Photo Credit:mateusz-waclawek-unsplash
Quotes are from The Centre for Healing, Cece Sykes, Dr. Dan Sumrok, Gabor Mate
Overview
Addiction is often rooted in deep, early, feelings and experiences of shame and lack and hurt. Sharing your story or experience of addiction and pain with someone else usually results in punishment, increased shame from others, or misunderstanding. This just keeps the cycle of pain and addiction repeating.
“There is never an excuse, but always a reason.”
“Addiction shouldn’t be called “addiction”. It should be called “ritualized compulsive comfort-seeking”.
“The question is not why the addiction, but why the pain.”
“Alcoholics are just like everybody else, only more so.” (Addictive parts more entrenched.)
More info can be found on this page HERE
From the view of Embodied Processing and Polyvagal Theory:
People often say the addictive behaviour is an attempt to get Home, a longing to experience their true self. From a nervous system perspective the behaviour is actually trying to find Home….ostasis. (Balance.)
Within every single human being lies the Compulsion to Escape. Underlying emotional trauma, held within the body & nervous system is what drives this gauge up. When the gauge hits the point of ‘overheating’ the compulsion to escape will be too great for someone to control. Will power does not work here. People with addiction issues are ‘overheating’ all the time.
I recently enjoyed a small workshop examining addiction from the IFS (Internal Family Systems) point of view. Here are some notes.
Addiction from the IFS Perspective-Emotional Pain
Multiplicity of the mind is normal, but it is not easy and can feel chaotic. We all have parts. Most of us are just unaware of them.
- Exile-holding the pain
- Manager-trying to proactively plan and avoid the pain of an exile
- Firefighter-reactively, impulsively trying to soothe the pain of an exile after it surfaces.
We all have firefighters or soothers , whether these lead to higher risk or lower risk behaviors
- Wanting novelty, spice, a little sweetness, a desire to take a break and relax.
- These help us both to medicate and to bring balance to our internal system.
- Any behavior can become a firefighter, from common addictions, to shopping, work, love, food, codependency, etc.
We all have young parts
- Innocent, trusting, playful, sensitive
- These can become burdened exiles holding pain, beliefs, hurt
- Parts that are exiles needed something at an earlier time in our life and did not receive it. They needed a kind, compassionate, present adult. Now we can give that to these young parts.
- They are in pain in isolation. So using IFS and imagery and visualizations, we can connect with them and help fill their need.
We all have managers
- Planners, schedulers, task-doers, accomplishers, care-givers, analyzers
Goal of addiction work is to help client to feel that they are living in a balanced system
All parts always have a positive intent for us. They were formed in response to our environment and experiences to help us survive. In a burdened system, such as someone who is an addict, these parts take on extreme roles, or jobs, and become VERY POLARIZED.
- The Managers are fighting and critical against the firefighters and exiles. The Firefighters are critical and fighting toward the managers. But each is doing their job in the way they think is best overall.
When working with addiction, is important to look at the whole system and how it is functioning, not just viewing it as one problem, or as a symptom of one problem.
If in an addictive process, the client is constantly pinging around from avoiding the pain, to feeling the pain, to escaping the pain, to judging themselves for how they escaped the pain. There is very little space. The client is blended with these parts possibly every day over and over again. They need to not just unblend from one part but to start to see their own pattern.
- Not just one part, but what does the client’s system look like? What is their pattern? What triggers affect the parts?
- Some options were demonstrated of externalizing the internal system of parts using a table and chairs or a campfire. Or using objects or drawing to visualize these different parts.
The importance of getting in relationship and getting in connection, not getting in control.
The importance of seeing that there is a difference between the SELF and the Parts
- Yes there may be a part that wants to use a substance
- Yes there may be a part that doesn’t want to change and doesn’t care if your life spirals out of control
- BUT those are Parts of you. That is not you in SELF. The core of you that wants to move forward, improve, and get your life back.
This is often slow work. We look for slow, small, changes.
The importance of compassion and understanding without judgment.
The idea of a 9th “C” for the SELF in IFS: CHOICE
- The importance of connecting with these parts and asking: “What if there was another way? What if we could work together in a more balanced way where you (the manager) could get what you need, and you (the firefighter) could get what you need?
Not Just Emotional Triggers
Addiction is often connected and rooted to emotional triggers from the past. But let’s look again at the above quote from the article on addiction from The Centre for Healing:
From a nervous system perspective the behaviour is actually trying to find Home….ostasis. (Balance.) Within every single human being lies the Compulsion to Escape. Underlying emotional trauma, held within the body & nervous system is what drives this gauge up. When the gauge hits the point of ‘overheating’ the compulsion to escape will be too great for someone to control. Will power does not work here. People with addiction issues are ‘overheating’ all the time.
ANYTHING that shifts our nervous system deeper into the zones of fight, flight, freeze, fawn, and collapse can increase our tendency to seek out addictive or compulsive behaviors in order to find some level of balance, some level of “cooling” down the “overheating.” Does that make sense?
Let’s talk about some possible triggers that are not necessarily emotional, but can put added stress on the NERVOUS SYSTEM, LIVER, GUT, BRAIN, OR OTHER PARTS OF THE BODY leading you back toward addiction.
Some Non-emotional Trigger Examples
- What is most helpful to you individually?
- If anything below is a trigger or added burden for you, could you reduce or eliminate it?
- Could you eliminate foods or supplements for a period of time, and then slowly reintroduce them back one by one, to find out what works for you and what doesn’t work?
- Could you find a form that works better for you or try an organic option that may be tolerated?
Alcohol-Alcohol can burden your liver and your nervous system and make it easier for you to turn to other addictions. Alcohol is a toxic substance that your liver takes priority to detox above other toxins, and as your body’s energy is going into clearing it, the energy for the rest of your body and nervous system can struggle. The intake and detox of alcohol can also shift your nervous system into fight/flight/and freeze responses.
Caffeine and chocolate-Caffeine is a stimulant and a drug and may push your nervous system into fight and flight mode. It can also disturb your sleep, which will impact your nervous system further. Chocolate, especially dark chocolate can be too strong of a stimulant for some people.
Not getting enough calories, carbs, fats, and protein that we need-Overly restricting what our body needs to build neurotransmitters, hormones, to detoxify, to provide energy, to stabilize , and to rebuild and repair damage, can shift us toward craving and addiction. Also, fasting may not work for everybody and can put the body into stress and sympathetic activation mode.
Fiber-While soluble and insoluble fiber is important and necessary for many reasons, some people can feel bloated, lethargic, cold, or sick with too much fiber. And some people can feel poorly from not having enough fiber. Oats and barley can be an especially strong source of fiber and may cause issues for some.
All medications can affect your nervous system, liver, and gut in various ways.
Supplements and personal care products-For some of us, especially if we are sensitive or hypersensitive, any supplement, herb, mineral, personal care product, etc, can affect our nervous system, gut, liver, and many parts of our body.
Dairy-Dairy is an important source of calcium and potassium, but it can cause significant issues for many people.
Gluten-Grains are an important source of carbohydrates, fiber, and mineral, but gluten can cause significant issues for many people.
Glyphosate-This herbicide that is in much of our food and water can cause very strong reactions in some people. It is never good, but some people seem to tolerate it without so many noticeable effects as other individuals.
Oxalate toxicity-Excess oxalate crystals and the mobilization or detox of oxalates can create a wide range of issues from insomnia, chronic pain, inflammation, nervous system activation, and more. Some high oxalate food examples are spinach, rhubarb, beets, many nuts, some fruits, many beans, many grains, especially whole grains, chocolate, soy products, potatoes, tea, and others.
Supplements and foods that affect the balance, movement, or detox of other minerals or oxalates-While some people can find vitamins and minerals very helpful, some can have strong reactions to them. Zinc can affect copper. Molybdenum can affect copper and iron. Copper can affect iron, molybdenum, zinc and flouride. Iodine can be very stimulating in a sensitive system and can affect the detox of several things. Calcium could be calming or activating. Calcium can affect iron and copper. Calcium can mobilize and detox oxalates. Magnesium can be stimulating for some people. Magnesium can mobilize and detox oxalates. B-vitamins could be activating for the nervous system. There are dozens of ways that anything we take in can interact with metals, or minerals, or substances already in our body.
High antioxidant and high polyphenol foods and fruits-Fruits can be cooling and triggering and shift the nervous system into a freeze state and put a burden on the liver and detox pathways for some people. Some examples are darkly colored fruits, berries, vegetables, cocoa powder and chocolate, teas, some spices, and more.
High salicylate foods
Food dyes/colorings/processed foods
Sulfur foods and sulfites
Anything that affects your sleep and wake cycles
Added stress from overworking, overdoing, excessive care-taking and neglecting time for yourself
Not having a sense of purpose or meaning in our life
Not having a community that supports us how we need
Anything else you know is a personal trigger
Support
I try my best to hold a non-judgmental and curious space for you. I’m well acquainted with these cycles and patterns from my own experience, and I am aware of how bad and disheartening it feels when others are not offering us the support we need.
If you are interested, we can explore the majority of these factors above in sessions and start to get more clarity and perspective on your personal triggers and parts.
Note: It appears that making sure your body is in balance when it comes to minerals especially calcium, magnesium, iron, copper, and molybdenum can have a very significant positive effect on addictions and cravings. I hope to write more on the nutritional area of things in the future.
*Notice: I’m glad to provide these resources to empower your personal health journey, not as a substitute for professional medical care. While I encourage sharing links, please respect the intellectual property of Mountain and Meadow Health, LLC. You are responsible for your own health outcomes. Consult with your trusted health advocates before making significant changes. Contact Evan Ritter for professional licensing.”
