The Faces Of Addiction...

Addictions: Alcohol and Heroin


















Addiction: Alcohol













Addictions: Cigarettes














Addiction: Shopping















The first three faces I believe everyone probably knows. Kurt Cobain, Courtney Love, and Anna Nicole Smith. Two out of three of these addicts are dead. Did addiction send them to their graves? Perhaps. We see people who are addicts crucified in the tabloids. We can't wait to see who's on meth this week, or who's drank themselves into a stupor at a random club, but how often to we look around at the addicts that are in our lives every day?

Addiction is a terrible thing, and more than half of Americans suffer from one form of addiction or another. That means, that chances are good, if you're reading this, you either a: are an addict, or b: you know an addict. Some addictions are more harmful than others. For instance, someone who's addicted to washing their hands every 5 minutes, is probably not going to end up in as bad of shape as someone who is having to smoke meth every 5 minutes. Does it mean that their addiction is any less of an affliction to them? Absolutely not.

I am an addict. I'm addicted to shopping. You can laugh if you'd like, honestly, I get that a lot. Unfortunately, it's true. I've bankrupted not one, but two people due to my addiction. I can't stop. I can't have credit cards. If I have them, I will max them out. There's no high in this world like buying something. Having a new purse, new shoes, new makeup-- new anything, there's nothing like it for me. I'm on a high I can't explain when I shop. Afterwards, I feel guilty, knowing I shouldn't have spent the money, and that I didn't need what I bought.

I cleaned out my closet last weekend. My closet is LITERALLY an entire bedroom. I took out 3 huge garbage bags of purses, and 3 huge garbage bags of clothes to donate. Most of which, I've never carried and/or worn. I still have 4 huge racks of clothes left, and more purses than I can count. No human should have that much stuff, but I do. I do, because I wasn't strong enough to stop myself.

It took me a long time to come to the realization that I'm an addict. Many people never realize that their addicts. My husband is an addict. He's addicted to chat rooms. If I didn't keep a program on my computer, spector software, he'd probably be chatting today. Not because he doesn't love me. Not because he's looking for someone else, but because it's a high. There's a high he gets from chatting-- the same high I get from shopping-- the same high an alcoholic gets from that first drop of alcohol hitting their tongue, the same high a drug addict gets when the drug runs through their veins. It's a high. We all chase that high. We want something to take us away from whatever reality it is we're living in. Whatever it is we're trying to escape, we use our addiction to fuel that escape.

Until one day, we realize, we're tired of living this way. We're tired of hurting others, and tired of hurting ourselves. Many fail their first time at trying to beat their addictions. Many are still failing. Many will never seek help. Many will always be recovering, and are just one step away from a fall. I am recovering. I know if given the opportunity, I would fall. I'm not yet strong enough to make responsible decisions with credit, and shopping. I'm getting better, but I've got a long way to go.

I'm not telling you to go out and cry for every person you see who's suffering from an addiction. All I'm asking, is that you keep an open mind to these people, and why they're addicts in the first place. No one wakes up saying, "I want to be an addict," and unfortunately, by the time you realize you're an addict, it's almost too late.

These are the faces of addiction. The faces of the famous, and the faces of the common, every day people. Addiction can happen to anyone, but there is help. There's always hope. Never forget that.


Below, I've listed several websites of useful organizations to help addicts and the loved ones of addicts. There is help, all you have to do is take the first step.

Alcoholics Anonymous

Narcotics Anonymous

Overeaters Anonymous

Shopaholics Anonymous

Sex Addicts Anonymous

Gamblers Anonymous

Internet/Chat Addiction