Recovery for Everyoneনমুনা

Am I Addicted?

I know better than most that Christians often have some difficulty with the word or concept of addiction (at least part of our Christian family does). If you are reading this book, it is likely you accept the concept of addiction and you or someone you care about is struggling with out-of-control behavior. You may well be asking, “What makes such behaviors an addiction?”

Read each addiction qualifier with an open mind and see if any (or several) of them apply to your out-of-control behavior process or that of someone else in your life. 

1. Efforts to stop

In this qualifier, the addict has come to a place, whether internally or externally, where they get motivated, apply effort, or try and stop an addictive behavior. This is a moment of clarity for the addict when they realize that what they are doing isn’t working anymore, and they begin to make some effort to stop the addictive behavior. The prodigal son hit this point in Luke 15:12.

2. “Read my lips”

This was part of a classic quote from George H.W. Bush during his first presidential campaign. He looked straight into the TV camera and made a promise not to raise taxes, beginning with, “Read my lips.” As time passed and circumstances changed, he did exactly what he promised not to do, raised taxes, thus negating his promise, and turning “read my lips” into the epitaph for his re-election hopes. 

Their addictive behavior continues for days, weeks, months, or years. There is a promise made, sometimes sincere, to stop a behavior; however, the promise is void because the addictive behavior repeats. 

3. Consequences

Every addiction has consequences. The consequences can be a smashed car, broken relationships, or a damaged reputation. All types of things can happen as addicts tighten their grip on their addiction and lose their grip on reality. 

4. Keeping it going

They are committed to their addiction. They incur loss after loss, consequence after consequence, but instead of getting sober to what is happening, they get more committed to the addiction and keeping it going. They continue to use their “drug,” regardless of the consequences.

5. Do more, do more

“More” looks different for everyone: more caffeine, more work, more helping others, more drinking, more using, more sex, more Internet, more cell phone usage, and so on. More is just more. What was an hour a week on Facebook becomes three hours a day. One drink becomes a bottle. One romantic relationship becomes several people online you’re “just talking to.” 

6. Takes more

In the field of addiction we use the term “tolerance.” Tolerance is simply when one builds up a resistance to an addictive behavior and has to do more of the behavior to get a desired result. Tolerance can also mean one doesn’t get as much out of the behavior as one once did. 

7. More time

It makes sense: If you have tolerance and you “logically” assume you need to do more and more, your more and more will take significantly more of your time. Again, the addicts themselves don’t feel their time slipping away. Their late night, early mornings, or taking “some time off of work” makes sense to them because the addiction is requiring more of them to grow stronger. 

8. The blues

As the soul increases its dependence on addiction to medicate or deal with life, it is very common to have withdrawals from the drug when it is not available. Those with chemical addictions may also suffer physical symptoms: sweats, unusual temperatures, aches, headaches, disorientation, and more. 

Try this with a cell phone addict: Take their phone away. Do this to even the sweetest Christian woman and she can become as hostile as a grizzly defending her cub. Even worse: Take a cell phone addict to a place that has no cell service for multiple days. You’ll see the various stages of anger, sadness, and even some twitching going on. 

9. Decreasing other activities

The crux of the decision for the addict is, “Do I give more to reality, responsibilities, and real relationships, or do I give more to the addiction?” Addicts give more to the addiction. This means decreasing time with their work, family, friends, church, sporting activities, and even entertainment. 

Now I’ll reveal the answer to our pop quiz. If you responded “yes” more than three times, it is likely you have an addiction issue in your life.