Contextualizing Addiction and Suicide

 

 

It seems that Robin Williams could not find a context.  Is that what drug use is?  An attempt to anaethetise against a reality that constantly knocks against your nerves, like tinfoil on an old school filling, the pang an urgent message to a dormant, truer you.

 

 

I know a lot of very intelligent people who are never quite at home with others.  Like a left-handed person fumbling with right-handed scissors or an obese person uncomfortably aware of how they're taking up more than one seat on a subway, "genius" is a great example of how more doesn't always equate with better but instead often borders on unacceptable.

 

Every last one of these super-smart people are either on prescription medication or have substance reliance issues - and often dabble in both.  It's not so much an addiction to the substance that's the issue so much as the need to dull the sharp edges of being an awkward fit with colleagues, friends, family - even time alone.

 

It didn't surprise me to read about the impact of context on crack addicts - and how a change of circumstance can change the choices we make.  Kind of spins addiction on its head, though.

 

That in much the same way as cognitive labour and occupational mental health is growing in importance; it's increasingly becoming apparent that poor management, work design and communication is like lead in the water. 

 

Is it really that different whether someone is on Xanax or a heavy drinker with a compulsion for sex and Advil?  Are the Wolves of Wall Street really tougher and more capable than the rest of the world - or are they reliant on substances to live beyond their means in the same way as those they look down upon?

 

In each and every case, context matters - environmental, but also social.

 

Which is why committing sociology isn't a sin - it's a necessary tool for survival.