Music is My Whole Life - World Federation of Music Therapy

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Horesh, T. (2006) “Music is My Whole Life” - The many meanings of music in addicts’ lives. Music Therapy Today (Online) Vol.VII (2) 291-317. available at http://musictherapyworld.net THERAPEUTIC COMMUNITY CULTURE OF ADDICTION The basic ideology of the therapeutic community is one of inclusive, drug free, therapeutic care for the addict, as an individual and as a mem- ber of society. This ideology is based on the assumption that drug depen- dency is a mix of educational, psycho social, medical, emotional, spiritual and psychological factors, all of which must be addressed by treatment. It incorporates both psychodynamic and behavior-modifica- tion methods in an effort to relate to the complexity of the issues of addiction. Addiction can be looked upon as a psychological or medical pathology, but it is also a cultural phenomenon and a culture in itself. The aim of treatment is to assist the addicts in leaving this culture and entering the culture of recovery. It is a long and difficult journey. In his book " Pathways from the Culture of Addiction to the Culture of Recovery", William White ( 1996) writes about the role the culture of addiction plays in sustaining addiction, regardless of the etiology that led to the initiation of the person-drug relationship. And, in the late stages of addiction, the culture of addiction can pose the largest obstacle for clients entering the recovery process. The culture of addiction is a way of life: a way of talking, thinking, behaving and relating to others, that separates substance abusers from those who are not. The culture encompasses values, places, rituals, sym- bols and music - all of which reinforce one's involvement in excessive drug consumption. A particular client may have initially started to abuse drugs in order to deal with emotional trauma, but it is clear that his addiction has shaped every aspect of his lifestyle, and that all these aspects must be examined in the recovery process. Many addicts have found it easier to break the physiological relationship with their drug than to Drug addicts, addiction and rehabilitation treatment 300
Horesh, T. (2006) “Music is My Whole Life” - The many meanings of music in addicts’ lives. Music Therapy Today (Online) Vol.VII (2) 291-317. available at http://musictherapyworld.net break their relationship with the culture in which the drug was used. The failure to break the cultural relationship often precedes relapse. Some of our younger clients cannot perceive their social life without pubs, clubs and rave parties - all sites where drugs and alcohol are con- sumed, all `danger zones' for the recovering addict. They cannot imagine going to a rock concert or party without taking - or drinking - something that will enhance their enjoyment of the music and enable them to feel part of the crowd. Contemporary psychodynamic theories also recognize that much of the psychological dysfunction displayed by addicts is the result of drug abuse rather than the cause. It seems that some aspects of personality disorders apparent in addicts' behavior have developed secondarily as a conse- quence of substance abuse, whereas others are primary and stem from the interaction of early developmental wounds and experiences, with biolog- ical predisposition (Kaufman, 1994). The addict is a person with an unstable personality without inner sources to deal with daily pressures. The drugs enable him to deal with frustration, to disassociate from an oppressive and demanding reality. Experiences with clients and my step into research My clients relationships with music were a well kept secret – something they all knew about, discussed among themselves but rarely brought to the music therapy groups. The fact is that this subject didn’t come up (or at least I wasn’t aware that it came up) in the first few years of working with addicts. I knew that they listened to music a lot, in their free time. My impression ( based on hearsay and the sounds coming from their rooms) was that “they” listened to a lot a rave music, Russian rock and popular music, and Israel Mediterranean music, particularly songs whose Experiences with clients and my step into research 301
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Music is My Whole Life - World Federation of Music Therapy

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