Actress Kiyohara Goya (19 years old) starred in the NHK morning drama "Welcome Back, Baiyin" to tell the story of Nagaura Momoin, born in Kisennuma City, Miyagi Prefecture, who is determined to bring a happy future to people through the work of meteorological forecasting.
At present, it has been broadcast until Baiyin obtained the qualification of weather forecaster and went to Tokyo to work in the "Tokyo Chapter". Hyakuyin begins working as a weather forecaster on morning shows, and deepens her bond with Sugawa (Kentaro Sakaguchi), a doctor she once met while working, and unfolds a reassuring story.
However, in the chapter broadcast in the 15th week, Hyakuyin's Fa Xiao and Ryo Kawa (Ryo Nagase) suddenly appear in Tokyo, and the plot ushers in twists and turns.
Ryo, played by Ryo Nagase, whose mother disappeared during the Great East Japan Earthquake on March 11, 2011, and whose father Shinji (Tadanobu Asano) suffers from alcohol dependence, is very upset about the relationship between father and son.
This work is not limited to the disasters caused by earthquakes, but is closer to the "psychological trauma" that everyone in life may encounter.
Addiction is a condition in which you can't stop certain substances or behaviors, such as alcohol, drugs, gambling, shopping, or the Internet. There are various types, and eating disorders are also considered to be a type of addiction.
The so-called addiction refers to the state that even if you want to quit alcohol, drugs, gambling, shopping, the Internet and other specific substances or behaviors, you can't quit. There are many types of it, and feeding disorders are also considered to be a type of dependence disorder.
According to a survey published in 2013 by the Research Group of the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, there are 1.09 million people with alcohol dependence. If you include people with underlying dependence, it is said that as many as 800,000 people.
Dependence is not far away, it is all around us
Concerns about alcohol dependence are growing due to the increase in social anxiety due to the spread of covid-19, an increase in drinking volume due to increased time at home, and self-restraint of activities of "self-help groups" that help them recover from addiction.
Fears of alcohol dependence have been further exacerbated by the increase in social unrest caused by the spread of COVID-19 infection, increased alcohol consumption due to longer stay-at-home hours, and the suspension of activities by "self-help groups" that help patients overcome their dependence.
Speaking of which, why do people suffer from dependence?
Psychiatrist Toshihiko Matsumoto listed two reasons in his column:
1. "Many addicts have some kind of pain or difficulties in real life during periods of increased alcohol and drug use."
1. "Many people with dependence who are saddled with some kind of pain during periods of increased alcohol and drug use or who encounter difficulties in real life. ”
2. "Many of the drugs that addicts have chosen as dependent targets have the effect of eliminating the complexes and difficulty of living that the person has had so far and compensates for their weaknesses"
2. "People with dependence choose drugs that they rely on, most of which have the effect of eliminating the person's long-standing inferiority and pain, and making up for their weaknesses." ”
In other words, patients with addictions have some kind of "difficulty living", and they consume alcohol and the like to escape the pain associated with it.
In other words, people with dependence disorders have a certain "hardship of life", ingesting alcohol in order to escape pain, etc.
Through certain substances and behaviors, dopamine is released into the brain, which can temporarily give people a strong sense of pleasure and pleasure. When the brain recognizes it as a reward, it tries again in order to feel the same feeling... This is how dependence arises.
The "weak" depicted in past morning dramas
Addiction is a control disorder, and regardless of the will of the person himself, it becomes a state of "I want to stop but can not stop".
Dependence is a control disorder that has nothing to do with one's own wishes and is in a state of "I can't quit if I want to quit".
Shinji of "Back Eri Monet" also got into alcohol, and the trigger was "separation from loved ones". In fact, the death of people close to you is the trigger, and some people become addicted. In order to escape from the painful reality, in order to fill the loneliness of the heart, you will not be able to part with alcohol.
A new episode in "Welcome Back, Hundred Sounds", he drank heavily because he was "separated from his lover". In reality, there are some people who suffer from dependence because of the death of someone close to them. In order to escape from the painful reality and fill the inner loneliness, alcohol is indispensable.
Until now, characters thought to be alcohol and gambling addiction have appeared in Morning Dora, such as Joji (Kazuki Kitamura), the father of the heroine Kimiko of Scarlet (September 2019 to March 2020), and Telwo (Tortoise Matsumoto), the father of Chiyo, the heroine of "Ochoyan" (November 2020 to May 2021).
Characters with alcohol and gambling dependence have also appeared in morning dramas before, such as the heroine Kimiko's father Tokiji (Kazuki Kitamura) in Crimson (September 2019 to March 2020) and Chiyo's father (Matsumoto Atsushi) in "Little Maid" (November 2020 to May 2021).
However, what makes "Backori Monet" unique is that it is a carefully and carefully drawn point, focusing on the state of the addict who "can not stop even if they want to quit" and the history and fundamental suffering leading up to it.
However, the special thing about "Welcome Back, Baiyin" is that it focuses on the state of dependence patients who "can't quit if they want to quit" and the process and essential pain that has developed to this extent, and depicts it carefully and carefully.
Not only in the morning Dora, but also in previous video works, addicts were often portrayed as "weak-willed bad people".
Not only morning dramas, but also in previous film and television works, people with dependence disorder are often portrayed as "weak-willed waste wood characters".
Taking "Little Waitress" as an example, although the heroine's father, like me and Xinji, was addicted to alcohol and gambling because of his wife's departure, he was rated by netizens as "the worst father in the history of morning dramas". Probably because the close-up heroine in the play was tossed by such a father for a lifetime, and finally he died tragically alone in the detention center.
It's not because "the patient's will is weak"
In the Taisho and early Showa eras, the stage of "Ochoyan", even the word "addiction" was not widespread, and treatment methods were not established.
From the beginning of the Showa period, the story of "Little Waitress" was not even popularized and a cure was not established.
In the first place, alcohol is more expensive than it is now, and it was difficult to drink so much that the common people become addicted. Since the high-growth period of mass production and mass consumption, the fact that many people have been able to obtain alcohol at low cost has led to an increase in incidents and accidents involving drunken people, and the recognition as a social issue that should finally be taken has spread.
The original liquor was more expensive than it is now, and it was difficult for ordinary people to drink it to the point of addiction. However, after entering the high-speed growth period of mass production and mass consumption, many people can buy alcohol at a low price, resulting in an increase in incidents and accidents caused by drunks, and finally people have widely realized that this is a social problem that must be dealt with.
The important thing in understanding addiction is that patients are in a state where they can't stop even if they want to. It is not because the intention of the person in question is weak at all, and it is not stopped by the guts, and it is a disease of the mind which can become anyone if even the condition is arranged.
To understand dependence, the most important thing is to understand that the patient is in a state of "can't quit if you want to quit". This is not because of my weak will, nor can I quit by perseverance, but as long as I have the conditions, anyone may suffer from mental illness.
Stories close to family
It is also true that the families who support the patients are also suffering greatly. Even if you sacrifice yourself, you have to do your best for the other party, and gradually, the survival value of supporting the patient becomes that person, and the situation of falling into common dependence also occurs from time to time. That's why "third-party involvement" is needed.
The epoch-making significance of "Welcome Back, Hundred Sounds" is first of all to describe dependence as a disease that can be recovered through various treatments and assistance. There are also depictions of Xinzi going to the hospital to treat alcohol dependence. Dependence is a chronic disease that must be faced throughout a lifetime. However, with the help of self-help groups of experts and people with the same problems, it can be slowly recovered.
What will be the future development of the characters?
In addition, "Backori Monet" is also an excellent point that it indirectly depicts that children do not have to carry the life of parents who are alcoholics.
In addition, the excellence of "Welcome Back, Hundred Sounds" is that it indirectly depicts the life of parents who do not have to be burdened by their children who suffer from alcohol dependence.
Ryo's familiar parents, Hyakuon,and other adults around him support Shinji and indirectly protect the future of children.
Led by the parents of the bright-haired Baiyin, the adults around them are supporting the new time, indirectly guarding the children's future.
"Welcome Back, Hundred Sounds" does not favor any side of the patient and the family with dependence disorder, but is close to the depths of people's hearts.
How will this game describe the new overcoming of dependence? How will Baiyin's weather forecasting work develop? We'll see.
This translation is original in Hujiang Japanese and is prohibited from being reproduced without authorization.