Dr Jekyll & Mr. Hyde

a metaphor for Alcohol Addiction

Part 2

For quite a time this release of Mr. Hyde went well. It served Dr Jekyll and he felt good about his new-found freedom. The first sign that the tide of fortune was turning came when Dr Jekyll went to bed one evening and woke in the morning to find that he had become Mr. Hyde. This time the change had taken place without the choice of Dr J. as he had not on this occasion drank the ‘transforming draft’; this time Mr. H. released himself. Dr J was still able to return to normal by again drinking the chemical mixture. But this was the beginning of a reversal of the process which at first had liberated Dr J. This experience was to happen increasingly as Mr. H. took more control of the situation but, more out of control in his behaviour.

Many drinkers at one time or other have the experience of drinking more than they intended to, but this does not necessarily lead to alcoholism. For the addicted person, this experience of ‘loss of control’ of the use of the chemical or of the previously chosen behaviour heralds the beginning of a downward progression. This begins with occasional ‘bouts’ often accompanied by atypical behaviour that may be aggressive, or inappropriate in some way. Remorse may be a feature after the event. Occasional bouts become more frequent over time (years or months). These bouts are often rationalised or excused away with the ‘dependent person’s story’ – their reasons for drinking or using (stress, money, work, marriage etc.) What is actually happening is that the addiction is getting worse.  It is worsening because of multi-faceted internal changes within each of those individuals. Those changes are chemical, neurological, emotional, physical and spiritual. The resultant increase in the addictive activity and loss of control are causing more problems at work, in the marriage, with money and with the person’s ability to cope with normal problems.

Some time later in a fit of rage, Mr. Hyde killed a man. This shocked Dr Jekyll to the degree that he resolved never to let Mr. Hyde out again. This resolve lasted a short while until Dr Jekyll described the following experience.
“ Yes I preferred the elderly and discontented doctor, surrounded by friends and cherishing honest hopes; and bade a resolute farewell to the liberty, the comparative youth, the light step, leaping pulses and secret pleasures, that I had enjoyed in the disguise of Hyde. I made this choice perhaps with some unconscious reservation, for I neither gave up the house in Soho, nor destroyed the clothes of Edward Hyde which lay ready in my cabinet. For two months I was true to my determination; for two months I led a life of such severity as I had never before attained to, and enjoyed the compensations of an approving conscience. But time began at last to obliterate the freshness of my alarm; the praises of conscience began to grow into a thing of course; I began to be tortured with throes and longings, as of Hyde struggling after freedom; and at last, in an hour of moral weakness, I once again compounded and swallowed the transforming draught. My devil had long been caged, he came out roaring.”

Dr J was clearly shocked at this outrage which was so much against his normal moral code and resolved never to let this part of him out again. We can see in his description that although he made the choice, he was ambivalent about doing so. He wanted to kill the possibility of this ever reoccurring and yet he was reluctant to let go of the deep pleasure and freedom he gained from what in other ways was a liberating experience. Once the intensity and initial shock had worn off, his inner desire took over and once again he succumbed to the draw of his other self, but, inevitably paying the price of increasingly losing control to Mr. H.

This is the first big crisis for the suffering addict. The drinker’s boss has said that if the drinking doesn’t stop then the drinker is out of a job. His wife has had enough and is threatening divorce. The police have caught the addict with drugs or his behaviour has been so bad that his family have finally threatened to disown him. It may be that he is shocked by the destructiveness of his own behaviour and if afraid for his own safety and the safety of those who have been close to him. At this point he promises never to do it again, asks for understanding and leniency. He may even resolve to quit for good. Inwardly however, the ‘addict’ within him resents the interference and intends to get out at the next opportunity. The ‘adult’ part of him hopes that if he just pulls himself together for a while then everything will be all right. He thinks that he just needs to get a bit more will power to control the drinking \using. What he doesn’t recognise is that his ‘inner addict’ has tasted freedom and won’t lie down that easily. He is trapped between the opposing forces of his own ambivalence and cannot find a way to shake free. (It is at this point that the suffering drinker might present himself to the unsuspecting therapist or doctor eager to ‘cure’ his first alcoholic or addict. Unfortunately at this stage the drinker\addict is looking for someone to manipulate into ‘fixing’ him. In a little time he will drink or use again and say: “oh I tried that Hypnotherapy but it didn’t work for me. I tried Bowden House but it didn’t work. I tried AA but that was no good.”) 

At this point the original crisis has passed. He might have ‘sobered up’ for a period of time (days or months). Possibly curtailed his consumption or behaviour somewhat or hid the extent of the drinking. The pressure to experience the god feelings associated with the addictive behaviour is increasing and thoughts and memories of the pleasure he is missing plague him. He is angry and resentful at those who can drink or use socially and at those who stopped him. He hears thoughts in his mind minimising the crisis and blaming those around him. He is uncomfortable, depressed, bored, unhappy and restless. His ‘inner addict’ is piling on the pressure: “Go on, you can just have one. What do they know anyway? You are under a lot of pressure right now; you deserve a good session. Nobody understands what its like; you need your drink \ drugs. You’re not addicted; you just like a drink. How can you be an alcoholic you haven’t had a drink for a week?” In the end the pressure is too great and he succumbs. He has the one and the one leads to a binge, sometimes not immediately, but usually very soon. What some called ‘the merry go round named denial’ has begun to spin around again. Still the addicted person does not fully know that he is being controlled by his ‘inner addict’ who thirsts after freedom through booze or the addictive behaviour.

This article is an excerpt from “Quit While Your Still Ahead" – The essential guide to Recovery from Alcohol Addiction by Alistair Rhind MerlinTranceformations. An Ebook available from http://www.addiction-recovery.co.uk   You may feel free to copy and reproduce this article for non profit making use provided you identify me as the author, keep the links to my site alive and you make no changes to the txt. You may place it on your own site, copy it for patients or for training purposes.

 

 

<< Previous    1  [2]  3    Next >>