Abusing sugar - Dealing with diabetes and addiction
Published:Saturday | May 11, 2013 | 12:00 AM
Valerie Dixon, Contributor
MANDEVILLE, Manchester:
I HAVE been abusing 'sugar' all my life and to compound my problem, my father was a diabetic and my mother is a diabetic, so it came as no surprise that I was diagnosed as a full-blown diabetic and this disease is described as a chronic illness. I have not been able to 'kick' my sugar habit just yet, no matter how much I have been advised to change my lifestyle and to stop craving sugar.
I had a talk with Calvin Young who practises clinical and counselling psychology with an emphasis on addiction assessment and treatment. He is trained and qualified as a psychotherapist, and a substance-abuse assessment and treatment clinician at the graduate level. I asked him if substance-abuse can be viewed as a chronic illness just like diabetes and heart disease. His response was, "Yes. I would describe substance abuse as a chronic illness like the ones you have mentioned."
He explained that substance abuse is composed of issues that are centred in the biology (including neuropsychological factors) and/or the genetics of the sufferer. He also added that there are psychological elements and social factors that characterise how those afflicted by substance and mental abuse disorders are treated in our society.
Diabetics are very lucky people. When we abuse sugar, there is no social stigma attached to us and once we are diagnosed, we don't even have to ask for help. Help is offered to us from every which direction and there is no moral outrage and self-righteous indignation. We are given help to change our lifestyle and we are given help to ease our craving for sugar.
We are not kicked from our homes and left to wander the streets of every village, every town and every city to become mendicants and nuisances to other citizens. Fifty years ago, our beggars and street people were known by their names because they were so few in numbers and the mentally ill were treated and lived at Bellevue Hospital. Today, our villages, towns and cities are teeming with the mentally ill and substance abusers who aimlessly roam the streets.
Treatment of issues
Calvin Young returned to Jamaica in 2007, primarily because he felt that he could be of service to his fellow Jamaicans in his chosen field of study - clinical mental health assessment and counselling. This field required him to study a wide range of subjects including forensic assessment; the evaluation and treatment of issues that relate to sexual abuse; and in assessing and treating psychologically those youth who have become physically or sexually aggressive due to sexual abuse, or issues related to sex and sexuality. He is qualified and trained to do counselling in a number of areas and is adept in the use of behaviour modification techniques to help substance abusers and those who need help to change their behaviour and lifestyles.
He says, however, that finding reasonably good remuneration for his work has been quite challenging, especially in the areas where there is great need for his services in Jamaica. This is mainly because of the nature of the work he does, it is perceived that he should be a volunteer social worker.
He is currently engaged in private practice in western Jamaica, specifically Montego Bay, Falmouth, and Ocho Rios where he is available for one-on-one counselling in a private setting. He is optimistic that persons who are trained qualified therapists and counsellors can make a living as mental health and substance abuse service providers in Jamaica.
Young is also of the view that Jamaicans, on a whole, need to change their attitude and be less discriminating towards the mentally ill and those who are substance abusers and offer help to them in the same way that help is readily available to the many abusers of sugar and carbohydrates. Calvin Young may be contacted at 505-9300, and can be reached through email address mentalhelpjam@yahoo.com.