SOCW 6202 Week 2 - Discussion: Overcoming Chemical and Behavioral Addictions

Week 2: Chemicals and Behaviors of Addiction

Consider this scenario:

As a new professional, you have two new clients for whom you are providing services. During your initialassessments, you note that one client reports using alcohol and prescription medicine to control herweight. She is frustrated by her lack of weight loss and often ends up binging on fast foods. Your otherclient has sought treatment because he is struggling with an Internet pornography addiction.

What are the similarities and differences between these types of addictions? Can you use the same treatmentstrategies for both clients? Helping professionals often must distinguish between chemical and behavioraladdictions, which can be challenging.

Learning Resources

Note: To access this week’s required library resources, please click on the link to the Course ReadingsList, found in the Course Materials section of your Syllabus.

Required Readings

Doweiko, H. E. (2019). Concepts of chemical dependency (10th ed.). Stamford, CT: Cengage.

Chapter 5, "Alcohol Use Disorders"(pp. 46-62)

Chapter 15, “Tobacco Products and Tobacco Use” (pp. 195-210)

Bean, A. M., Nielsen, R. K., Van Rooij, A. J., & Ferguson, C. J. (2017). Video game addiction: The pushto pathologize video games. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 48(5), 378-389.

Kardefelt‐Winther, D., Heeren, A., Schimmenti, A., van Rooij, A., Maurage, P., Carras, M., ... & Billieux, J.(2017). How can we conceptualize behavioural addiction without pathologizing common behaviours?.Addiction, 112(10), 1709-1715.

Higuchi, S., Nakayama, H., Mihara, S., Maezono, M., Kitayuguchi, T., & Hashimoto, T. (2017). Inclusionof gaming disorder criteria in ICD-11: A clinical perspective in favor: Commentary on: Scholars’ opendebate paper on the World Health Organization ICD-11 Gaming Disorder proposal (Aarseth et al.).Journal of Behavioral Addictions, 6(3), 293-295.

Required Media

Laureate Education (Producer). (2012a). Behavioral and chemical addiction [Video file]. Retrieved fromhttps://class.waldenu.edu.

Note: The approximate length of this media piece is 20 minutes.

Discussion: Overcoming Chemical and Behavioral Addictions

Most individuals in the throes of addiction are in emotional pain. Recovery is not easy and requires a great amount of personal effort and internal motivation. Individuals working toward recovery encounter a seemingly insurmountable number of personal challenges blocking their decision to change, including denial.

Once individuals overcome their denial, there will be many more challenges blocking their path to recovery. It is important that the helping professional is prepared to help them identify and address each new challenge.

For this Discussion, review the media program in this week's Resources and identify which clients struggle with chemical addiction and which clients struggle with behavioral addiction. Select one client with chemical addiction and one with behavioral addiction and reflect on the challenges these individuals face in overcoming their chemical and behavioral addictions.

Provide a 250-word discussion Post contain the following content, topics, and headings:

· A brief description of the two clients whom you selected and whether each has a chemical (physical) or behavioral (psychological) addiction.

· Then, explain one potential challenge for each client in overcoming his or her addiction.

· Support your response using the Resources and the current literature. Must contain at least 3 references and citations obtained from the above Learning Resources.