It is interesting to observe people under the influence of drugs or alcohol, having been there myself. For anyone who has come out of that darkness, it is easy to spot people who are descending into or already consumed by it, even if they don't outwardly "appear" to be impaired. We still know because we know what to look for.

The saddest part of this is that the people in their descent or consummation in this darkness of addiction honestly believe they are hiding it, even able to convince people of a contrary condition. The reality is that they are only fooling themselves in a misguided effort to convince themselves they have a handle on their state, that they are still in control of their fate.

It is also interesting to examine the results of the creative efforts of artists and musicians, and generally actively creative people. Sometimes the hellish condition of the artist involved actually motivates the creation of some truly remarkable work. We will admit this up front. It would be insane to deny that some people - and I stress this number and result is quite rare - actually become more able to express their creativity while in their addiction than had they either never become an addict or after having come out of their addiction. Why this is so remains a mystery.

However, it is the purpose of this segment to explain why the majority of people consumed in addiction do not produce great works of art or musical expression rather than examine the work of those admittedly rare instances and people who actually blossom during this period.

Nobody will deny that addiction, whatever the form, is anything less than a destructive and debilitating experience and time in the life of the addict. It takes great strength and courage to fight against their addiction, to crawl back from the all consuming darkness, out of the pit of bondage and suffering that is nothing less than slavery.

The artist cum addict will profess that their drug/alcohol/substance use enhances their creativity, even releases their creativity. They will claim that the inhibitions that prevent them from the true and open expression of their "passion", their art, are subsumed by the liberating qualities of the substances involved. So they will insist that they are even more "true" to their craft than not because of their use of these substances.

Again, we will admit and confess, even based on my own experiences, that this claim has a little truth to it. But that "truth" is limited and short-lived at best. As mentioned previously, the reality is far different than the perceived "truth" of the addict. In fact, there may indeed be an initial inspiration that results in a burst of creativity that is truly wonderful, even enlightening. But that inspiration soon disappears, leaving the artist abandoned to the reality of repetition and restatement of ideas already expressed. The once feverish creative process now becomes a millstone of tedium and emptiness, devoid of anything of worth, creatively.

I could drag out scientific information, such as how drugs affect the neural pathways, even releasing endorphines that are responsible for our "pleasure" sensations. And I could tell you that while these at first can result in euphoria and also stimulate the creative centers of the brain, the fact is that this is short-lived and will fade. Eventually the body becomes addicted, the brain functions become altered, and the endorphine "high" becomes less pronounced. Even addicts will tell you that they began to "chase" the initial feelings they had on first use, hoping to relive, regain, or in some way duplicate those first experiences. But it is all for naught because the brain goes through chemical changes as a result of continued use. Increasing the dosage of the drugs does little to nothing except induce nausea and less than pleasurable feelings. But by then, it is too late and the addictive properties of the drugs has taken hold and the person now moves from the joyous pleasure to the tedium of feeding the addiction.

As stated before, the majority of people mired in substance abuse and addiction do not enjoy any sort of creative renaissance or ongoing expressions of new ideas that would be of any long standing and far reaching benefit. The majority of addicted artists fall into a morose and even suicidal state where they are now not only controlled by the very substances they thought to be of benefit, but now, too, they are controlled by a devastation of mind and heart in which there is nothing of any value or merit to express; nothing new takes root in the now sterile soil of their once fruitful garden of creativity. They live only for the next fix, the next nod out, even forgetting all about any thought of what once was their very life: the art itself.

If they labour at all, it is in a state of self loathing and contempt, often within and without. They spurn the world as having turned against them when in fact it is themselves with whom they war. They find every excuse and rationalisation to justify their hell-bent path to destruction, which they see as having come as a result of outside influences and causes - never a product of their own doing, their own choices.

Some will argue that it isn't a choice for the "true" addict. I would argue that is is all about choice. Even in my addictions, I wanted out - desperately so! Even in my deepest darkness, I sought relief from something other than substance abuse. No, I wasn't as bad as most, but the internal suffering I experienced was not because the world had pushed me into that condition. I chose to go there, one step at a time. And I have seen a good number of people completely given over to their addiction turn around their lives - I have helped a few do so - because they wanted out more than they wanted to stay in, enough so that they took advantage of the help offered and did not squander the opportunity given.

Now, I must also confess to you that my belief in God played a part in climbing out of the hole, the darkness. And a good number of people get liberated by embracing a belief in God - not just a "higher power", but the God of the universe, our Creator. I'm not here to preach to you, but I will say this: belief in God is not a crutch, another kind of addiction, that we trade one for another. And, truth be told, most people do believe in a "higher power" outside themselves; they just become reluctant to call this power God - in the biblical sense of God.

At the end of the day, addiction destroys. It does not release "life" into the world. It does not enhance any abilities, whether creative or in other areas requiring excellence in ability and performance, such as the sports world. Addiction does not make you a better person, more perceptive, more open to "truth", more reliable. Addiction doesn't make you anything but dependent upon that to which you are addicted, whether it is drugs, alcohol, sex/pornography or food. And in many cases, addiction will kill you. One day you will die because of it, maybe not physically, but mentally, emotionally or spiritually. You will die. And a dead person does not create anything of lasting beauty or meaning, except to say that they become an example of why we really want to avoid addiction altogether, or finally come to terms with the reality that we are addicted (to whatever, it doesn't matter) and need help to overcome our enslavement to our addiction.

If you are addicted to something, until you understand what it really is doing to you, to your life and the lives of the people around you, the destruction you leave in your wake as you stumble through life thinking yourself perfectly fine and good, only serves to let people know that you are dangerous, to yourself, to your family, to everyone around you.

And any creativity you think you possess, or may have possessed in days past, will never return until you climb out of that pit of darkness. And, if we are going to be entirely honest here, even if you do climb out of that pit, the creativity you once enjoyed may be but one of the many casualties of the war you have been fighting all these years. It may never return.

And that is a tragedy shared by all.