Ms. Tery

Hello Diane,

Part of working with children and adults who have addictive personalities
and related disorders such as OCD is teaching them how to live with and
around what causes their problems. Stripping a child's home of televisions
wouldn't help the child because the rest of the world has televisions.
Teaching the child to recognize that they have a problem and then giving
them tools to work with helps. Some things have to be limited or controlled
by the parent until such time as the child is able to recognize the triggers
and how to use the "tools" to control their "addictions" or compulsions
themselves.

In rare cases the answer is the same as with an alcoholic, complete
abstinance. However, many alcoholics learn to live with alchol either in
their homes or in the perivery of their lives and learn to not use it
themselves. They also learn to use "tools" to continue to abstain.
Fortunately in lots of non-substance addictions, learning to use "tools"
makes life much easier and definable as being within the parameters known as
"the norm."

Tery


>
>Message: 21
> Date: Sun, 09 Sep 2001 14:22:20 -0700
> From: Diane <cen46624@...>
>Subject: Re: Addictive Personality Disorder
>
>If I were seriously concerned that a person in my family were actually
>addicted
>to something, I don't think I could in good faith have it in the home, even
>if
>other family members like it.
>
>How could I allow this person to see everyone else in the family enjoying
>it,
>and not want it?
>
>Does this sound cruel to anyone else?
>
>Not attacking, just confused. If it's really an addiction, like alcohol,
>why the
>different treatment?
>
>:-) Diane


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