What's the Deal with Passages Malibu?? - Can Addiction Really Be Cured??

image source - www.passagesmalibu.com I'll never forget seeing that commercial for the first time. I was shocked to say the least. I'm a pretty unassuming guy. I generally shy away from public debate, I don't worry too much about what other people do or say. I try to stay focused on whats in front of me which is why we never thought it appropriate to comment on the topic. Ever since that infamous commercial first aired, we have been sent comments, tweets, memes and questions all regarding Passages Malibu and their magical ability to "cure addiction." People are dying for us to chime in on the issue. So here goes... Just in case you haven't seen the commercial. I will admit, I laughed. Knowing what I know about addiction, it seemed comical to me that someone had the guts to spend millions of dollars on an ad claiming to the world that he suddenly could cure addiction. I laughed on the subliminal marketing in the commercial. To be frank, I've never seen a treatment center where all the clients had such nice clothes, beautiful hair, skimpy workout gear and flat stomachs. Obviously they want to market their treatment center in the best light possible, but I felt as if this place had a slight misunderstanding as to what condition many people with drug addiction are in. This is not to say that the Passages Malibu treatment model is not effective. I'm sure there are people out there who have successfully found long term recovery from the Passages Malibu techniques. Whatever works! We have dodged this topic for quite some time, but this has been and will be a much debated topic. So I thought it best to address this controversial treatment center and its wild claims once and for all.

Keeping an Open Mind

Before I dive into this, I first need to remove myself from the equation. I want to look at this objectively because that's what good journalists do. So I thought... yes, claiming to be able to "cure" addiction is a radical idea. However, so is the idea that God can remove the problem of alcoholism. I thought that upon its conception, the founders of Alcoholics Anonymous were probably looked upon in a similar respect. The difference being, A.A. doesn't charge $67,550 for a months worth of treatment. Regardless, many people who are generally regarded as "genius" were at one point also regarded to be insane. New ideas are rarely received well.

Addiction and Choice

Doctors and scientists alike have defined addiction as a "disease of the mind." There are numerous, very long winded definitions that go into more detail, but you get the point. Addiction shares many similarities with heart disease, diabetes I and II and cancer in that there is a genetic correlation, it is often fatal if untreated and shows abnormal brain patterns. For me, seeing addiction as a disease makes sense. It stems in an organ, it has symptoms that root from an underlying cause and it can be treated the same way any other chronic disease can be treated. That is good enough for me. However, there is something a little off with this whole "disease concept" thing. I've researched dozens of articles. Many studies show similar information, but there doesn't seem to be any unified definition of addiction. A large number of people aren't convinced. Watching someone who is dying of alcoholism just doesn't feel the same as watching someone die of cancer. Why is it that we just can't seem to all agree on this? The reason is choice. The reason is because someone who is drinking themselves to death is perceived to be doing so because "he or she wants to." From an objective perspective, it's perfectly rational to see why people would have a hard time seeing addiction as a disease, when it seems that millions are choosing to drink or hit the needle. It's tricky. No doubt about it. This brought me a strange realization. How can Passages Malibu claim to "cure" something that they don't define as a disease? Isn't that kind of like fixing something that isn't broken? That may be beside the point, but I thought that was interesting.

Finally... Is Addiction a Curable Disease??

First... is addiction a disease at all? After everything I have read my answer is yes. Addiction is a disease because smart people who know a lot more than me say it is a disease. All the strange irregularities aside. Finally, can addiction be cured? I don't think it can. Hundreds of millions of dollars and thousands of man hours have been spent studying addiction. Granted, there are some lose ends, but the science has proven that addiction is a complex brain disease characterized by compulsive, at times uncontrollable, drug craving, seeking, and use that persist despite potentially devastating consequences. Although Passages Malibu claims to cure the disease, what they are actually doing is providing a unique "treatment plan." This isn't a cure. It is a treatment plan just like all other treatment plans. It requires maintenance and constant self-evaluation. In the same way you would provide a treatment plan for someone who has heart disease. A doctor and a patient would work together to build an exercise regimen, a new diet, obviously it would be recommended that the patient stop smoking and not engage in other unhealthy lifestyle habits. This is exactly the same thing... As Dr. Volkow, Director of NIDA explains,

“People say if you consider drug addiction a disease, you are taking the responsibility away from the drug addict. But that's wrong. If we say a person has heart disease, are we eliminating their responsibility? No. We're having them exercise. We want them to eat less, stop smoking. The fact that we have a disease recognizes that there are changes, in this case, in the brain”

What is the Real Issue?

In flipping back and forth with research it suddenly occurred to me that none of this is important. If Passages Malibu wants to say that their therapists and their $27 million dollar mansion can cure addiction, well good for them. What is really important is how we regard the treatment of addiction. Addiction must be treated as a health issue. The danger in saying that addiction isn't a disease is that you are giving all the power to the self-will of people. This makes it very difficult to not charge drug addicts as criminals. We have essentially two options. We can throw addicts in jail, or we can treat them as sick people who need help. If we don't look at suffering addicts as sick people, than we can't treat them as sick people. Our only other option is to look at them as criminals. There is real danger in this mind set. America leads the world in incarcerated prisoners per capita and 66% of criminals are doing time for some type of drug charge. For the sake of progress, regarding addiction as a disease is paramount. Yes, there may be trauma, underlying cognitive issues and behavior problems - but at its root, addiction is proven to be an innate chemical imbalance of the mind. Many outside factors may lead to a person drinking or drugging to cope, but the inability to stop is what separates the alcoholic from the heavy drinker. The inability to stop is what kills people, is what motivates people to break the law and is what is most painful about addiction. We need to approach this practically with proven treatment plans which treat addiction as a disease. We don't need a magical cure. My mother always told me that if it is too good to be true, that means that it is. We would love to hear your thoughts on this? Please leave your comments below. :)