DRUG ISSUES
There are, of course, distinctive aspects to
undertaking therapy within the addiction field. Dependency on
chemicals—either physiological or -psychological--is the prime one, along with
the -craving- that is frequently reported to accompany it. Further,
addicts are commonly involved in a drug subculture with their peers
and use a unique language, much like the subcultures that develop
in street gangs. In addition, because they use substances that are
normally illegal, addicts often become involved in criminal behavior, in many
cases spending periods of their lives incarcerated.*
Our general tendency in addressing the above
features of addic-tion is to respect them as valid. They are both true—at least
at some level of interpretation—and an integral part of the addiction tradi-tion. On the other hand, we
consider it prudent not to be too easily seduced by these notions,
because they can readily be embraced by clients and families as reasons not to change.
For instance, one of the favorite (mythical)
arguments for not detoxifying rapidly from nar-cotics is the supposedly hellish experience it engenders, a notion that has been fostered by the media. From this view,
only a sadistic therapist would
suggest such a course of action. On the other hand, Milton Erickson noted years ago that heroin
addicts undergoing detoxification
only complained when someone else was nearby who could provide an audience. The truth of the matter is that, while rapid detoxification from barbiturates and some other
drugs may indeed be life-threatening,
detoxification from most levels of opioids is an uncomfortable
experience—much like influenza—but hardly hellish.' Consequently, while we tend not to engage in direct controversy with a family on such issues, we do try to keep such
notions in perspective and to note
when they are possibly being used as ploys of resistance.
While the bulk of the material in this volume
deals with narcotics addicts, we do not believe that the principles
set forth are necessarily limited only to this group. Many of them apply
to abusers of other psychotropic substances and, as Haley66
emphasizes, even to other symptom groups at similar life cycle stages.
Also, they may have utility with other families with a young
substance abuser who has not progressed to the point of narcotic addiction,
but would eventually
