Addiction is a modern epidemic which has taken thousands of lives and diminished countless more worldwide. In our last article, we defined the phenomena: 'continued use of substances, such as alcohol, drugs, or food, or processes, such as gambling, shopping and sex despite increasingly negative consequences'. We saw that the 12-step programs' description of alcoholism (essentially, the same as addiction) 'a physical allergy linked to a mental obsession rooted in a spiritual malady', qualifies addiction/alcoholism as, perhaps, the first truly holistic disease.

We looked past Yoga's current form (group stretch classes), to its original essence: an elegant spiritual psychology offering an intimate student/teacher relationship and multi-faceted personal practice as the rich context and tools for healing and transformation. Clearly, to reduce the symptoms and reverse the causes of addiction, Yoga, properly presented, can help.

THE POWER TO CHANGE

We learned that Samkhya, Yoga's sister philosophy, posits a formless consciousness at the core of each individual as the foundation for all positive change. When conditions are right (sattvic), this unchanging seer, or 'cit' imbues our lives with abundant confidence, wisdom, and joy. The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Yoga's foundation text, is a guidebook for cultivating more sattvic conditions.

We saw that Yoga perceives the human system as five interconnected, interactive dimensions or 'mayas'. The first layer is the gross physical body, or annamaya (The entirety of Western Medicine is confined to this level.) Moving inward, we find the more subtle energy or breath body, the pranamaya, guiding our physiological functions. Next is the manomaya, or mental layer, which incorporates the senses, processes information, and executes behavior. Then, the vijnanamaya, the conditioned mind, home of our preferences and values. Finally, closest to the core, is the

anandamaya, or emotional body, representing our inherent potential for a lifetime of increasingly sustained joy.

Finally we examined Yoga's healing methodology: 1) observing the symptoms (heyam), 2) discovering the cause (hetu), 3) setting a goal (hanam), and 4) implementing the proper tools (upayam). This classical therapeutic model is highly effective whether the problem presents as physical, physiological, mental or emotional, or in the case of addiction, a combination.

SPIRALING DOWN

While addiction creates negative symptoms at every level (see previous article), the deepest problems exist in the subtle levels of mind, values and emotions, the mano, vijnana and ananda mayas. We can better understand these effects by examining the disease's progression, commonly called 'the addictive cycle'.

The cycle begins when an individual is exposed (by parents, teacher or peers) to negative mental patterns and behaviors, such as violence, dishonesty, hypocrisy, perfectionism, or severe, prolonged criticism. This accumulated negativity creates uncomfortable emotions, anger, shame and guilt, as well as a general discontentment with oneself and the world. When individuals, so conditioned, ingest alcohol or drugs (or act out) for the first time, they experience an instant bliss, a sudden transcendence from their usual state of being. As most addicts will attest, indulging in the substance or activity was, initially, a euphoric relief from years of conscious or unconscious suffering. As the user usually lacks the necessary insight, support or tools to resolve their issues, the temporary freedom from negative thoughts and emotions is a powerful incentive to indulge with greater frequency and intensity.

IT JUST GETS WORSE

Prolonged use leads to a lifestyle which is increasingly addiction-centered. Feeling guilty, the individual attempts to hide their habit from those they are closest to. As the addiction escalates, behavior becomes more obsessive and erratic, until, eventually, family, friends and coworkers begin to express their concerns. Unfortunately, the addict usually responds to their heartfelt appeals with powerful defense mechanisms (denial, delusionality, and rationalization), an intrinsic part of the addictive cycle. At this point the addict is incapable of processing negative feedback or modifying their behavior in any sustainable way. (Note: periodic abstinence, the addict's ability to temporarily or intermittently exhibit control over their behavior, rather than a sign of progress, is merely another confounding characteristic of the addictive cycle.)

As irresponsible behavior and dishonesty increases, so do feelings of shame and guilt. Over time, life conditions worsen, and the individual becomes more isolated, angry, and hopeless. Simultaneously, the addict develops a tolerance, needing more of the substance or activity to feel the same comfort and joy. Eventually, the cycle is complete. The individual has degenerated from user, to abuser, to full-blown addict.

While the cycle is consistent regardless of the drug (or process), some substances, such as crack cocaine, create a more accelerated, dramatic decline (everything falls apart), while others, like the socially acceptable, but insidious marijuana, exhibit milder effects such as lethargy, low-grade depression, and a life which, while sustainable, consistently fails to improve.

FOOL YOURSELF

Addiction manifests in the manomaya as severe mental mismanagement. The addict's ability to learn and grow from life experiences is profoundly diminished by the mechanisms of denial, delusionality and rationalization.

Denial is defined as, 'rejecting facts despite clear evidence of their veracity'. This includes denying the fact entirely, ('I didn't get fired because of my drinking, the company was just downsizing), minimizing the seriousness of the fact, (‘So my little shopping sprees have gotten me $60,000 in debt. Big deal, everybody owes money these days.) or accepting the fact but denying responsibility for it, ('It wasn't my fault. They fired me because the supervisor felt threatened by my independent nature.')

Delusionality is a condition in which the individual clings, with absolute certainty, to beliefs based on false evidence or no evidence at all. ('Okay, so I failed at quitting pot ten times so far, this time I'm sure I can do it.') The 12-step programs refer to this as, 'the definition of insanity', 'doing the same thing, but expecting different results'.

Finally, rationalization is 'providing false motivation for an action', ('It's not an addiction, I just throw up, so I don't get sleepy at work.') These defenses highlight the the basic deception and dishonesty which fuel the addictive cycle. More on that later.


FOUNTAIN OF SORROW

The Yoga Sutras label these tendencies, collectively, as 'avidya', or 'misperception'. Sutra II:5 defines avidya as, 'mistaking the impermanent for the permanent, the unclean for the clean, the painful for the pleasurable, and the unconscious for the conscious.' This aptly describes the full-blown addict, who literally dies trying to sustain an intrinsically impermanent high, embraces and defends habits and attitudes which are physically, mentally, and emotionally toxic, confuses the ever-increasing pain of addiction for pleasure, and continually misperceives their habitual, unconscious indulgences as a conscious choice.

Avidya is a central concept in Yoga. According to Patanjali, misperception is the root cause of all human suffering (duhkha) and the fundamental obstacle (klesa) to achieving our goals. As patterns are dramatized and exaggerated in the full-blown addict, it is easy to observe their avidya and the suffering it creates. But the tendency to misperceive is universal, and the same patterns which haunt and torture the addict will negatively effect us all, at one time or another, throughout our lives.

THERE AND BACK

Like a photo enlarged for improved viewing, the addict's life-and-death struggles and salvation are an easy-to-read roadmap for our own personal challenges and their possible resolution. If a hopelessly strung-out junkie or liver-sick alcoholic can return from the depths of despair to a life brimming with hope and gratitude (as frequently happens in the 12-step programs), surely the rest of us can overcome our worst habits and find our way back into the light. To the extent that we allow ourselves to be inspired by the addict's journey, it becomes obvious that our greatest suffering and most grievous errors can serve, not as a source of shame, but as a beacon guiding others back to the clarity and joy that is our true nature, the reason we all came to be.

Next Month: Part Three, Walking the Talk, Addiction and Confused Values.