As I speak to people about my condition the subject almost always turns to various medications. Many people that suffer anxiety are afraid of the medications because of the side effects...which is understandable as some of them are not pleasant. Many more seem concerned with becoming addicted to the medication. This is especially true with Xanax.
My opinion is that many people are confusing addiction with dependency. When I think of an addiction I think of someone that wants the drug to alter their perspective not because they are sick and want to be well again, but more in a recreational way. We take Xanax because we NEED it to function, not because we want it to make us feel different. If we felt OK all the time, we would never have begun using it. In fact, even now I only use it to sleep and if I feel anxiety coming on. I suppose dont have to have it but my quality of life is greatly deteriorated without it. Migrane sufferers [b]need[/b] their meds, they arent addicted to them.
No one thinks the diabetic is addicted to insulin, the heart transplant patient is addicted to the anti-rejection drugs or the arthritic is addicted to Alleve. Why are we "addicted" if we need a certain drug to maintain a normal mental life? I agree we are [b]dependent[/b] and that in itself may be troublesome for many people. For me, if I need to take Xanax (or any other meds) for the rest of my life so that I can function in a normal way then I will choose dependency.
I realize that this may be a contradictory position but it just seems that the word "addiction" has such a negative connotation that is usually associated with individuals not looking to help themselves feel normal but rather to remove themselves from the normalcy of their existance. That is not what we are doing.
Anne-Marie, I would be interested in your opinion on this and of course it this subject is inappropriate please feel free to delete it.
Thanks for reading
Mike
