The Disease Model

Dr. Deborah Gross

Once upon a time, all mental disorders, including eating disorders, gambling addiction, drug and alcohol addiction and sexual addiction (along with everything else in the compulsive spectrum) were thought of as wickedness, weakness, or both. Now we use what is called “the disease model” to talk about these things because (thank goodness) we know a lot more than we used to about them. We know that all addictions are compulsions and vice versa, which gives rise to the saying, popular in all the best recovery circles, “An addiction is an addiction is an addiction.”

From the standpoint of recovery, the specific substance or activity is less important than the recognition of the fact that someone who is suffering with this terrible problem feels driven, absolutely compelled to do, ingest, or focus on something that hurts her in body, mind, and spirit, wrecks her relationships, and keeps her from wholeness and wellness in life. As a well regarded researcher in the field, Dr. Doug Talbott, says, “The compulsion IS the disease.”

The scientific evidence for this position is mounting in all areas of research—clinical work with patients, family history studies, newer brain imaging techniques, and psychological research into what is called “addiction interaction.” The compulsion really is the disease. As one woman put it to me once, “I overeat and throw up just like my dad used to drink. It’s so out of control and I can’t make anybody see I need help just like he did.”

The difficulty in the medical sciences often lies in translating research evidence into clinical practice. Someone has to lead the way, and we all tend to resist change. At Pine Grove Women’s Center, however, we are committed to bringing you the most up to date, comprehensive care possible, using what has worked in the past to set a framework for making full use of the advances in the here and now.

Dr. Gross is Director of Psychiatry at Pine Grove Women’s Center, a residential program in Hattiesburg MS devoted to the treatment of addictions and eating disorders in women. She is also President and CEO of SeaStar: Tools for Creative Wellness and author of Food and Feelings: Scientifically Sound Self Help for Emotional Overeating.

Visit http://www.pinegrovetreatment.com/ or call 1-888-574-HOPE for more information.