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There is a connection between expressive art and drug addiction – some say a connection as between drug addiction and mental illness.

An interesting article appears in the November 2010 Scientific American entitled – The Mad Artist’s Brain- the Connection between Creativity and Mental Illness.

There are probably two types of artist in our society. One looks at recreational options – chooses watercolor made easy and pays for a 10 week term.

The other feels a need to create, whether it be a painting, sculpture or an engraving – they feel a tension, a need to express something in their art. There is a relationship between expressive art, addiction and mental illness. All are a compulsive response to trauma, and are person’s attempts to resolve it.

When the art that appears is pretty and nice, we welcome this passionate artist. He stirs our emotions, makes us “feel” – we buy his paintings for our walls, our relatives and friends.

When the art that appears disturbs us, we move into repressive mode – this art, whilst undoubtedly inspired, is clearly the result of a disturbed mind. We don’t like it or want it, or to find out what it means. It is speedily removed – such is the fate of graffiti.

Painters who manage to get their work exposed to public view will find that people buy it because it is trendy, provoking. They don’t understand it, but buy it because it is exciting and might have investment potential. Such is the fate of painters like Picasso.

All artists who find a need to express their feelings via art generally have had difficulties in otherwise expressing emotions. Art becomes a medium for the expression of an artist’s feelings.

The nature of mental illness is poorly understood. There is an infinite spectrum of human personalities and emotions that every one of us “could” be – or suffer from – depending on life circumstances.

Anyone exposed to trauma has the potential to become diagnosed as mentally ill.

People exposed to trauma find that their personality and emotions can be distorted. A plant clipped and cut to fit to a trellis never has the same appearance as a plant allowed to grow free. Much the same can be said of a person who has had to adapt their way of being to survive trauma in their life. Expressive art and drug addiction are both responses to trauma.

The use of art as a means of expression enables a person who feels overwhelmed by trauma, to find a means of “speaking” so as to hopefully achieve a resolution to the trauma.

Expressive art is in many ways an extension of our dreams. Art and dreams can be revealing of our feelings, a pathway to understanding our trauma, and can help addiction recovery.

People can find that their attempted expression of traumatic experience is branded as being “insane” – the person diagnosed as “mentally ill”.

If expressive art is talked about in terms of what it means, it is often an effective way to help people to understand and resolve their emotional issues.

Using art in holistic counseling can help to mediate a common language as between the artist and society. Art in counseling can open up communication and bring about understanding.

Expressive art fails to achieve its purpose when it is merely displayed at the latest NFP exhibition of paintings for sale, and used to generate money and funding. It is not more money that people need to help drug addicts and the mentally ill – but some common understanding.

Recently, a Global Commission of the World Health Organisation made recommendations that nations support further experimentation in the field of evidence based, drug assisted substance abuse recovery. Still hoping and searching for, it would seem, that elusive chemical “silver bullet” that will put an end to drug use and the problem of addiction.

Progress in this field today has been singularly unsuccessful, with researchers starting to sound very much like an old and broken down record player, doomed to keep repeating the track, because the needle is stuck in the groove. More time, more money is at their disposal but still the needle is stuck.

Alternative healers and those who currently run successful drug addiction recovery programs are somewhat pained to keep hearing the same old tune. The public waits in hope.

All that has been achieved by attempted drug control of substance abuse and addiction has been to provide approved prescription drugs for users, that they continue to use, that are similar in chemical structure to the illicit drugs available on the street. These are called “maintenance drug” treatment programs, that deal with substance abuse at a physical level, and that don’t even pretend to be dealing with the issue of addiction.

Maintenance drug programs don’t have the intention of serving the needs of the drug abusing population. All drug maintenance programs treat substance abuse and addiction as a public health issue to be resolved by a process of band aids and mirrors. The process of providing substance abusers with a government approved alternative, such as methadone is very much like a mother who says to her son, don’t shoot up heroin in the street, what will the neighbors think – why not stay at home with me and share my oxycodone – a win-win outcome for all.

Providers of comprehensive methods for complete drug addiction recovery put the needs of the drug addict first, and provide a genuine, nurturing environment in which full recovery from drug use and addiction is routinely achieved. Comprehensive substance abuse recovery programs have a totally different approach to the issue of continued drug use by commencing with a detox program that is effective, safe and drug free – weaning the addict completely from the liebfraumilch and tafelweins of the drug dependent world.

The fundamental issue as between the two schools of thought is whether or not it is possible to achieve full addiction recovery. Maintenance programs operate on the assumption that an addict can never be free of their cravings and addiction, and that a managed drug program together with social and emotional support is the best that can be achieved. Success is described as not using illicit drugs, not becoming addiction free. The relapse rate is high.

Comprehensive methods for drug addiction recovery deal with the causes of addiction. The causes of drug addiction are emotional problems and tensions, that rapidly become intensified when continued drug use starts to disrupt the ability of the addict to address his problems at both a physical and emotional level.

There is no addict on earth who does not want, at an intellectual level, to be free of their addiction – yet, when tensions and emotional issues arise, it is straight to the drugs that the addict goes, overriding his best intentions. Comprehensive treatment programs provide courses of study that enable the addict to feel more empowered in their life, and so be able to resolve the issues that lead to emotional stress and tension.

When people have a tension headache, there is always a cause. People who make lifestyle changes that provide less stress and better self nurturing will create a situation in which headaches no longer occur. People who use a painkiller medication, will gain temporary relief, at cost of taking the symptom as a signal to make changes in their life.

The more a person becomes tolerant of, and dependent upon a drug, the less effective it will be, and the dose might have to be increased to bring about the same relief. At the same time, the body becomes increasingly disabled from achieving a natural recovery. This outcome is precisely the opposite of what the drug user intends to achieve. It is the paradox of drug use that what we first use to ease our pain, then has to be used continuously to resolve the pain that it causes by way of rebound and adverse side effects.

The person who makes the choice to self nurture and make changes in their life, naturally becomes independent, with no cravings for or addiction to drugs. The reason for the demand for drugs has been eradicated, there is no more addictive behavior or desire to use drugs. making changes

Given free choice and information, people would all prefer a life without drug use and addiction – this is the reason why comprehensive drug treatment providers continue to provide their services, and public information. The war against drugs will only be won when we give up our demand for drugs, and learn how to make better choices.

We do hear about alcoholics and alcoholism all the time as a lot of people suffer from this disease round the world. Yes! Alcoholism is a disease. Also known as alcohol dependence over many a country, it can be classified as one of the addictive disorders that make a person dependant on consumption of alcoholic products. This uncontrolled intake of alcohol is a serious issue as it can lead to several organ failures, mental disorder, violent nature and disorders that may lead to death. There are cases of thousands of deaths reported due to excessive alcohol consumption each year and the numbers keep growing with passing time. However one good thing about alcoholism is that it is completely treatable. All one needs to do is gather the inner strength to do it and seek help from a rehabilitation center or experts who understand the pro’s and con’s of the trade. These rehabilitation centers are situated all over the world and are more than eager to help once approached.

Alcoholism does not just occur due to a person’s failure to stop themselves from consuming alcohol. It can be a family trait, or a result of inherent lifestyle. Researchers suggest there are cases where influences caused by genes may also lead to alcoholism but it is ultimately certain factors such as availability of alcohol, stress, hereditary likeliness of alcohols that leads to these problems. As I said earlier, alcoholism is absolutely treatable but it is not curable. Alcoholics always tend to relapse and start drinking alcohol all over again ever after a long gap of regular drinking. Hence the best option is not to drink at all. This is exactly what the treatment and rehabilitation centers try and enforce so as to keep things normal.

Treatment centers employ carefully studied and created rehabilitation program’s with expert involvement to help reduce a person’s dependency on alcohol. These include physical, counseling and medical sessions regularly over a continuous period of time that aims on reducing alcohol intake and a better life. Some institutes for help and rehabilitation resort to meditation as well to help stabilize people who become violent or mentally unstable as a result of no alcohol.

Generally, the medication provided for alcohol dependence include “disulfiram”, “naltrexone”, and “acamprosate” to help attain abstinence. Most of these medications are either provided orally or by injection. However the medication part of anti alcoholic program is not as easy as it seems. Most patients suffer from side effects like shivering, nausea, sweating when suddenly asked to stop alcohol intake suddenly. Hence, certain drugs are also provided alongside to help deal with the agony. Also, different people respond to the same drugs in separate fashions which required further observations. Though researchers are continuously in a process of finding more and more drugs for treatment, there is no such drug which can cure all of it at one time. Together all these things and a person’s will is basically the key that helps reduce dependence on alcohols and maintain sobriety.