By Man-archy

Man-Archy - Addiction

A typical keyboard however where Capslock is there is a red button with a shopping cart on it

I have been reading several stories over the past few weeks around addiction, but what occurred to me was the difference in public perception around different ones. For ease I am going to use 3 that most of us know about and 1 which is hidden.

  1. Drugs
  2. Alcohol
  3. Gambling
  4. Online Shopping

Drugs have a stigma attached to them and a drug addict can be viewed as this by wider society as a whole. However, drug addiction is quite common and like nicotine it is very difficult to stop once addicted.

Alcohol has a positive image across the board, and even our Prime Minister said he was going for a beer on Monday as the Pubs re-opened. I know that one is legal and another illegal, but it shows the vast difference between the two most common addictions in our Country.

Gambling addiction has hit the headlines over the past few years, with the bookmakers taking the hit over many newspaper stories and the FOBT machines in shops on the high street. The crack cocaine of gambling has been used for these machines in newspaper headlines.

Finally, the least heard of, Online Shopping addiction. This is not talked about at all and will likely affect the most people within communities. If you look out of your window during the day, there will likely have been many deliveries from DPD, Amazon or just personal cars delivering from online purchases.

 

What I am trying to get at here is that ALL addiction is the same, whether legal or illegal. It requires someone to be in the persons corner and offer help. Not financially, but with time and with opportunities to fill their time with other things, rather than the addiction. As we come out of our lockdown periods, there will be many people who have recently suffered addiction at the hands of all of the above headings. It is vital that as friends and community, this may be evident in those we haven’t seen for months and you may notice a difference in them.

 

Please if you notice any differences with your friends, ask the questions, but really show that you want a truthful answer. It might be the first step to the help they need.