Posted by Lance Dodes, M.D. on February 14, 19100 at 22:04:11:
In Reply to: Addiction posted by William J. Moore, Ph.D., MSW, LADC on January 05, 19100 at 21:43:28:
Dear Dr. Moore,
I think that you are right to say that the problem lies in the individual rather than in the substance; this is in a sense the essence of a psychoanalytic view of addiction. Whether the substance is a "substitute for earlier fantasies" is difficult to address without knowing better what you mean. One object relations view of addiction is the idea that the substance may stand in for a lost object. If this concept is extended to refer to the use of the substance in reference to fantasies about the object, perhaps this is close to your meaning. It would be good to hear more about your thoughts.
Lance Dodes, M.D.