<p>I heard a radio commentator say that it’s now referred to as the Club of 27.</p>
<p>However, knowing Amy Winehouse’s career, and music genre, you have to know she was aware of the legends who had gone before her at age 27. I have to wonder if it was a sort of copycat event; if she knew she was going to go down, she might have been motivated to do so at the same age as the others, so that she might be remembered in the same light as them. I suspect she was a kindred soul with them, in that they all found the only way to find peace in their lives was through drugs and alcohol.</p>
<p>My brother lives in London and goes to a lot of small venue music performances and has seen and met a lot of performers in those venues that later go on to be successful. He saw Amy Winehouse perform in one of those venues (before she was famous and before her downward spiral) and met her a couple of weeks later. He posted this on his facebook. </p>
<p>“Jan 2004, saw an amazing gig at the Jazz Cafe by Amy Winehouse. Two weeks later I was coming out of Camden Town station & almost walked into Amy - she looked at me & said something like “have I seen you somewhere before?”, I told her that I’d seen her gig & how good it was, we chatted for 10 minutes & she was absolutely delightful, funny & clearly happy with life. Sadly that was to change. RIP Amy.”</p>
<p>What a difference a few years made. So sad.</p>
<p>Not all addicts nor addictions are the same or interchangable. Not all addictions share the same severity or control over one’s mind. AS IF its as simple as straightforward as getting treatment for diabetes. Pullease. You know nothing of which you speak.</p>
<p>I don’t really think that Amy Whitehouse’s life rises to the level of tragic. It’s a shame that she couldn’t pull out of her downward spiral and certainly sad for her family and friends. Tragic would be when a productive, happy young adult is killed by a drunk driver.</p>
I agree with this statement to some degree. Unfortunately, Amy did not have any ability to help herself and didn’t take anyone else’s help. Addicts often cannot even help themselves nor see their way to get help, it’s easy to judge, but it’s more complex than you can imagine. Her path was inevitable, she was too weak mentally to get help. Addiction can be far worse than an illness. The Recovery rate are really not that promising for many.</p>
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<p>What’s tragic, is that she has been a train wreck from day one and we have witnessed her going down this path for the past several years, with nothing or no one stopping her. It’s always a waste to witness this, especially a young person.</p>
<p>I think for some of these people, the substance abuse is a manifestation of a mental illness, rather than simply a moral failing. And if another manifestation of the mental illness is a resistance to help, then tragedy results.</p>
<p>Starbright, the family members I have known intimately who have had addictions would have given everything for the chance at inpatient recovery followed by the presence of a 24 hr a day support person/sober coach to support their abstinence. But it was cost prohibitive. Amy had all the financial resources, yet she continued to say …no, no, no. </p>
<p>When you don’t want to get clean, no one can help you. That is the only difference, really. It’s money, and motivation. If you have enough motivation you can find help without money. But all the money in the world can’t buy the motivation.</p>
<p>My younger brother was an addict and the resources were available for him to get help. He was not willing and/or not capable of staying sober. My parents allowed him to basically ruin about 3 decades of their lives while they continued to enable him and worry about his safety. After a life of risky behavior, living on the street, head injuries, seizures and continued addiction, he finally died in December 2010. We had restraining orders to try to keep him away from the home of our elderly parents since he would get violent and destructive. We gave him money when he needed to eat. We offered to pay for safe housing, but he (and his psycho partner) got kicked out of everyplace, including all the homeless shelters.
Yeah- I didn’t feel too sorry for him.</p>
<p>“AS IF its as simple as straightforward as getting treatment for diabetes. Pullease. You know nothing of which you speak.”</p>
<p>It’s not necessary to insult me personally. You know nothing of my experience with addiction, mental illness, or psychology. I was responding to an earlier post that made the diabetes comparison. I never said addiction treatment is simple or straightforward. But accepting help is the one thing all recovering addicts have in common.</p>
<p>Yes, an underlying mental illness that blocks insight into the disease can be a big roadblock to treatment. But when I hear Amy’s music, it sure sounds to me like she knew she had a problem. Your mileage may vary.</p>
<p>Its a really tough call. Daughter’s friend comes from a good home, stable environment, yet she has an alcohol and substance problems compunded by a personality disorder. Her sister and brother are well adjusted and no issues. What went wrong there?
it is really hard to figure out the triggers or the genetic makeup of who will have problems down the road. I read somewhere that people with depression, are usually artistic, creative people who are very self aware individuals and therefore are more prone to depression and self-medicating with substances, alcohol. Maybe that accounts for the 27 club, but at the same time, the artistic community are loaded with people who are bottom feeders that are ready to sell to you and keep you in the substance loop. The drugs are easy and ever present and available.</p>
<p>I’m not a mental health professional nor do I play one on TV, but it seems that many mental illnesses manifest themselves when you are in late teens and early 20’s which also corresponds to a lot of experimentation. It also seems to me that there is a lot of corelation between artistic genius and mental illness (yes, I know, broad stroke there). As mentioned above, the drugs/alcohol are for self-medication. I also agree that this was more than just a “moral failing” or bored teen looking for entertainment. She was ill.</p>
<p>I have listened very little to AW, but our amateur musician/music critic of a son said to me this morning that she was a true talent not just some pop star with a good agent and excellent marketing.</p>
<p>I think it is sad for anyone not to have the desire to survive.</p>
<p>the genes for alcoholism and addiction are in the same places as the genes for depression. Short of a society which kept out all drugs, including the drug of alcohol, and was actually effective at this, these is no way to avoid about 10% of the population becoming addicted to mood altering substances. it can’t be avoided. It’s not age related. Some people who come from alcoholic homes choose not to drink until they are in their 30’s, within months they are alcoholic. </p>
<p>Addiction isn’t a choice.</p>
<p>As someone who was lucky enough to get into recovery before I was even the age of Winehouse, and who has worked with addicts for quite a long while, I can only say that getting sober and clean has a HUGE luck factor involved. We are actually attempting to identify what the common thread is…among those of us who are very fortunate. One thing, a lack of cravings, simply cannot be given to someone. Some of us don’ have cravings, and some do. Those who have cravings are pretty doomed to periodic or permanent relapse.</p>
<p>Trust me, the longer I’m alive, the more I work with addicts, the more I see that there are simply people who CANNOT get sober no matter how badly they want it, as opposed to some of us who find it simple to achieve. It’s just as baffling as why some addict and some do not, given the exact same level of experimentation.</p>
<p>Eventually, they will turn up some factor that leads to long term recovery, but for now, most of us reazlize it’s just the luck of the draw. People always want to think its something that makes them better than someone who died or got addicted or overdosed, but it isn’t. It’s just dumb luck. Sad to say.</p>
<p>I am the opposite of an addict.
I have tried several different types of drugs- smoked cigarettes for a while, quit easily when I thought they were too expensive. ( $.65!)
Drink when I was depressed/happy etc. But I can also go weeks or months without doing so.
I have ADD & take medication for it, but I also forget to take it! So , so much for it being addicting.</p>
<p>The point Duff was making in the article I posted was that he had an extensive support group which made the difference for him when he was using.
I don’t think it is as simple as " motivation"
Some people just need a lot more help than those of us who are lucky enough not to get sucked into the cycle.</p>
<p>What percent of the population has the depression gene? the addiction gene? Are there any great researchers or articles I can read up on for the latest in this??? </p>
<p>Is a person who is on anti-dperessants any less likely to experience the addiction upon use?</p>
<p>I doubt there are ANY families who do not have it within a generation anymore…</p>
<p>My family has experienced cancer and addiction- I honestly HATE these two things. Yes, HATE. </p>
<p>We have been fortunate with AA and Twelve Steps work, which means we have been fortunate that the addicts/alcoholics have been WILLING to try to change. For that I am very thankful, and realize it is a significant piece of luck. But there have been significant relapses many many years after establishment of sobriety- there is never any freedom or cure.</p>
<p>Looking back, a majority of my boyfriends in HS and college became substance abusers/alcoholics… very sad. </p>
<p>As for cancer, that is a WHOLE other thread.</p>