The Addicted Executive
*This article contains information about addiction-related topics which some readers may find disturbing – reader discretion is advised.
“The three most harmful addictions are heroin, carbohydrates, and a monthly salary.”
– Nassim Nicholas Taleb
Addiction is serious and life-threatening, as it can destroy people’s health, relationships, and finances. It is also systemic, ubiquitous, and even banal. It varies wildly in severity and can manifest in various “outlets”, like the ones listed above, and thousands of others.
For those prone to addiction, any substance (prescription drugs, processed food, caffeine, alcohol) or behaviour (viewing pornography, sex, gambling, eating, complaining, spending) that enhances pleasure and/or reduces pain can become highly addictive and progress over time, even after months or years of remission.
And it can affect anyone, regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, education, geography and social standing. Some may think of ‘addicts’ as homeless people living under bridges and with stolen shopping carts, but this is a pervasive myth.
In my clinical practice, where I assess and treat people addicted to processed food and/or compulsive eating/restricting behaviours, as well as co-occurring addictions to alcohol and/or other drugs, all my clients are intelligent, educated, professional, financially secure, conscientious, driven, and “together” in most aspects of their lives.
I was curious about statistics regarding the prevalence of addiction amongst executives, given the number of professionals I coach who have the disease.
I used an AI tool to search online, which came back with:
“According to a study published in the Harvard Business Review in 2016, rates of alcohol and drug addiction are higher among executives than the general population. According to another study conducted by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, addiction rates among North American executives are higher than in the general population. The study found that executives were more likely to engage in alcohol and drug abuse, which can have negative impacts on their personal and professional lives.”
Why is this? What do executives have in common that makes them more prone to developing addiction?
Amongst my clients, I have observed the following trait similarities, supported by an article “The Executive Addict”, written by Origins Behavioural Healthcare in 2011, which underscores why it is so difficult for executives to 1) recognize their addiction and 2) get help.
Executives struggling with addictions are usually:
- Outstanding/high achievers
- Professional problem solvers and risk takers
- Adept at dealing with high stakes and handling tough situations
- Operate in high-stress, high-stimulation environments
- Have high status and are highly paid
- Have flexible schedules and low accountability for time spent
- Encouraged to partake in addictive substances/behaviours
- Perceive negative career and reputation risks attached to getting help
- Feel trapped in the belief that his/her situation must, or should be, handled alone
Case Study Example:
Veronica (*a pseudonym), the CEO of a successful European start-up company, has been battling with addiction and relapse for over 15 years. It began in her childhood with sugar and processed food, then morphed in her teens to alcohol and drug use, alongside risky sexual behaviour and co-dependant relationships with men. She suffered in silence for many years, achieving high grades, and participating in many sports and social activities, until she experienced a “bottoming out” while at university and sought out an addiction specialist for help. She adopted a holistic lifestyle plan and managed to get sober and abstain from all the substances and behaviours she had been using. Within a year, she had positively transformed her life. She developed passion, purpose and vision and started her own company, alongside a business partner with similar goals and ambition.
She managed her personal and business affairs well and felt engaged, energetic, and satisfied with her life. However, over the next five years, and especially during times of stress, she slowly found herself returning to obsessing about eating certain foods and reinstated her old behaviours of binge eating, purging, dieting, over-exercising, and feeling guilty and out of control. She began feeling more isolated, depressed, lonely, and incongruent as her values and ideals did not match her behaviour, and her work and personal life began to spiral downwards.
She thought she could (and should) manage it on her own, and tried everything she could think of to do so, but eventually became desperate enough to return to the treatment provider she had seen years prior. She repeated her assessment, saw that her disease had progressed over the years she had been abstinent and sober, and became willing again to return to the treatment that had worked for her initially to put the addiction into remission. By re-engaging in lifestyle changes that worked for her previously, Veronica has kept her business flourishing, while taking care of herself and finding alternate ways to deal with stress.
As we can see from this case study – the worst thing about addiction is trying to deny it and keep it going. Addicts are people struggling with ‘two minds’ or ‘two voices’: one voice desperately wants to keep using the addictive substance(s) or behaviour(s), and ‘just moderate it’; and the other voice is sick of the negative consequences and wants to stop, yet can’t seem to stay stopped. The result is that the addicted person feels like they are going insane, and may become severely depressed, even suicidal.
Can you relate? Or do you know someone that may be trapped in this difficult predicament?
What to do if you think you have an addiction to certain substances and/or behaviours:
- Firstly, understand what addiction is. There are two excellent definitions and explanations offered by the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM – 2011).
- Here is the Short Definition of Addiction: “Addiction is a primary, chronic disease of brain reward, motivation, memory and related circuitry. Dysfunction in these circuits leads to characteristic biological, psychological, social and spiritual manifestations. This is reflected in an individual pathologically pursuing reward and/or relief by substance use and other behaviours. Addiction is characterized by the inability to consistently abstain, impairment in behavioural control, craving, diminished recognition of significant problems with one’s behaviours and interpersonal relationships, and a dysfunctional emotional response. Like other chronic diseases, addiction often involves cycles of relapse and remission. Without treatment or engagement in recovery activities, addiction is progressive and can result in disability or premature death”. *Click here to read the Long Definition of Addiction. (ASAM – 2011).
- Secondly, recognize and accept that having an addiction is not your fault, nor anyone else’s. You are not weak, corrupt, morally flawed or broken. It is a medically recognized disease that requires specialized treatment.
- Thirdly, while having an addiction is not your fault, it is your responsibility, as with any other chronic disease, to seek out and participate in appropriate treatment to put it into remission.
- Fourthly, be reassured that treatment for addiction is pleasurable and wellness-affirming. It requires practicing consistent self-care, including mindfulness, exercise, nutrition, adequate sleep, fulfilling relationships, communication, and purposeful, values-centred daily activities. (*Other chronic diseases require quite unpleasant treatment – think chemotherapy, dialysis, surgeries… whereas addicts in remission are some of the fittest, healthiest, happiest, fulfilled, and successful people in the world).
- Finally – know that there are thousands of other professionals and executives around you already in recovery and keen to have you become ‘one of the tribe’. You will be joining an elite group of caring, conscientious change-makers who have taken their professional (and personal) lives to new levels.
Here is an uplifting statistic:
“Professional addiction is one of the most untreated treatable problems. However, compared to other socio-economic groups, professional leaders exhibit very high recovery success rates of 75 – 90%. Once recovered, the professional can return to work with reported improvement in job stability and higher earnings. Fortunately, in today’s world, many corporate cultures are beginning to recognize the risks associated with professional leadership. Addiction can be defined as an occupational or business problem, and recovery can be construed as a set of strategies to save and advance one’s career. Many corporations will support treatment and recovery, through programs designed specifically to meet the needs of such individuals.” Source: “The Executive Addict”
Being willing to talk to a trusted professional and have an assessment for addiction is often 80-90% of the solution, as it offers tremendous relief and can ignite the beginning of positive change.
There are several private/discrete resources for professionals needing privacy and anonymity, often corporately funded, and hundreds of peer-led support groups around the world, many of which offer specialty meetings for executives/public figures/celebrities etc.
If you think you might be suffering from addiction, there is lots of confidential help available. Recovery provides an exit from isolation and relief from chronic loneliness and imposter syndrome. It also offers much-longed-for inclusion with other executives who have found a solution and a way to enjoy authentic belonging. There is truly nothing to lose by reaching out for help!
Jayn Steele is an Executive Coach, Sales Consultant, and an Internationally Certified Addiction Specialist. For a complimentary 30-minute consult, please click here.