Is Rhetoric Aimed at Combating Stigma Misleading?

In the New York Times essay "Addiction Doesn’t Discriminate? Wrong" Sally Satel, M.D. argues that addiction is not an "equal opportunity destroyer." While it may comfort the afflicted to believe that anyone is susceptible, in fact some are more vulnerable than others.

Satel writes, "The democratization of addiction may be an appealing message, but it does not reflect reality. Teenagers with drug problems are not like those who never develop them. Adults whose problems persist for decades manifest different traits from those who get clean.

So while anyone can theoretically become an addict, it is more likely the fate of some, among them women sexually abused as children; truant and aggressive young men; children of addicts; people with diagnosed depression and bipolar illness; and groups including American Indians and poor people."

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Mindfulness: Hype, Help or High Risk Hazard?

Lotus Therapy for Addiction, New York Times

While according to Zindel Segal (psychologist at the Center of Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto) interest in mindful meditation as part of addiction therapy is soaring, others are skeptical.

"I’m very open to the possibility that this approach could be effective, and it certainly should be studied,” said Scott Lilienfeld, a psychology professor at Emory. “What concerns me is the hype, the talk about changing the world, this allure of the guru that the field of psychotherapy has a tendency to cultivate."

However, the National Institutes of Health is financing more than 50 studies testing mindfulness techniques to help relieve stress, soothe addictive cravings and more....

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