{"id":31,"date":"2010-11-08T16:21:32","date_gmt":"2010-11-08T16:21:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/medicinetomoveyou\/2010\/11\/are-you-an-everyday-addict.html"},"modified":"2010-11-08T16:21:32","modified_gmt":"2010-11-08T16:21:32","slug":"are-you-an-everyday-addict","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/medicinetomoveyou\/2010\/11\/are-you-an-everyday-addict.html","title":{"rendered":"Are You an Everyday Addict?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Addiction is a word that conjures up many images- usually of
\nthe heroin addict, the alcoholic or the chain smoker.  <\/span>But have you ever thought about whether or not
\nyou might have an addiction to something less melodramatic?  <\/span>Did you ever think that your attachment to your
\ncoffee was something more than your love for a hot, comforting liquid?  <\/span>Could you go without it if I were to tell you
\nthat the caffeine in it could be worsening your anxiety disorder, for example?  <\/span>Could you pass up <\/span>the soft, doughy, magical white bread served
\nhot out of the oven at most restaurants before your main course?  <\/span>Did you know that if you have an unhealthy
\nattachment to sugar or refined white starches, that bread starts a vicious
\nroller coaster of craving the rest of the day? 
\n<\/span>That piping hot bread spiked your blood sugar up to abnormally high
\nlevels.  <\/span>That caused a surge of insulin
\nhormone to be released into your bloodstream to try to get all that
\nsugar\/starch out of the blood.  <\/span>It likely
\nover-surged in its emergency state and your blood sugar started
\nplummeting.  <\/span>So what is your body to do
\nwith rapidly falling blood sugar?  <\/span>It knows
\nthat if it continues, you will get weak, jittery, nauseated and feel like
\npassing out.  <\/span>So, your brain decides
\n(especially if you have that addictive hankering for starchy and sweet foods)
\nthat it better get you to eat something that will bring the blood sugar back up…
\nand quick!  <\/span>So, you make a run for the
\npantry- maybe for some chips, soda, pastry, cookies or whatever you can find
\nthat takes care of your ‘fix.’  <\/span> <\/span>That ‘fix’ is your addiction.  <\/span>Substitute caffeine, fat, sugar, salt, social
\nalcohol and the scenario could still stand. 
\n<\/span>If one side of your brain convinces you to do something you rationally
\nand logically know is not good for you, you might as well accept you could be
\nan addict.<\/p>\n

I am an addict.  <\/span>I
\nhave never smoked a cigarette in my life. 
\n<\/span>I drink alcohol very rarely- maybe twice or thrice a year at most.  <\/span>I do not drink any caffeinated beverages
\nregularly- maybe several times a year. 
\n<\/span>(I am actually too lazy to make coffee or tea every morning in order to
\nfuel my habit.)  <\/span>BUT, you put some
\npackaged soft, chewy cookies in my pantry or put some freshly baked croissants
\nin front of me, and I become a different person.  <\/span>I used to rationalize a really good, very
\nplausible reason why I deserved the cookies or bread in years past.  <\/span>That’s what a good addictive brain does for
\nyou.  <\/span>These days, my brain still tries to
\ndo the same thing.  <\/span>It’s just like a
\nrecovered alcoholic at a bar.  <\/span>Just
\nbecause he has gone without his addictive substance for some time, the brain
\nstill has the memory of its unhealthy relationship with drinking and will still
\ntry to get him to drink “just one drink.” 
\n<\/span>I find myself telling our waiter to not bring the bread to the table as
\nsoon as we sit down.  <\/span>Why then?  <\/span>Because it’s MUCH harder to send it back once
\nmy brain sees it.  <\/span>You know what I am
\ntalking about!<\/p>\n

As for me, I believe things happen for a reason.  <\/span>Why do I believe this?  <\/span>Well, I was diagnosed with a wheat allergy
\nand have become gluten free for 2+ years now. 
\n<\/span>What a comedy (or horror story based on whether you choose the hero or
\nthe victim role) the girl in love with bread- gets diagnosed with essentially a
\nbread, cookie, pasta, pizza allergy!!!  <\/span>I
\ncouldn’t have asked for a better diagnosis. 
\n<\/span>(I say that now… on August 15, 2008 when I was diagnosed, I definitely
\ndidn’t think this.  <\/span>Seriously, it felt
\nlike a death sentence.  <\/span>Like a good
\naddict, I remember that date so clearly in my brain.)  <\/span>I tell you my story as it is more common than
\nthe heroin addicts, alcoholics and chain smokers.  <\/span>You must evaluate your attachment to
\nunhealthy practices in your life if you truly want to live your best life.  <\/span>The potentially addictive side of your brain
\nmight not have allowed you to really explore those issues because it would be
\nthe end of its reign as King or Queen of the Castle known as your body.  <\/span>But, it’s time to dethrone that dictator and
\nget on with your life, unshackled to habits that make you feel sick and
\ndiseased.  <\/span>The first step is awareness.<\/p>\n

As an Integrative Medicine physician, we prioritize the correction
\nof addictive lifestyles every single day in the office.  <\/span>Actually, it is THE main therapy that
\ncorrects most chronic diseases that Americans suffer with today.  <\/span>Think about it… heart disease, high blood
\npressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, many cancers, strokes, ADHD – all of
\nthese can be avoided and even treated by getting control of your head.  <\/span>I could even go so far as to say there is
\nlikely no health condition that could not improve with better lifestyle.  <\/span>The truth is, the next time you reach for
\nsomething that ‘feels good,’ you must evaluate if it is helping your body (as
\nthough it were healing medicine) or it is harming your body (like a poisonous
\nsubstance).  <\/span>It’s that easy to
\nidentify.  <\/span>The work comes in the process
\nfollowing, but if you’ve ever talked to someone who has quit or recovered from
\ntheir addiction, there is no other way they would live their life after seeing
\nthe benefits of freedom from addiction.<\/p>\n

Good luck in your awareness seeking today.  <\/span>I hope you come closer to identifying those
\nthings that drag you away from healthful happiness so you can inch closer to
\nthat optimum feeling of true goodness that the smart side of your brain really
\nseeks!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Addiction is a word that conjures up many images- usually of the heroin addict, the alcoholic or the chain smoker.  But have you ever thought about whether or not you might have an addiction to something less melodramatic?  Did you ever think that your attachment to your coffee was something more than your love for…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":220,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,3,4,10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-31","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-embrace-change","category-everyday-health-tips","category-healthy-eating","category-mindful-medicine"],"yoast_head":"\nAre You an Everyday Addict? - Medicine to Move You<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/medicinetomoveyou\/2010\/11\/are-you-an-everyday-addict.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Are You an Everyday Addict? - Medicine to Move You\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Addiction is a word that conjures up many images- usually of the heroin addict, the alcoholic or the chain smoker.  But have you ever thought about whether or not you might have an addiction to something less melodramatic?  Did you ever think that your attachment to your coffee was something more than your love for…\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/medicinetomoveyou\/2010\/11\/are-you-an-everyday-addict.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Medicine to Move You\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2010-11-08T16:21:32+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Dr. Shilpa P. 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