I read a personal account of a man who battled addiction for most of his life; he has a family, graduated college, and is a professional attorney — his name is Kent Scott (Scott, 2020). The piece on Mr. Kent put something into perspective for me: addiction affects everyone, not just individuals who are impoverished or emotionally broken. You see, Mr. Scott is successful in his personal and professional lives, including being a stellar academic during his college years. Interestingly, Mr. Scott never drank during college; he started consuming alcohol during his professional job as an attorney to cope with the stressors of such a demanding career (Scott, 2020), which snowballed reasonably quickly. He began manipulating people to help him enable his habitual alcohol use by providing opportunities for him to drink, including taking up for him when professional obligations were not met. Thankfully, Mr. Scott received the necessary treatment for his condition and is now in long-term recovery.
As a society, individuals suffering from substance use disorders are often erroneously stereotyped as an “addict, junkie, freak, or dopehead” who has no hope in life (Matthews et al., 2017), which is far from the truth. Addiction does not discriminate; it affects everyone from all walks of life. The disease of addiction (and yes, I firmly believe it is a disease of the brain) is a complex and multifactorial medical condition requiring a tailored treatment and recovery program for long-term success. Mr. Scott identified his problem, received the help that he needed, and is now sober.
It is important to note that addiction does not discriminate; it affects everyone, including mothers, fathers, daughters, sons, students, service industry workers, teachers, and attorneys. In some capacity, everyone has been affected either directly or indirectly by addiction, whether you know someone battling the disease or you are fighting it yourself. Most importantly, be patient, help others around you, get the help you need personally, and #BeTheChange!
Dr. Michael Leptic
References
Scott, K., (2020). Out from the darkness of addiction and into the light of recovery. Utah Bar Journal, 33(6), 44–48.
Matthews, S., Dwyer, R., & Snoek, A. (2017). Stigma and Self-Stigma in Addiction. Journal of bioethical inquiry, 14(2), 275–286. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11673-017-9784-y
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