The idea that addiction is a behavioral choice and not the result of a brain repeatedly being subjected to addictive substances is inconsistent with what scientists are learning about how the addicted brain functions. If, as Schaler states, anyone can stop or moderate their use anytime they want to, why don’t they? Why are there people who want to quit using and can’t? And if using addictive drugs is just a choice, how would one explain the concept of relapse or addicts in recovery who have to learn how to successfully resist the incessant urge to use again? His claim that anyone can stop or moderate their use anytime they want to is illogical.
After detoxification it is imperative that the addict continues treatment, which may include counseling, self-help groups or a combination of the two. Counseling is typically executed with a psychologist or psychiatrist. This is the point when the addict may undergo behavior therapies. These therapies can teach the addict ways and methods to cope with the addiction and its symptoms; for example, cravings, temptation to relapse, and what to do if the addict does relapse. The counseling will be more successful if it involves the addict’s friends and family as well [ (Drug Addiction, 2007)
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has such a problem with alcoholism is because the legal age of drinking is twenty-one. According to the newspaper article Should the Legal Drinking Age Be Lowered, written by Lindsay Bolles states the idea of the reactance theory. “The reactance theory says that when people feel their freedom is somehow threatened, they are motivated to indulge in the threatened behavior just to prove that their free will is not compromised.” (Bolles) When the legal age of drinking is twenty-one some people feel that this goes against their free will and think that they should have the right to choose to drink or not. Some people may see drinking alcohol before the age of twenty one as a way of rebellion or a way of showing adulthood and maturity. These views that some people have are the reasons why underage people drink as much and as often as they do.