THE ANATOMY OF ADDICTION

Author: Akikur Mohammad, M.D

Both of my parents were addicts.  My father was extremely high functioning, married to my mother who was extremely low functioning.  They were addicted to lots of things, as well as having severe mental illnesses.  Perhaps what I came out with that was unbelievable to me as I look back is how well my father managed his career and was very successful; and how badly my mother functioned at all.

I believe we are a culture of addiction, and now that I am in a senior center, I see lots of alcoholics, drug addicts, and mentally ill seniors, addicted to sex, their mental illness, etc.  Me? I spent half my life in therapy and 12 step programs, in order to find NORMAL.  Only when I realized that there is no NORMAL and that my problems with relationships were something I had to work on with other people, did I stop running for help.

I loved this book, and I believe that it is true.  We have to have a treatment in place for the chronic mental disease of addiction.  And I have NEVER met anyone who isn’t addicted to something, whether it is relationships, their pets, a substance, food or a drug.

So when I was offered Akikur Mohammad, M.D: THE ANATOMY OF ADDICTION: What Science and Research Tell Us About the True Causes, Best Preventive Techniques, and Most Successful Treatments  I read it in one setting, and then read it again.

The sadness of addiction is that we have treatment modalities but we have not been informed of these treatments that work.  I have always known that 12 step programs are great, but they are a single tool in a complex chronic disease process.  And the United States punishes addicts.  It has never worked and it never will.  We need to inform ourselves about how we must start treating addiction with every tool available including addiction medicine doctors and the drugs and therapy that  serve as an adjunct of a total program to serve a society that is the loneliest it has ever been because we need to address this huge problem.

Addiction is a family disease and it is a disease.  From settting across the ten myths of addiction to discussing all the things we have done wrong, Dr. Akikur Mohammad MD is one of many doctors is now informing us of the true disease process that comprises addiction.  The opposite of addiction is connection (Teds Talk, link here). We can now prove via MRI or PET scan that addiction is a mental imbalance regarding dopamine receptors and the reward center of the brain that has is not functioning correctly.  IT IS A BRAIN chemistry issue, a neurotransmitter issue, according to Dr. Mohammad and other current doctors. Stress and sleep affect this. You can look this up on YouTube and hear many experts on addiction, scientific doctors, agree with Dr. Mohammad.

I am going to include some of the publisher’s information in this blog post because I believe this book is that important.

 “Before the holidays, “60 Minutes” covered Obama’s new drug czar and the new direction that he’s taking with the nation’s drug policy. In an unexpected turn, the new czar, Michael Botticelli, reinforced many of the ground-breaking points that Dr. Mohammad makes in the upcoming book. Coverage of the book can include:

• How the trillion-dollar, 40-year War on Drugs has been an utter failure
• Why alcohol and drug addiction is a chronic brain disease
• The AA-inspired idea of “hitting bottom” is only, and wrongly, applied to the chronic disease of addiction. (Can you imagine cancer or diabetes sufferers being required to “hit bottom” before they received treatment?)
• Why drug addiction, particularly heroin, is a true epidemic raging through our country – and specifically suburbia  – and what needs to be done about it
• Why the answer to addiction is real treatment, not criminalization or faulty “rehab” clinics

And as you can see from interviews  on Fox,  on KTLA, and  via his treatment facility, Dr. Mohammad is an excellent resource debunking addiction myths and what treatment should truly mean.”

I suggest that we read this important book if you have any need to assist yourself, your families and others – as well as our society.  WE NEED TO STOP THE THINKING OF 100 years ago!

Ratings are based on a 5-star scale 

Overall: 5

Review by Broad “A” 

We received a product to facilitate our review. All opinions are our own

DETAILS

• The Anatomy of Addiction: What Science and Research Tell Us About the True Causes, Best Preventive Techniques, and Most Successful Treatments
  is available at Amazon.com and other booksellers.