Emotional regulation and Addiction

The Timeless Nature of Addiction

Addiction is a subject that has been fascinating and devastating to society since the beginning of time. Although the specific substance or behavior that the addict struggles with changes from one generation to the next, the process of developing and sustaining an addiction is timeless. The focus of this blog will be a current issue that is affecting the recovery community: the increased use of technology in daily life.

How Technology Disrupts Mindful Living

As our attention is diverted more and more with apps, devices, social media, etc., it becomes increasingly difficult to be mindfully present in the moment. We are now able to occupy any and all of our free time with digital content aka “connectivity.” As we look at people around us, they are increasingly preoccupied as well, leaving less opportunity for us to engage with each other.

The Role of Emotional Regulation

Less mindful engagement in the moment presents a problem when we look at the process of emotional regulation. Emotion regulation is a person’s ability to effectively manage and outwardly respond to their internal experience of the world. Impaired emotional regulation leads to decreased awareness of emotions and a decreased ability to respond to our environment in a healthy way. We begin developing emotional regulation skills in infancy and continue to develop them throughout our lives.

How Early Experiences Shape Our Behavior

Babies are unable to soothe themselves and require a caregiver to attend to their every need. As they mature, children should gradually begin to develop the ability to soothe themselves. Problematic behaviors are often the result of children learning to substitute some form of escape like food, television, or video games, for genuine self-care. An example of this would be a neglected child who eats to feel better…