Treating Addiction as a Human Process

Individuals with addictive disorders feel either too much or too little; they are over-controlled or out-of-control. To fathom and treat the causes and consequences of their suffering, the author of this work focuses on a psychodynamic perspective. He sees psychological symptoms as adaptations, attempts to solve problems; the clinician’s role is to assess where the psychological structure needs understanding and repair. Deficits in affect, self-esteem, relationships and self-care surface repeatedly in the addictive equation and lead to Khantzian’s view of the use of addictive substances as coping agents. This perspective evolves into a concern with the sufferer’s disordered personality and its insidious interaction with his addictive vulnerability.