Addiction In Mate's Embraced By The Needle
Sympathy and Compassion in Mate’s “Embraced by the Needle”
You cannot be quick to judge people that you have never met. Each individual has their own personal story and no two people are alike. As well, each person has their own motivation to do the things that they do. In Gabor Mate’s essay “Embraced by the Needle” he has several attitudes toward the subject of addiction, but being judgmental is not one of them. He believes that “No drug is, in itself, addictive” (273), and that beneath each addiction is an underlying cause to where it all began. Sometimes by acquiring a caring attitude, having personal experiences and also having a scientific background it will cause you to be less judgmental towards those around you.
It only takes one person that cares to make …show more content…
a difference. Mate is very sympathetic and shows a lot of compassion toward the drug addicts in his essay. He does not feel the need to be judgmental but more so feels the need to understand where they are coming from and to find a way to help. Mate states that “The first question –always- is not “Why the addiction?” but “Why the pain?” (273). Many of the drug addicts that he has encountered did not start using drugs just for the fun of it, but for the filling of a void. Various things such as childhood neglect, depression, sexual assault, as well as many other factors cause these voids. He feels sympathetic toward these addicts because he realizes that it is not their own fault, these addictions are usually caused by lack of childhood nurturance. Mate shows compassion by working at a non-profit harm-reduction facility to not make the addicts quit completely but to help wean them off of the drugs and to also make sure that they are doing so safely.
The only way to get a true feel for something is to experience it first hand. Gabor Mate is “a staff physician at [a] non-profit harm reduction facility [in Vancouver] where most of the clients are addicted to cocaine, to alcohol, to opiates like heroin, or to tranquilizers –or to any combination of these things” (273). He has encountered many personal stories about drug addiction from the clients that he works with. One example is “Carl, a 36-year-old native, [who] was banished from one foster home after another, had dishwashing liquid poured down his throat for using foul language at age 5, and was tied to a chair in a dark room to control his hyperactivity” (274) As stated in the essay, “Childhood memories of serial abandonment or severe physical and psychological abuse are common. The histories of [his] Portland patients tell of pain upon pain” (274)
“[Mate] is widely known for his expertise on addictions, mental health, and parenting” (273).
Mate states in his essay that “The fewer endorphin-enhancing experiences in infancy and early childhood, the greater the need for external sources.” (274) This is scientifically proven because endorphins reduce the sensation of pain and they also have an affect on the emotions shown. The drug addicts that Mate mentions are all pained in one way or another and the drugs that they are taking cause them to become emotionally stable. For example, the “27-year-old sex-trade worker” (273) specified that the first time she took a shot of heroin “it felt like a warm, soft hug” (273). This goes to show that the drugs not only give a chemical high but a psychological high as well. It gives the addicts a supply to the fundamental neuro-chemicals, such as endorphins. “Endorphins are released in the infant’s brain when there are warm, non-stressed, calm interactions with the parenting figures” (274); if these endorphins are lacking people will find an alternative way to acquire them, like through drugs. “The fewer endorphin-enhancing experiences in infancy and early childhood, the greater the need for external
sources”(274)
In conclusion, Gabor Mate is very sympathetic and shows a lot of compassion towards the drug addicts. He has acquired these caring attitudes because of his personal experiences and scientific background.
Works Cited
Mate, Gabor. “Embraced by the Needle” Essay Writing for Canadian Students with Readings. 7th ed. Ed. Roger Davis et al. Toronto: Pearson, 2013. 273-275.
You cannot be quick to judge people that you have never met. Each individual has their own personal story and no two people are alike. As well, each person has their own motivation to do the things that they do. In Gabor Mate’s essay “Embraced by the Needle” he has several attitudes toward the subject of addiction, but being judgmental is not one of them. He believes that “No drug is, in itself, addictive” (273), and that beneath each addiction is an underlying cause to where it all began. Sometimes by acquiring a caring attitude, having personal experiences and also having a scientific background it will cause you to be less judgmental towards those around you.
It only takes one person that cares to make …show more content…
a difference. Mate is very sympathetic and shows a lot of compassion toward the drug addicts in his essay. He does not feel the need to be judgmental but more so feels the need to understand where they are coming from and to find a way to help. Mate states that “The first question –always- is not “Why the addiction?” but “Why the pain?” (273). Many of the drug addicts that he has encountered did not start using drugs just for the fun of it, but for the filling of a void. Various things such as childhood neglect, depression, sexual assault, as well as many other factors cause these voids. He feels sympathetic toward these addicts because he realizes that it is not their own fault, these addictions are usually caused by lack of childhood nurturance. Mate shows compassion by working at a non-profit harm-reduction facility to not make the addicts quit completely but to help wean them off of the drugs and to also make sure that they are doing so safely.
The only way to get a true feel for something is to experience it first hand. Gabor Mate is “a staff physician at [a] non-profit harm reduction facility [in Vancouver] where most of the clients are addicted to cocaine, to alcohol, to opiates like heroin, or to tranquilizers –or to any combination of these things” (273). He has encountered many personal stories about drug addiction from the clients that he works with. One example is “Carl, a 36-year-old native, [who] was banished from one foster home after another, had dishwashing liquid poured down his throat for using foul language at age 5, and was tied to a chair in a dark room to control his hyperactivity” (274) As stated in the essay, “Childhood memories of serial abandonment or severe physical and psychological abuse are common. The histories of [his] Portland patients tell of pain upon pain” (274)
“[Mate] is widely known for his expertise on addictions, mental health, and parenting” (273).
Mate states in his essay that “The fewer endorphin-enhancing experiences in infancy and early childhood, the greater the need for external sources.” (274) This is scientifically proven because endorphins reduce the sensation of pain and they also have an affect on the emotions shown. The drug addicts that Mate mentions are all pained in one way or another and the drugs that they are taking cause them to become emotionally stable. For example, the “27-year-old sex-trade worker” (273) specified that the first time she took a shot of heroin “it felt like a warm, soft hug” (273). This goes to show that the drugs not only give a chemical high but a psychological high as well. It gives the addicts a supply to the fundamental neuro-chemicals, such as endorphins. “Endorphins are released in the infant’s brain when there are warm, non-stressed, calm interactions with the parenting figures” (274); if these endorphins are lacking people will find an alternative way to acquire them, like through drugs. “The fewer endorphin-enhancing experiences in infancy and early childhood, the greater the need for external
sources”(274)
In conclusion, Gabor Mate is very sympathetic and shows a lot of compassion towards the drug addicts. He has acquired these caring attitudes because of his personal experiences and scientific background.
Works Cited
Mate, Gabor. “Embraced by the Needle” Essay Writing for Canadian Students with Readings. 7th ed. Ed. Roger Davis et al. Toronto: Pearson, 2013. 273-275.