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Losing ControlThe Process of Behavior and Chemical

Addictions

Addiction

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Why Talk About Addictions?

• Currently, 70—80% of Church converts have at least one addiction prior to coming into the Church

• We are losing too many members to addiction. These addictions often prevent a member from receiving all the ordinances of salvation

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Losing Control

• Addiction develops when a person experiments with a mood-changing behavior or artificial stimulant drug to meet their emotional needs.

• Unfortunately, in the process, they can completely lose control over their lives.

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Happy Hormones

• The brain produces happy hormones in response to our actions and thoughts.

• These hormones control our mood from one event to the next.

• If we develop a sense that we cannot generate our own condition of sufficient happiness, then we might attempt to induce the increased production of happy hormones, by some other behaviour

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Dependence

• When a person discovers that a particular behavior or activity stimulates pleasure, they will repeat it.

• They can become addicted to the process because they know the stimulation from experience.

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Effect of Dependence

• In the short term, the behavior may distract them in a positive way from facing and resolving tribulation or uncontrollable circumstances in their life.

• Unfortunately, the longer-term consequence is that they will thereafter also experience an artificially induced and corresponding sense of sadness.

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Consequence of Choice

“While we are free to choose, once we have made those choices, we are tied to the consequences of those choices. We are free to take drugs or not. But once we choose, … we are bound to the consequences of that choice. Addiction surrenders later freedom to choose.”

Elder Russell M. Nelson, “The Message: Addiction or Freedom,”New Era, September 1989, p.4.

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Emotional Spectrum

“We all live under the same emotional rules and function along the same emotional spectrum. On one end of this spectrum is pain or utter despair and on the other end is euphoria or absolute joy… Over the course of our lives we will move up and down on this emotional spectrum, never very far towards pain or euphoria but only far enough to feel sad or happy.”

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Normal

PAIN EUPHORIA

NORMAL

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Excited

NORMAL

PAIN EUPHORIA

HAPPY

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Return to Normal

PAIN EUPHORIA

NORMAL

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Disappointed

PAIN EUPHORIA

NORMAL

SAD

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Return to Normal

PAIN EUPHORIA

NORMAL

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Induced Euphoria

PAIN EUPHORIA

NORMALOverriding the

natural maximum production

capability of human biology.

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Induced Euphoria

PAIN EUPHORIA

NORMAL

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New Normal

PAIN EUPHORIA

NEWNORMAL

ORIGINAL

NORMAL

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Induced Euphoria

PAIN EUPHORIA

LAST NEW

NORMAL

ORIGINAL

NORMAL

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Return to a new Normal

PAIN EUPHORIA

NEXT NEWNORMAL

ORIGINAL

NORMAL

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Tobacco Dependence

“Nicotine is the tobacco plant’s natural protection from being eaten by insects” – it is a natural insecticide. Nicotine attaches itself into the neurotransmitters of the brain within 8 seconds, “permitting it direct and indirect control over the flow of more than 200 neuro-chemicals” in the brain.

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Alcohol Dependence

Alcoholism exists when a person craves alcohol and cannot limit or contain their drinking. Experiencing withdrawal symptoms such as nausea, sweating, shaking, or anxiety when alcohol consumption ceases, is an indication that the person is alcoholic.

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Caffeine Dependence

“Tea, coffee and other caffeine-containing drinks are drugs, in the full sense of the term. People become dependent upon them so that they are psychologically uncomfortable if deprived of their drink.” Caffeine addiction is “the classical drugs of abuse” in the world.

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Barbiturate Dependence

Barbiturates are depressants that act on the central nervous system, producing effects from mild sedation to total anesthesia. The substance generates both psychological and physical dependence. Some of the effects are: poor concentration, sedation, confusion, impaired coordination, and impaired judgment.

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Amphetamine Dependence

Amphetamine is used as a recreational psycho-stimulant drug and performance enhancer. It temporarily increases concentration, energy, self-esteem, self-confidence, and induces excessive feelings of power and superiority. The deficit costs are reduced appetite, distorted sensations, hyperactivity, restlessness, erectile dysfunction, headache, blurred vision, impaired speech, insomnia, and numbness.

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Narcotic Dependence

Narcotic addiction dependence necessitates the continued presence of a drug to prevent withdrawal or abstinence syndrome.

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Sniffing Solvents

These products evaporate at room temperature and release vapors. Inhaled solvents cross rapidly into the blood, and arrive quickly in the central nervous system of the brain. The solvent immediately depresses the functioning of the nervous system.

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Medication Dependence

Most pain medications are opiate extracts. Opiates reduce pain by blocking pain receptors that travel to the brain. Addiction to medication opiates functions the same as illegal drugs.

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Cyber-Relational Addiction

Cyber-Relational addicts are addicted to social networks and chat rooms, and become “over-involved in online relationships… Online friends quickly become overly important to the individual often at the expense of real life relationships with family and friends.”

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Pornography

Internet cybersex pornography addiction “is any type of sexually explicit picture, movie, book, music, electronic game, computer image or anything else that promotes lust or inappropriate sexual behavior.”

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Sex Addiction

Sexual addiction refers to individuals being unable to manage their sexual behavior – which has become compulsive. Sex addictions include “behaviors related to excessive or unusual sexual urges leading to acting out.” Sex addiction is relationships “without any real intimacy.”

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Gambling Addiction

The “game is the only thing that occupies the mind of an addict … no matter what the consequences are. Compulsive gamblers keep gambling whether they are in a good or in a bad mood… Even when they realize that the odds are against them, they still don't have any desire to stop.”

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Work Addiction

“Overworking is only an addiction when you feel powerless to stop… The ‘high’ for the over-worker is the way he feels about himself while he works… This sense of self-worth is often a function of the opinions of others.” There is generally a “lack of discernment to differentiate between compulsion and diligence.”

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Eating Disorders

Women with eating disorders outnumber men, accounting for 90% of the anorexic victims in the world. On the other end of the spectrum we have comfort and binge eating. This is usually caused by other unresolved issues in an individual’s life

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Bodybuilding Addiction

While the general population is concerned with appearance, bodybuilding addicts are obsessed with it. Excessive exercising is often accompanied by the use of anabolic steroids to force the development of muscle tissue. People with this condition feel physically inadequate – regardless of their physical stature.

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Shopping Addiction

“The compulsive shopper experiences all the general symptoms associated with addiction… Compulsive shoppers believe that shopping will make them feel better. They often shop when they feel depressed, lonely, bored or angry… While they are spending they experience the kind of euphoria that is similar to the ‘high’ induced by drugs.”

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Computers & Internet

Computer and Internet addiction is excessive or compulsive use of computers that interferes with daily life. “Addictions to online gaming, online gambling, are fast becoming new mental problems in the post-Internet Era.”

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“I joined an Internet addiction support group. We meet every night in an Internet

“Chat Room” from 7 until midnight.”

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Multiple Addictions

“Since drug addiction and other disorders are often combined, it’s not unusual for an individual seeking treatment for an addiction find that another disorder is present.”

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Immediate Quit is an Impossibility

• Challenging or expecting someone to quit an addiction immediately is expecting an impossibility.

• If someone could quit immediately then they do not have an addiction. They have an addiction because they cannot quit immediately.

• An addict is overruled by the expectancy of automatic brain chemical activity.

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Defining Guilt

Guilt is induced when we are conscious of being responsible for committing an offense. Guilt leads to remorseful awareness of having done something wrong. Through repentance, God forgives us of our sin, and takes “away the guilt from our hearts, through the merits of his Son.”

The Book of Mormon, Alma 24:10.

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Defining Shame

Shame is a painful emotion caused by a strong sense of embarrassment, unworthiness, degrading, dishonor, or disgrace. When we are ashamed we have a strong dislike of our self and actions. Shame causes us to hide our guilt instead of dealing with it.

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Guilt is not Shame

Guilt leads to repentance – and confession if necessary, while shame causes us to hide our guilt and therefore inhibits repentance.Guilt is a blessing from God because it brings us back to him, while shame is a curse from Satan because it prevents us from returning back to God.Guilt is that you did something wrong, andShame is that you are wrong.

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Shame Inhibited

An overwhelming sense of shame, because of an addiction, will prevent a person from seeking recovery.People are afraid to seek help for their addiction, because they expect a shame response from others, and not the compassionate understanding they need.

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Divine Assistance

When we are humble, God recognizes our guilt, and invites us to commence the process of change. “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.”

The Old Testament, Isaiah 1:18.

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Diminishing Dependence

The successful recovery from addiction dependency enables the brain to re-sensitize and recondition the neurotransmitters to function normal again. The sub-conscious and the conscious portions of the mind needs time to diminish years of dependency rationalization; and opportunity for healing to remove their impact.

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Diminishing Dependence

Eventually the excess receptor neurotransmitters will become desensitized, and fewer will open expecting to receive dopamine, and the normal condition will eventually be restored. If a recovered addict ever takes a drug that supplies one artificial dose of dopamine, all the dormant receptors will open again. The receptors do not activate gradually, they activate immediately.

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Regaining Spiritual Independence

“The Twelve Steps addiction recovery program is a spiritual program of recovery that helps the addict reconnect and establish healthy relationships again with God and with other people. It is based on the only source that gives the power back to the individual to help them recover – the Atonement of our Savour, Jesus Christ

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Divine Mandate

Addiction recovery is just another element in the divine mandate: Jesus declared, “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.”

The New Testament, Matthew 25:43.

Let us all be our brother’s

keeper

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Overcome Addiction

&take Control