s totally transformed her life into a waste compared to what it once was.
     Addiction has given me a new point of view, however. I try to see it as an illness, and not a choice. It helps sometimes, in the tough moments. But nothing helps you completely understand.

270. GHickman on October 28, 2014 at 10:06 pm

     When you are addicted, addiction is everything…

271. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 10:06 pm

     My husband and both sons are addicts or alcoholics and it has affected me in ways I don’t like. I don’t laugh. I am not happy. I look forward to nothing. I have changed and not in a good way. I am depressed. I don’t need to go on. How has it affected them? Job loss, jail, money problems, car accidents and yet they still drink or take pills. They have robbed me of personal things (my wedding ring, other things that I had been given by relatives that are no longer here) I have let them rob me of my personality. I constantly worry about them because I love them so much.

272. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 10:05 pm

     I was raped by a family member when I was 8yrs old. The abuse lasted for a year and the last time it happen I remember while he was sodomizing me he called me a little faggot. Everyone tells you its not your fault, it’s a bad thing that he did, it’s not your fault. No one tells you it feels good. I’m a sex addict. I don’t know how to connect to people any other way. I hate it so much I wish I wasn’t this way. This secret pain that hasn’t healed keeps me makes me sick. I hate myself I wish life was not like this.

273. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 9:58 pm

     Dad drank, but we didn’t discuss it. Meanwhile, I found a young man who reminded me of dad, married him, had two lovely children, and divorced because of his addiction, lies, and inability to function. Four years later, Dad died of liver and kidney failure at the ripe old age of 57, a direct result of his drinking (at least) a fifth of cheap vodka every single day. But that still wasn’t the worse this ugly affliction had for me. My beautiful son was pulled into a horrible, fast drug addiction at the age of 18. He was shooting up and nearly became homeless by age 20. The pain of watching the child I raised do this to himself was so much worse than even the death of my father…I can’t find words to adequately describe the despair and sadness. There is hope, however- with the help of professionals and a new found faith, my son has been clean for two years. Some find this faith-based type of help just another addiction or brainwashing, but I will attest that it sure beats having a homeless addict as a son and not being able to help him.

274. Sue on October 28, 2014 at 9:55 pm

     Addiction has affected me in my life in that it limits the people I have in my life because of allergies. It’s my decision and at my age (60+) I’m not about to change now. It has also affected me in relationships where a partner has been an alcoholic, which just makes life very difficult and stressful. Sometimes it’s just better to be on your own.

275. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 9:53 pm

     We are all addicted to something…we’re hard wired for it. What matters is whether we control it, or it controls us.

276. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 9:37 pm

     I’m an alcoholic as so many others here are. I’m a mother to three young children. I managed to stop drinking about a year ago. I’m pretty proud of myself. It’s a shame how some are predisposed to addiction. You’ve got to try your hardest get through the struggle no matter what. Everyone has something they battle, it’s how you handle it that’s important. Love yourself.

277. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 9:36 pm

     Addiction is the monster under the bed. The reason why we sleep with our arms and legs tucked under the covers and the door cracked and the night light on. People don’t talk about it, but they know it’s there lurking just beyond the shadows in the dark corners with the tumbleweeds of dog hair and dust bunnies and forgotten joys. It’s the mutant thing that infiltrates our dreams until they become distorted plaguing nightmares that shamble about our synapses like the undead. Addiction caused me to lose my husband and my very young children to lose their father to a gun shot to the head by his own hand in the middle of the night in an unknown car on an unknown road in an unknown forest. That monster under the bed is always hungry. Always thirsty. And demands to be fed no matter what the cost.

278. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 9:14 pm

     Addiction are
     Most often the result of mental illness and humans trying to cope. Some people are addicted to drugs… Some to church. Both can be detrimental.

279. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 9:13 pm

     I’m a recovering alcoholic. Again…I won!

280. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 9:06 pm

     The addiction I have observed in my family members, specifically alcoholism, has motivated me to try to get to know myself and not be afraid to confront my own ugliness. Also…it has fueled me to try to do all the things they have messed up, but do them better.

281. Ellen on October 28, 2014 at 9:04 pm

     I am addicted to my family and it completely breaks my heart every-time I get disappointed by this addiction. I am addicted to life and teased to the brink of death by diabetes and stroke. I am addicted to my one true love forever and always no matter what.

282. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 9:00 pm

     my mother, my uncle, my father, my brother, and my husband all have/had addictions – whether it be alcohol – drugs…….. it has made me critical, sad, angry, and alone

283. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 8:55 pm

     because sometimes life can be boring, we all need an addiction. people with no addictions are boring, people who claim to not have any addictions are even more pathetic.

284. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 8:54 pm

     I am an alcoholic. I have been sober for seven years. I will never allow myself to be that person again. I hated that person. I don’t think addiction is a deisese, I think it’s a choice. My chemical makeup reacts differently to alcohol than a normal drinker,when I start I simply do not want to stop,my father died from drinking,my twin brother is a functioning alcoholic.there’s something screwy in our genes. but you can stop it is your choice,regardless of the substance…. booze,tobacco,meth, gambling, etc…..so I don’t like the disease idea,I think it’s a cop out. I stopped feeling sorry for myself….that’s the worst thing you can do. I like myself now and that’s better than any drink. finally,drunks are very selfish people.

285. Elec on October 28, 2014 at 8:54 pm

     Addiction is our craze to fill the gap in our hearts.

286. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 8:46 pm

     Addiction caused family members to abandon their responsibilities. The effect on my life – disappointment in them and extra sadness.

287. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 8:37 pm

     Addiction is not limited to drugs and alcohol. We are all addicted to something.

288. Autumntide on October 28, 2014 at 8:29 pm

     My family (generationally) and friends bleed addiction. We have the bargain basement sales of addictions. The losses are still going, even for those in recovery. People who live outside of it have no idea of the meat-and- potatoes of it. The betrayals of others and Self. Endless tragedies. Losses of love; faith; life; material objects; jobs; custody of children; domestic violence…just endless casualties. Then so much of the addictive behavior still exists in the dry addicts – which is real bear to contend with! So much sadness…

289. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 8:23 pm

     My father was an alcoholic who lived in constant denial.He really thought that if he didn’t beat his wife,he wasn’t an alcoholic.My family was torn apart by his addiction and will never heal.And yet…it wasn’t all him.My mom wouldn’t go to Alanon to help her cope with what her life became,and she didn’t see that it was affecting her own children.My father’s family abandoned us when my parents split up,and I lost half of my family forever.There was so much anger and resentment…it felt like it was slowly killing us.Mom drank to deal with her stress,my sister drank,did drugs and had sex with strangers and I would try any form of escape I could find.When I was 47,I decided to give Alanon a try…it put me on a path of healing that may take the rest of my life.My mom and sister will probably never try it,and I will likely never be able to have a normal relationship with them,but I think i’ll be ok.

290. Ryan on October 28, 2014 at 8:22 pm

     Heroin, the brown monster grabbed me with a frivolous grip at the young age of 16, I was using regularly until the age of 24 (at 23 I first read the dark tower series, ironically the same age Eddie Dean is introduced to us as, so I always related to him while reading Drawing of Three in opiate bliss.”, anyhow I was in a horrible situation, at my high point I was in a band and working as a bartender at a high end bar on a golf course, making rough 150-200$ cash a night, which I would spend roughly 60-120$ in heroin, cigarettes, and gas to make the trip up to Louisville to score. My family life was in shambles, I was always very distanced from my family at this point in my life, no matter how hard they would try to find a way to get in. I wasted away spending my days reading, listening to The Velvet Underground, and so far gone in a opiate bliss that I never wanted to return… Until one night I felt my body get cold and my breathing slow down to such a point I was gasping for air, I was seeing shadows out of the corner of my eye reaching for me, the icy cold grip of death was near.. I had to find a way out, after that night I was motivated to seek a cure for my sickness, to much damage had went on for too long..

291. Bob Meredith on October 28, 2014 at 8:15 pm

     The only addiction I have ever experiences was tobacco. After almost 30 years of addiction to cigarettes, I quit cold turkey. The first week was HELL! I couldn’t eat, sleep, or shit. the second week was a bit better. The third week was better still. After that, the addiction was gone, and I was a non smoker.

292. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 8:15 pm

     Addiction is a true monkey on the back. One who has never been addicted can never understand

293. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 8:14 pm

     I have two sisters who suffer from addiction. I’ve seen them lose their children, homes, jobs, money, loved ones, trust, teeth, health….I’ve seen them live in violent relationships all for a pill. I’ve known them to sell their bodies, and one to even contract a disease. They have no life of their own. They don’t live for themselves or their children; they live for the next fix…the next high. They are shells of humans. Only looking somewhat like a ghost of what used to be. Their addiction hurts everyone around them as well. There are kids who aren’t well taken care of. One kid who wonders why he can’t live with his mother anymore (because she won’t leave the asshole who used to beat him). I have relationships with my sisters but not like the ones I’ve longed for…the good ole days before drugs were involved. I have no trust in them. I can’t let my child have a playful sleepover with his/her favorite auntie because I can’t trust them to take care of my child. Addiction takes away all happiness for all people involved.

294. Dawn on October 28, 2014 at 8:11 pm

     I have seen so many struggle with addiction. It is defiantly a monster all on it’s own. I watched addiction in my family, and I watched it tear my family apart. I haven’t seen my dad for about 16 years due to his demons.

295. Rob on October 28, 2014 at 8:11 pm

     I allowed myself to become addicted to oxycodone at the age of twenty-four; the same year I started dating my ex-wife and had my daughter. It started as a way to relieve the pain of a degenerative disc desisse. It became a problem within a year and within two it had ended my marriage, nearly cost me my parental rights, countless dollars and my dignity. Oxys are popular in bangor and easily acceptable. I managed to aquire a script of 140 5mg oxycodone pills ontop of my street habit. I still haven’t won the battle, I’ve switched to suboxone which in my opinion is equally as bad if not worse. I manage to be a functional addict, although it causes me daily pain and heartache. Addiction is the hardest battle I believe I’ll ever fight, but I won’t give up. I’ve started writing a story loosely based on the dirty, shameful things I’ve done. It may be the only good thing that comes from my opiate addiction. I’m in constant pain from something designed to take away pain. But, I won’t give up. I must never give up.

296. Karen on October 28, 2014 at 8:10 pm

     addiction and mental illness are a hard duo to deal with. My self medicating, my prescribed medicating, both are bitches to handle. I can not wait to read this book!

297. Marla Mayhem on October 28, 2014 at 8:10 pm

     Addiction is a tool of evil that causes us to defeat ourselves. Addiction is a slow suicide by habitual self poisoning. Perhaps it is a symptom of self loathing or a supposed method of mental escape for people who have scars that they want to hide from themselves. Unfortunately the addiction only makes the ugliness of those scars more visible and they become the defining aspect of one’s life, the limit of one’s dreams and future. Addiction is a world to dive into to escape from your life, but life is not meant to be escaped from. We must face it full on to take control of our own futures. Addiction is a dead end that masquerades as a miserable friend.. Addiction is a way to make us too weak to fight against the darkness…

298. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 8:07 pm

     Addiction is an ugly and devastating thing. It turns people inside out and turns families upside down. Loving someone who lives in that hole is nearly impossible and incredibly demanding. It’s amazing that more people don’t have an addiction… Geez, I can easily see myself addicted to pills. I honestly don’t know what stops me. What is it that keeps me on the straight and narrow??

299. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 8:05 pm

     Of course.

300. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 8:01 pm

     I grew up with alcoholic parents. My older brother escaped to college just as I entered junior high, so those next six years were a scary, lonely and confusing time. I was pretty freaked out those teenage years but too much of a good kid to follow my parents down that path. And then I got angry. When I finally made my own escape into the freedom of college, I was introduced to alcohol, pot and more–and I LIKED it. All of those things allowed me to hide. Hide from my family, hide from responsibility, hide from myself. Finally I was safe.

     But I wasn’t, was I? While I was away, my parents had a health scare and they stopped drinking. I couldn’t believe it was possible, but there you have it. We got to know each other. I don’t know whether they liked the person I had become, but I got a chance to like them. I wonder if they ever realized the affect they had on me, the bitterness I still hold to some degree.

     I straightened out, mostly. Still working on making something out of my life. Two years ago, at age 60, I finally broke out of the scared young person (young adult, adult, middle-aged adult) that had kept me prisoner most of my life.

     Irony: Now I worry about how much I drink.

301. Virginie on October 28, 2014 at 8:01 pm

     My parents both had issues with alcohol….They were so busy drinking their world down that they had nothing left for me : no care, no hope, no love. Nothing but abuse. I grew up as fast as I could just to escape them. And when I thought I was free, I developed eating disorders, and compulsive buying. It took me years to heal, therapy, etc…Now, I am finally free.

302. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 7:55 pm

     My addiction goes hand in hand with mental illness, from what I’ve learned, it’s very common. We try to self medicate because we can’t stand the way we feel. With the proper medications, anti depressants and counseling, there can be some relief…sometimes only brief. But I keep on fighting the depression. The alcoholism, I believe I’ve conquered.

303. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 7:54 pm

     Gonna have to face it, you’re addicted to love……My addiction isn’t to drugs, sex, or Alcohol. or love for that matter. I do however smoke like a freight train…No one is getting outta this world alive. Might as well pick your own poison.

304. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 7:53 pm

     My younger brother died at 28. He was addicted to pills, and died from an overdose of Vicodin and wine. I lost something inside me that day. I did not know he was addicted, and I have a hard time forgiving myself for drifting away from him, for not seeing the signs, for not reaching out. I am scared for anyone who is addicted, especially to prescription medications, because it is so dangerous. I wish…I wish…if only… That is what plays over and over in my head, and I want to tell everyone so no one else ever has to have this experience.

     I admire the thoughtfulness Stephen King always has running beneath his stories of addiction. I admire his candid writing about his own experience.

305. Neo-Pagan on October 28, 2014 at 7:53 pm

     The addiction of a loved one taught me to withdraw into myself when I need to. It built invisible walls inside me that can go up automatically even when I don’t want them to. Self preservation

306. Tank on October 28, 2014 at 7:45 pm

     I was just 6 the first time I smoked a cig…7 my first joint…and by 12 I was popping pills. NO, weed is NOT a gateway drug! LIFE is a gateway drug. My childhood and the inability to understand what was going on around me lead to do ANYTHING to escape. I tried to kill myself the first time at 8 as well. I was a severely depressed child. Due to circumstances beyond the control of a child, I was led into a very dark world at a early age. By the time I was a teen, I was already well on my way to becoming a addict. I would experiment with any and every drug available to me. This led me to my savior turned nightmare, Cocaine. When your own dealer tells you that you need to slow down or you are gonna die, you SHOULD listen and I didn’t. I ended up going over his head to another dealer, and this almost got me killed. I was beaten in a ally by three guys twice my size. I still carry the reminder of that night, a broken knee that never healed properly. Addiction is a strong force, but for some the urge to survive is stronger. After that incident, I locked myself in a closet for 3 days. My roommate sliding a single piece of toast under the door, and a paper plate with water on it, every day. On the third day, I unlocked the door. I came out, filthy, shaking, and I realized that in my dark seclusion I had defeated the demons that had haunted me since my childhood. I faced the monsters that did unspeakable things to me in the darkness. I overcame the urges that plagued my entire existence. I was either to stupid to give up or to strong to back down. I beat the darkness. The darkness I called “Mom”.

307. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 7:41 pm

     I have an alcoholic brother-in-law, who is not ready to admit he is one. Everyone in the family/friends circle is aware of it. He has destroyed his marriage, lost his jobs, and been in trouble with the law, he has a lot of debt, my husband and i used to help him with money but we had to stop because he was just spending the money on alcohol. We feel tremendous guilt about it. It’s so frustrating and very sad that we all can see him just destroying every aspect of his life and we cant do anything about it until he wants our help.
     He had to move back in with my mother-in-law about 2 years ago, she has had to forgo retirement in order to afford to have him there. I think the fact that she is letting him live there for free is preventing him from hitting rock bottom. She is an enabler. She also refused to admit he is an alcoholic.
     My husband and I feel powerless and so sad everyday for him.

308. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 7:37 pm

     Addiction is a seductress, she will pull you into her arm, hold you is comfort and make you feel like you’ve never felt before.
     This can go on and on for quite some time until you reach a point where the love affair is over, then she changes into an evil conniving villan who wants to make you miserable just being with her, while daring you to leave her.
     When you finally open your eye and realize she never did love you, she laughs in your face and tries her best to kill you, if you live through it and only remember the seductress, she will be back, if by chance you never forget the true side of her you can recover…
     Been through it and hopefully finished

309. Jess on October 28, 2014 at 7:32 pm

     Addiction is a series of yeses. Even when you say no, you say yes.

310. Paul on October 28, 2014 at 7:32 pm

     I used to think I needed drugs to live and breathe, to simply be. My days were full of bliss– that is, until I ran out. Then it was Hell. I’d go back and forth, like the ebb and flow of the tides. High, low. High, low. I got sick of being in such a sorry state. Sick of being sick. So I forced myself to stop. I faltered a few times. But the last time showed me what I needed to see. I don’t need drugs. I was walking with a crutch when my body had already healed. Fear is what kept me hooked. Wisdom is what set me free.

311. Chuck on October 28, 2014 at 7:30 pm

     As an alcoholic, now 6 months sober, I am just coming to grips with the fact that I can never lead a “normal” life. I’ll never reach a milestone where I am not an addict. Every day that I don’t drink is a win, but every single day is a goddamned battle.

312. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 5:55 pm

     I haven’t experienced addiction myself.

     Two of my uncles used to smoke cigarettes but they quit at some point. I can’t think of any other thing (fotunately?).

313. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 2:21 pm

     My parents were both heavy smokers. Mother know has severely decreased lungcapacity and is breathing by help of oxygengas. Needs quite a lot of help. I never smoked but probably was a serious passive smoker for 20 years before i moved away from home.

314. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 1:44 pm

     What is the solution to addiction? The cause of addiction, perhaps a mystery, is, in terms of a solution, beside the point. The answer is simple: Addiction and its solution are a diametrical decision to each other. To be an addict is a decision to be. To overcome an addiction is a decision to have an equal and opposite reaction.

315. E Nev on October 28, 2014 at 1:19 pm

     Addiction is stealth
     Just a little taste
     Addiction gets it’s claws in then digs deep

     I’ve traded one addiction for the next for years sometimes it’s harmless (gym,reading)
     Other times it destroys all you love(booze,opiates)

     It has reshaped who I am
     …..but it’s always lurking around every corner.

316. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 12:26 pm

     I have been addicted to drugs and alcohol. I have been sober for years now and it was the best and most liberating decision of my life. Similarly, being in the grip of drugs and alcohol was the hardest part of my life.

317. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 10:04 am

     The animal flesh is overcome by his senses.

318. Anonymous on October 28, 2014 at 8:14 am

     …drugs?…yes, but the fall-out has been minimal-thanks to whatever faceless power is out there that may have intervened…

319. Anonymous on October 27, 2014 at 3:21 pm

     I’ve been blessed enough that I have had no issues with addiction nor has any of my family. As I said, I’ve been blessed.

320. Former Addict on October 27, 2014 at 2:59 pm

     IMO, addiction is one of the hardest parts of being alive. I’ve suffered from so many addictions I cannot even list them all at this point. Everything from booze to drugs, alcohol, sex, food, you name it.

     Id also say that it seem like everyone that i know suffers from at least one addiction or another. It’s something that most of us must deal with on a daily basis.

     I will add that I have managed to let go of my addictions and have grown so much as a result. Letting go has made me a much stronger individual and I’m proud of myself for letting go.

321. Anonymous on October 27, 2014 at 12:15 pm

     Addiction can be something “simpler” in the terms of social acceptance like addiction to food or my personal one, sugar. I know, that may sound so lame when the big bad addictions are the ones that are juicy and people want to shake their heads at, but my sugar addiction is killing me too.

     No, I don’t steal to feed it, but I do lie — to myself and others. For instance, I only had one Dr. Pepper today (when in truth I’ve had 2).

     Yes, it’s sugar, but I am addicted without a doubt.

322. Bee Man on October 26, 2014 at 8:08 pm

     Addiction has had a huge impact on me indirectly–I have had several loved ones with addictions who lied to my face, stole, and did terrible things that caused permanent damage to our relationship. They say to hate the addiction and not the addict, but I haven’t been able to get past certain things. I don’t see that as unreasonable. I don’t hold permanent grudges but I can choose who I want in my life and who I don’t.

323. Anonymous on October 23, 2014 at 8:34 pm

     Addiction is a God awful thing, watching people you love slowly kill themselves is incredibly painful and leaves you feeling helpless. Humanity is so flawed.