What is Addiction?

Addiction is a brain disease that includes the following four symptoms:

  • Craving--A strong need, or urge, to drink, use drugs or engage in a particular behavior.
  • Loss of control--Not being able to stop drinking, using drugs or engaging in a particular behavior.
  • Continued drinking, using drugs or engaging in a particular behavior despite consequences or harm
  • Compulsion to drink, use drugs or engage in a particular behavior

Is addiction a disease?
Yes, addiction is a bio psycho social and spiritual disease. The craving that an addict feels can be as strong as the need for food or water. An addict will continue to use despite serious family, health, or legal problems. Like many other diseases, addiction is chronic, relapsing and potentially fatal, meaning that it lasts a person's lifetime; it usually follows a predictable course; and it has symptoms. The risk for developing addiction is influenced both by a person's genes, childhood experiences, life coping skills, ability to manage their emotions and by his or her lifestyle.

Sexual Addiction

Sex addiction, like other addictions, is a maladaptive pattern of behavior, which involves persistent dependence on various forms of sexual expression in order to cope with the stresses of life. Like other addictions, there is a cyclical pattern of behavior, involving urges and cravings to engage in the behavior, a ritualistic way of planning and acting out the behavior, and a sense of relief and elation on engaging in the behavior, followed by a period of withdrawal and repeated cravings.

What makes sex addiction an addiction, as opposed to some other sexual problem, is this repetitive pattern of thought processes and behaviors, which continues despite negative consequences for the addict, and in some cases, for other people. The addictive behavior continues over an extended period of time, and once consequences become obvious and the addicted person is unable to stop the behavior, they feel they are losing control.