The Nature of Addictions and Their Relationship to Pain

Addictions are an attempt to escape pain and are not genetic or a disease. They are compensatory behaviors to avoid feeling pain. Addictions can include work, sex, pornography, gambling, the internet, shopping, eating, and power. Work can be both an addiction and a fulfilling manifestation of creative urgency. The addiction is not in the behavior itself but in the relationship to the behavior. If an activity provides temporary relief or pleasure but causes long-term harm and cannot be given up, it is considered an addiction. Addictions, regardless of the activity, are driven by the same brain chemical, dopamine. People can even be addicted to their own stress hormones like adrenaline. Almost anything can be addictive if it temporarily eases distress but causes harm in the long term.