Really understanding and getting to the root of the causes of alcoholism and drug addiction isn't straightforward - because they are complex illnesses by nature.
Genetic factors and the fact that alcoholism and addiction is hereditary in many cases, certainly does play a role. But that only explains part of the story because ultimately we're all shaped by our environmental influences - parents, family, peers, experiences, media etc.
Now when looking at the role psychology plays in alcoholism and drug addiction - a large part of our psychological makeup is formed in our early childhood years. Primarily through our parents and family environment.
If we are brought up in a home environment that is mostly supportive, loving, stable and secure - we'll tend to develop a healthy sense of who are, good self-esteem and be fairly well-adjusted.
Or if when we're young we, we have a more traumatic childhood - which could mean anything from losing a parent, having one of our parents addicted to drugs or alcohol, our parents divorcing, or anything that really effects us emotionally - it could result in us developing various ways to cope with that, which can then manifest in our lives in all sorts of different ways.
This could mean you find yourself developing a whole bunch of stuff - which could be anything from depression to anger, anxiety, different kinds of eating disorders and naturally various forms of addiction, including drugs and alcohol.
If you speak to someone who has suffered from alcoholism or drug addiction, chances are there will be something pretty traumatic that happened to them when they were young. Having a parent that struggled with alcoholism was my main one - and obviously the impact that then had on our family.
Naturally it doesn't always happen that way. You'll find many cases, I'm sure, of alcoholics and drug addicts that were brought up in a loving, stable and supportive environment. But hopefully when considering alcoholism and psychology and trying to understand the psychology of addiction - everything will make a lot more sense for you. - 15683
Genetic factors and the fact that alcoholism and addiction is hereditary in many cases, certainly does play a role. But that only explains part of the story because ultimately we're all shaped by our environmental influences - parents, family, peers, experiences, media etc.
Now when looking at the role psychology plays in alcoholism and drug addiction - a large part of our psychological makeup is formed in our early childhood years. Primarily through our parents and family environment.
If we are brought up in a home environment that is mostly supportive, loving, stable and secure - we'll tend to develop a healthy sense of who are, good self-esteem and be fairly well-adjusted.
Or if when we're young we, we have a more traumatic childhood - which could mean anything from losing a parent, having one of our parents addicted to drugs or alcohol, our parents divorcing, or anything that really effects us emotionally - it could result in us developing various ways to cope with that, which can then manifest in our lives in all sorts of different ways.
This could mean you find yourself developing a whole bunch of stuff - which could be anything from depression to anger, anxiety, different kinds of eating disorders and naturally various forms of addiction, including drugs and alcohol.
If you speak to someone who has suffered from alcoholism or drug addiction, chances are there will be something pretty traumatic that happened to them when they were young. Having a parent that struggled with alcoholism was my main one - and obviously the impact that then had on our family.
Naturally it doesn't always happen that way. You'll find many cases, I'm sure, of alcoholics and drug addicts that were brought up in a loving, stable and supportive environment. But hopefully when considering alcoholism and psychology and trying to understand the psychology of addiction - everything will make a lot more sense for you. - 15683
About the Author:
Carl-Peter writes more in depth on the Psychology of Alcoholism and Drug Addiction on his website. Pieces of his that are especially well-liked are the one on Depression and Alcoholism and the other one on Alcoholism and Anxiety.
