One of the most frustrating things about alcoholism is denial, a distortion of awareness. This mysterious change in perception is a kind of blindness that masks the alcoholic swath of destruction. Without it, the addictive behavior would grind to a halt.
Distorted awareness isn’t limited to addictions, though. As it happens, there are an enormous number of repetitive, highly destructive patterns that spiral out of control in pretty much the same way.
Malignant behaviors
Most of these problem behaviors do not involve chemical substances. To illustrate, addictions to gambling or strange sexual acts aren’t related to substance use. Nor is the eating disorder anorexia nervosa. Yet each of these patterns is marked by a dramatic change in perception that keeps it going.
What in the world could account for the stubborn persistence of destructive habits like these? And what could explain the changes in awareness that go along with these patterns? Answers have eluded theorists for decades. I believe that the explanations will come – oddly enough – from applying the principles of parasitology and immunology to human behavior.
Rogue habits
A key insight is that habits can “go rogue.” That is, they can get out of our control, and start acting in a runaway manner that becomes parasitic. This happens the same way the cells of our bodies can turn cancerous to form tumors that become parasitic.
Normally, cells act for the benefit of the larger body. And normally habits operate for the larger benefit of the individual. But both rogue cells and rogue habits can abandon their assigned roles. They can begin acting for the singular goal of reproducing themselves, without regard to the harm they cause.
The exact way rogue habits come into being, and the reason for the accompanying distortion of awareness, are the subjects of my current book, Rogue Habits. If you want to learn more about out-of-control behavior, a good place to start is the material on this website.