My gluttony . . . and Amy Winehouse’s
Over the past weekend, I along with everyone else read the sad story of soul singer Amy Winehouse’s early death, presumably from drug overdose or complications. And I have since read many commentaries–many kind, a few insightful, most judgmental and uninformed about the nature of addiction. It’s impossible to know what was going on with Winehouse without access to her inner life, but she must have been tormented–and that torment made her feel like she had no choice but addiction. I know this from experience, but I also know from experience that she did have a choice. That’s the paradox of addiction: It’s a decision making disease. It makes bad decisions seem easier–every day–but it doesn’t rob us of the ability to make the harder decision at any point in time. Only dying takes away that option. I’ve decided after some thought to reprise here a short essay I wrote on my own addiction for the British Psychological Society last year. It’s called My Gluttony.