Addiction vs. Dependence

There has been a long standing debate among the experts (psychologists, psychiatrists, sociologists, social workers, etc.) as to the difference between addiction and dependence. Many within the same field even disagree on the meaning but the meanings have always had a clear difference to me. Simply put, addiction is a physical craving for something that has addictive qualities whereas dependence is a psychological need for something that doesn’t possess addictive qualities.

For example, alcohol, nicotine, and heroin all have physical qualities within the product that makes a person want more of it once he’s tried it for the first time, even though psychologically and emotionally, he knows he shouldn’t. It is a physical drive and desire to consume that product even when he knows it’s the worst thing he can do for his own health and safety.

Dependence on the other hand is doing something that makes us feel good and because we felt good doing it, we want to do it again, even though that thing has no addictive qualities at all. Food is not addictive, consequently most people consume a normal amount of food without becoming overweight or having physical issues because we are overweight. But some people crave food and literally want to eat all the time. I’ve been in many places where the people who work there have stashes of food on one of the back counters and they constantly go back for another bite or two when they’re not busy. They’re dependent on food but not addicted to it. Their body isn’t crying out for a physical fix, their mind is and because they don’t have the self-control to say no to themselves, they give in to their desire. The same holds true for gambling, sex, becoming a workaholic, etc. If those things make us feel good psychologically, we often will choose to repeat those behaviors until we become psychologically dependent on that experience. The experts have described gambling as a psychological dependency because of the adrenaline attached to making a bet. So here, the rush comes before the event, not after the event. Some people experience a deep euphoria when they bet their hard-earned money on an event that’s about to take place. The curious thing about this dependence is that the less we can afford to lose the bet, the stronger the adrenaline rush is because there is a burning need within us to be right.

Addiction to alcohol, nicotine and heroin (among other addictive drugs) is totally different from a psychological desire. It is a physical need that calls out to the person that the body needs a fix and that need won’t quieten down until the person either feeds his need or goes through withdrawal. I’ve seen people in bars take personal leave from their jobs so they can stay at the bar all day long and drink. It doesn’t make any sense to those of us watching them but it makes total sense to them because they’re feeding the monster inside that’s telling them that’s what they need. I was about to leave the bar one afternoon around five when a good friend of mine asked me to stay and have another drink. I told him I couldn’t because I had other things to do. He asked me what was more important than drinking with friends and I replied there was a time and place for everything and he literally didn’t comprehend what I was saying. To him there was NOTHING more important than having one more drink. And more times than not, he was the last one to leave the bar at the end of the day.

So to conclude, a dependency is a personal desire that we choose not to control. There’s no evil force within us compelling us to eat more, gamble more or have more sex. Those things give us joy and joy compels many to want to repeat that feeling compulsively when most people do those things within the context of the various other things they have to do to lead a normal life. People with dependencies don’t lead normal lives because they’re focused on only one aspect of their lives rather than the full spectrum of being a complete human being.

Addicts are that way too except for totally different reasons and motivations.