On Brains, and the 12 Step Process

I had all sorts of thoughts, this morning. But I put them all aside to pull this one to the forefront. My problem is not generally producing thoughts, but rather filtering them, and triage. OK, so I have a chaotic mind. I fully admit it.

I think later today I may still put out the entry on Jello, but I'm doing quality control on it. It's a kind of white-bread analogy that just isn't elegant, but hey, maybe I'll throw out that story later, anyway.

For the moment, however, I'd like to highlight this article on CNNs website:

http://www.cnn.com/2007/HEALTH/conditions/11/12/adhd.brain.ap/index.html

ADHD runs rampant in my family tree, and it's a very real thing if you've ever lived with it. It has colored my brother's entire life, my mother's entire life, landed several family members in addictions, etc. There is some link, I'm convinced, between the neural wiring and neurophysiology of the ADHD brain and the compulsive/addictive brain. Yes, I'm going to post on Jello, I just decided, because it relates to this, partially.

What's the tie in? Well, I don't really need one, since there is no overall theme here, but I've been hitting the search for God and recovery topics so far, and this is related to us folks in recovery.

I see sub-populations of folks in recovery. Folks whose brains are outside the bell curve. Gifted brains that lived on the edge of overload that were driven to calming via substances. ADHD brains that began substances to moderate behavior. Post traumatic stress brains with overactive limbic systems and not-so-functioning frontal lobes, often the result of the stress of a childhood in alcoholic or abusive environments or being member to an "outsider" group in the larger society where acceptance wasn't an entitlement in general.

These things are real, and these brain sub-types are real, also, I'm convinced. Not sure where the party-ers turned alcoholic/addicts fit in, but some at least are under the ADHD umbrella. And this is not to say it's clear, what category one may fall under, or certainly that these are the only folks to end up in the rooms. People are complex, and defy simple pigeon-holing, but general patterns do emerge, if one observes.

The beauty of it is that the 12 step system seems to address many of them adequately. Like they say, "It works when you work it."

I spoke to a man in recovery (addict/alcoholic) recently who had attended an Al-Anon meeting, because he's dealing with alcoholics/addicts from just about every direction in his life. He owns a horse farm, drives livestock for a living, and did the rodeo circuit when he was younger. Handlebar moustache, cap that never leaves the head, the scent of Marlboros in his clothing. That type.

He attended an Al-Anon meeting populated by himself and Catholic soccer moms.

Now, I don't know about you, but I'd have thought this guy would cut and run, finding himself in a room full of folks so "unlike" him. But the fact is, he knew the program from the other side, and knew the steps work, and you have to work them. He went into that meeting with people "totally unlike him" (I put that in quotes because this is also another instance of God's irony) and he shared for about 20 minutes, processing through where he was, out loud.

Just the imagery of that is miraculous to me. And when I think about it, it's a testament to the 12 step system. He is likely of the ADHD ilk, and the soccer moms not, but dealing with alcoholic family members. Yet the issues of addiction were the same in their lives, and the steps provided for both brain-types to address them and work.

I continue to be in awe of this system. I know it isn't perfect, and it has its abuses like any other human-populated system. But it works pretty darned well, for a lot of different folks. I appreciate that. And am grateful.

I mean, think about it.

So there you have it, freeflow thoughts - from ADHD brain structure and neurochemistry, to how the 12 steps work. And it's all related, loosely. Just as the Jello will be...

-The Traveler