What Medicine and Psychology “Forgot”: Addiction is Dependent Attachment
The assertion that “anyone can become addicted to anything” is a cornerstone of the revised operational definition of addiction proposed by O’Brien (2023a). This concept is crucial for dismantling the limitations of traditional psychological paradigms and providing a clinical framework for understanding the source of Systemic Pathology/Dysfunction and implicit bias within professional and governmental institutions.
I. Operational Definition and Universal Scope
The definition of addiction articulated in O’Brien’s research (2023a) fundamentally reclassifies the concept, challenging the conventional categorization of addiction as a disease, which is often reflected in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM).
A. Addiction as Trauma-Related Dissociation
Addiction is operationally defined as Trauma-Related Dissociation. This definition establishes that dependence is the critical metric for measuring the addictive state. Within this framework, addiction is inherently viewed as being on the trauma-dissociative spectrum.
B. Transdiagnostic and Transferable Classification
The concept that “anyone can become addicted to anything” is supported by classifying addiction as transdiagnostic and transferable. This universality means that the underlying psychological mechanism—the dependence on a coping strategy to manage unresolved trauma—can attach to any substance, behavior, or idea. The research contends that the lack of this accurate, operational definition has historically left the psychological professional pipeline dysfunctional.
II. Clinical Mechanisms: Normalization and Identification of Positive Addictions
The transdiagnostic nature of addiction requires shifting the focus from specific substances to the psychological coping mechanism itself, normalizing the addictive response as a widespread societal phenomenon.
A. Normalization of the Response
Because addiction is Trauma-Related Dissociation, it is linked to the concept that dissociation is a normal response to all too common traumatic or stressful events, not a disease or disorder. The addictive state is viewed as an unconscious choice conditioned into the physical body, where the individual is living dissociated to heal. The systemic failure lies in the institutional inability to recognize this reality, leading to the continued enforcement of policies based on “immature science”.
B. Identification of Missing Addictions
The realization that addiction is transferable allows for the identification of positive behaviors that operate pathologically within socio-economic and professional contexts, but which are currently omitted from clinical diagnostics. These include perfectionism, altruism, and ambition addictions.
The sources observe these “positive addictions” playing out through socio-economic and professional structures. For instance, professional power struggles—such as the fight over diagnostic privilege—are symptoms of these undiagnosed addictions, prioritizing “monetary advantage and social status” over professional capability.
III. Implications for Systemic Pathology and Denial
The transdiagnostic definition of addiction provides the clinical diagnosis for Systemic Pathology/Dysfunction by explaining why professional and governmental agencies remain resistant to moral and legal change.
A. Addiction to Status and Denial
The system’s addiction is fundamentally a dependence on maintaining its status quo and cash flow. The transdiagnostic nature allows this addiction to manifest as an addiction to not knowing, or amnesia/denial. This denial is necessary because recognizing the transdiagnostic nature of addiction would force institutions to confront their own pathological dependence on power and their resulting failures.
This addiction to not knowing becomes the system’s core implicit bias. The system’s refusal to follow established research (e.g., the medical value of psychedelics) or acknowledge its role in crises (e.g., the opiate epidemic) confirms that it is “sick” and resistant to treatment, remaining stuck in the pre-contemplative stage of change.
B. Justification of Coercive Control
Since “corporations are people” and professional organizations “act, perform, behave, and get sick like people”, their actions are viewed through the lens of addiction. The willingness of professionals to enforce unjust laws or engage in double standards (e.g., not applying the Good Faith Estimate (GFE) requirement to lawyers) demonstrates how transdiagnostic addictions to power and control lead to coercive and abusive systemic dynamics. The failure of psychology to define addiction accurately enables the legal system to remain developmentally immature, relying on “immature science” that perpetuates these destructive patterns. The accurate definition of addiction as transdiagnostic is thus essential for moving the system toward recovery and moral maturity.
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References
O’Brien, A. (2023a). Addiction as Trauma-Related Dissociation: A Phenomenological Investigation of the Addictive State. International University of Graduate Studies. (Dissertation). Retrieved at woundedhealersinstitute.org/courses/addiction-as-dissociation-model-course/
O’Brien, A. (2023b). Memory Reconsolidation in Psychedelics Therapy. In Path of the Wounded Healer: A Dissociative-Focused Phase Model for Normative and Pathological States of Consciousness: Training Manual and Guide. Albany, NY: Wounded Healers Institute. Retrieved at woundedhealersinstitute.org/courses/addiction-as-dissociation-model-course/
O’Brien, A. (2023c). Path of the Wounded Healer: A Dissociative-Focused Phase Model for Normative and Pathological States of Consciousness: Training Manual and Guide. Albany, NY: Wounded Healers Institute. Retrieved at woundedhealersinstitute.org/
O’Brien, A. (2024a). Healer and Healing: The re-education of the healer and healing professions as an advocation. Re-educational and Training Manual and Guide. Albany, NY: Wounded Healers Institute. Retrieved at woundedhealersinstitute.org/
O’Brien, A. (2024e). Path of the Wounded Healers for Thrivers: Perfectionism, Altruism, and Ambition Addictions; Re-education and training manual for Abusers, Activists, Batterers, Bullies, Enablers, Killers, Narcissists, Offenders, Parents, Perpetrators, and Warriors. Re-Education and Training Manual and Guide. Albany, NY: Wounded Healers Institute. Retrieved at woundedhealersinstitute.org/
O’Brien, A. (2025). American Made Addiction Recovery: a healer’s journey through professional recovery. Albany, NY: Wounded Healers Institute. Retrieved at woundedhealersinstitute.org/
O’Brien, A. (2025a). American Made Addiction Recovery: a healer’s journey through professional recovery. Albany, NY: Wounded Healers Institute. Retrieved at woundedhealersinstitute.org/
O’Brien, A. (2025b). Applied Recovery: Post-War on Drugs, Post-COVID, and What Recovery Culture and Citizens Require Moving Forward. Albany, NY: Wounded Healers Institute. Retrieved at woundedhealersinstitute.org/
O’Brien, A. (2025c). Recovering Recovery: How Psychedelic Science Is Ending the War on Drugs. Albany, NY: Wounded Healers Institute. Retrieved at woundedhealersinstitute.org/
*This is for informational and educational purposes only. For medical advice or diagnosis, consult a professional.
