Is treatment different for physically addictive substances, such as cigarettes and alcohol, and ‘lifestyle’ addictions, such as shopping?
There is no such thing as a physically addictive drug. All that hooks you is the illusion that you get some genuine pleasure from it. Remove the illusion and you remove the addiction. Let’s deal with drugs first: non-addicts have no need or desire to consume addictive drugs and neither do addicts until they take the first dose. The only reason that addicts continue to do so is due to the withdrawal effect: when the drug is leaving their bodies it creates an empty, insecure feeling, almost identical to a hunger for food. Addicts believe that they only suffer withdrawal pangs when they try to give up the drug. In fact, they suffer them throughout their addicted lives and this is the only reason they continue to take the drug. The problem is that withdrawal pangs work back to front. For example, it is when smokers aren’t smoking that they suffer them, and the moment they light up, the nicotine is replaced and the empty, insecure feeling is partially relieved. The smoker does actually feel
