Drug Use, Recovery, & TCM

[Guest guest]

Hello all,

I have been following the discussion of " addiction " this

weekend and feel compelled to add my 1 cent(2 cents is not

what it used to be given the " state of the union " --USA). I

must begin by stating that I am a novice in the practice of

. I have been licensed only about 2 years

and as I live in a highly-saturated DOM town (Santa Fe, NM)

my practice has been limited.

 

I am however training to become a LADAC (Licensed Alcohol

and Drug Abuse Counselor) and have about 5 years of

experience with addicts, both teenage and adult (the

youngest being a 13-year old IV heroin user, the oldest

being a 67-year old IV cocaine user). I have some

relatively in-depth knowledge of 12-Step programs,

specifically Narcotics Anonymous. Given my limited

experience treating addiction w/acupuncture I must

none-the-less state my belief that addiction is a disease

of Shen (heart/spirit/soul). The recovery community

regards addiction as a disease of the spirit and as such,

" only the touch of a living Higher Power can heal an injury

to the spirit " . (p. 264, " Just For Today " )

 

While Kidney is a highly integral part of addiction (Will

and the lack thereof) and the other Zang Fu organ systems

are involved as well, there are MANY reasons people become

addicted. There is no one " cure " ; NADA protocol; verbal

counseling; co-occurring diagnosis w/subsequent APPROPRIATE

medications; art therapy; sand tray work, employment

counseling, case management;AA/NA membership...we speak of

patterns in and I also believe there are

patterns in recovery. Modalities are mutually supportive,

open-mindedness is the key.

 

I strongly encourage practitioners involved with recovering

addicts to read two texts generated by Narcotics Anonymous:

" The Basic Text " and " It Works: How and Why " . The inside

jacket cover of the basic text has written, " Many books

have been written about the nature of addiction. This book

primarily concerns itself with the nature of recovery " . It

behooves all people involved in recovery work to be as

" honest, open-minded, and willing " as the recovering

addicts with whom they are working.

 

The address is: World Service Office, Inc., P.O. Box 9999,

Van Nuys, CA, 91409. Ph#: (818) 780-3951. email:

www.na.org.

 

I claim no expertise in any field (yet), however, I sit in

groups and individual sessions day after day and hear the

story of each individual. I listen to what they say between

the words and develop a " treatment plan " for needling

(though our agency does not yet employ me to do so) and

most of all I listen. Generally, " drug addiction " is one's

way of medicating an illness; be it spiritual, emotional,

mental, physical. Seemingly (to me, anyway) as it

manifests physically, perhaps this is the opening for us to

apply needles to support the recovery process. Addiction

is not only about the drug... " The core of our disease

(addiction) is our total self-centeredness. " There is more

to recovery than just being clean. There is a way out of

the insanity...the love and support of one's Higher Power,

we just get to be part of that pattern.

Peace,

Daniel Craig, DOM, LSAT