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Father Of Intervention: The Johnson Model Of Addiction

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What exactly feeds addiction and can it truly be treated? Is addiction a clinical disease, or simply a lack of control? The Johnson Model of Addiction explains the concepts of addiction, what it stems from, and how to treat the addict. Dr. Vernon Johnson, nicknamed the Father of Intervention, was the founder and president emeritus of the Johnson Institute located in Minneapolis. After recovering from alcoholism himself and leading others towards the same path as an Episcopal priest, Johnson designed the institute to provide early intervention to addicts, and help employers deal with drinking issues in the workplace. Having observed many addicted individuals, along with the effects of these addictions on those surrounding the addict, Johnson …show more content…

Personally, I take several drugs in an effort to stay far away from pain, and more towards feelings of normalcy or euphoria. I am prescribed Prozac (fluoxetine) and Ritalin (methylphenidate) to treat anxiety, depression, and ADHD, and take OTC Benadryl to sleep. According to Johnson, I am addicted to each of these, and I’d say I’d have to agree. After all, I take them to reduce my feelings of anxiety, pain, distractions, and insomnia, in order to move more towards feelings of normalcy. The more I take the substances, the higher my tolerance gets, resulting in me feeling even more pain when I don’t have the drugs in my system. In fact, my Prozac is actually where my insomnia started from. My dependence to substances was especially evident to me when I had complications transferring files, and wasn’t able to get my Prozac. This resulted in me going far down on the pleasure scale and experience extreme feelings of depression. I could see how some people give up on their battle against depression and life when they are cut off from their drug instead of weaned off. However, I don’t see it personally as substance abuse in my case because I didn’t start “normal” on the scale (aside from for insomnia/sleep). Due to genetics and life experiences, I’ve always lived more towards pain, and taking these drugs allow me to feel normal. Additionally, I wouldn’t say I have unnaturally high levels of euphoria. Being able to relate personally with this model of addiction shows me how the continuum of pain and pleasure introduced by Johnson really can be used in a variety of situations for a variety of individuals with different addictions, and is the reason why I found this model so interesting and

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