Drug Addiction

1412 Words3 Pages

According to mayoclinic.org, a drug addiction is a dependence on an illegal drug or a medication. When addicted, the person may not be able to control their drug use and they may continue using the drug despite the harm it causes. Drug addiction can cause an intense craving for the drug. In 2012, an estimated 23.9 million Americans aged 12 or older had used an illicit drug or abused a psychotherapeutic medication. Drug addiction is a serious problem that can affect the person's body and mind, there are many factors that lead to addiction, and simple treatments to help an addict recover and keep away from relapsing.
There are two types of addictions: psychological and physical. When a person is psychologically addicted they believe that they need the drug in order to live. A user gets attached to the drug thinking its normal during their daily routines. “A user may associate certain actions or rituals with taking drugs” (Nagle 22). Drug addicts think it’s necessary to get high before they do certain things. For example, some may get high before eating a meal or before going to bed, they get a feeling of accomplishment as if they’ve done something good, the drug rewards their nerve system. Drug users alter the way their brain works by the constant use. However, “if a person takes a drug often enough the brain changes so it can handle all of the changes” (Nagle 16).
Just as you can get mentally addicted, the body as well can become addicted. This type of addiction is labeled “physical addiction.” Just like the brain, if you take an illicit drug long enough your body changes to accept the feeling as “normal.” “The body and brain come to accept certain levels of the substance as normal” (Nagle 23). The body will now require more and mo...

... middle of paper ...

... addiction, and simple treatments to help an addict recover and keep away from relapsing. The fact that anyone can fall into drug addiction and how dangerous addictions can be should scare everyone straight to stay away from drugs.

Works Cited

Gerdes, Louise I., ed. Addiction: Opposing Viewpoints. San Diego: Greenhaven, 2005. Print.
Henderson, Harry. Drug Abuse. New York: Facts On File, 2005. Print.
Isralowitz, Richard, and Darwin Telias. Drug Use, Policy, and Management. Westport, CT:
Praeger, 1998. Print.
Milhorn, Howard T. Drug and Alcohol Abuse: The Authoritative Guide for Parents, Teachers, and Counselors. New York: Plenum, 1994. Print.
Nagle, Jeanne. Everything You Need to Know about Drug Addiction. New York: Rosen Pub.
Group, 1999. Print.
Sussman, Steven Yale., and Susan L. Ames. The Social Psychology of Drug Abuse.
Buckingham: Open UP, 2001. Print.

Show More
Related

  • Temperance Movement and Opium

    550 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...y, H. (2008). Drug use and abuse: a comprehensive introduction (7th ed.). Belmont, CA: Thomson/Wadsworth.

    Read More

  • Another Look a Pamplet Published by Narcotics Anonymous World Services, Inc.

    1214 Words  | 3 Pages

    Drug addicts lie and steal from their families, lose jobs, and do not live stable lives. Abuse of Prescription medication and marijuana is among one of the greatest concerns in the United States, especially in young people because drugs are causing issues between families, money, etc. Addicts find ways to create different drugs. This is making drug abuse difficult to control and ultimately change. In addition, addiction is not only a physical dependence, but also mental. Drug abuse has various causes, effects, and treatments. Based on the pamphlet, “Another Look,” published by Narcotics Anonymous World Services, Inc., states “If we can find greater agreement on what addiction is not, then perhaps what it is may appear with greater clarity” (3). If people can see drug addiction for what it really is, a sickness, then an addict’s family and friends would better understand that addicts do not choose to become addicted to drugs. Addiction is a routine of compulsive behavior (3). In addition, recovering addicts feel very restricted with freedom because they are afraid of abusing drugs again, but want to be free to do as they please at the same time (3). Addicts have a need to control everything because they fear there will be obstacles in life that they may not be able to handle (3). If addicts can find ways to deal with their problems, they may not use drugs as a way to escape reality. There are many ways for addicts to cope with life, such as, counseling, drug rehabilitation centers, family and friends support.

    Read More

  • Youth and Substance Abuse

    1740 Words  | 4 Pages

    Liehr, P, Marcus, M, Carroll, D, Granmayeh, K L, Cron, S, Pennebaker, J ;( Apr-Jun 2010). Substance Abuse; Vol. 31 (2); 79-85. Doi: 10.1080/08897071003641271

    Read More

  • Substance Abuse: A Nationwide Epidemic

    2210 Words  | 5 Pages

    Drug addiction is often characterized as being a complex brain disease that causes compulsive, uncontrollable, drug craving, seeking and use without any regards to the consequences they may bring upon themselves, or society. As long as the brain is exposed to these large amounts of dopamine on the reward system, it will inevitably develop a tolerance to the current dopamine levels, which it is receiving, lessening the pleasure the user will experience. In order to satisfy the brains “reward...

    Read More

  • Drug Addiction: A Brain Disease?

    746 Words  | 2 Pages

    There are many biological factors that are involved with the addicted brain. "The addicted brain is distinctly different from the nonaddicted brain, as manifested by changes in brain metabolic activity, receptor availability, gene expression, and responsiveness to environmental cues." (2) In the brain, there are many changes that take place when drugs enter a person's blood stream. The pathway in the brain that the drugs take is first to the ventral tegmentum to the nucleus accumbens, and the drugs also go to the limbic system and the orbitofrontal cortex, which is called the mesolimbic reward system. The activation of this reward system seems to be the common element in what hooks drug users on drugs (2).

    Read More

  • The Prescription Drug Abuse Crisis

    1696 Words  | 4 Pages

    Drugs cause an overall disturbance in a subjects’ physiological, psychological and emotional health. “At the individual level, drug abuse creates health hazards for the user, affecting the educational and general development of youths in particular” (“Fresh Challenge”). In youth specifically, drug abuse can be triggered by factors such as: a parent’s abusive behavior, poor social skills, family history of alcoholism or substance abuse, the divorce of parents or guardians, poverty, the death of a loved one, or even because they are being bullied at school (“Drugs, brains, and behavior”) .

    Read More

  • Substance Abuse and Addiction

    1946 Words  | 4 Pages

    Substance abuse and addiction have become a social problem that afflicts millions of individuals and disrupts the lives of their families and friends. Just one example reveals the extent of the problem: in the United States each year, more women and men die of smoking related lung cancer than of colon, breast and prostate cancers combined (Kola & Kruszynski, 2010). In addition to the personal impact of so much illness and early death, there are dire social costs: huge expenses for medical and social services; millions of hours lost in the workplace; elevated rates of crime associated with illicit drugs; and scores of children who are damaged by their parents’ substance abuse behavior (Lee, 2010). This paper will look at the different theories used in understanding drug abuse and addiction as well as how it can be prevented and treated.

    Read More

  • Dopamine and Drug Addiction

    1156 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...raving the drug again because dopamine levels were so high; they wanted to feel the same way again.

    Read More

  • Addiction and Recovery

    884 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...g the extent to which addiction affected the brain system resulting into changes and adaptations that the addict has no control. In addition to this, I learnt of the innate struggle that they experience with every attempt made towards becoming “clean” again; a struggle which almost always ends in defeat. A situation that can be described as “baffling”, an expression used by one of Dr, Volkow’s interviewees. Learning the involuntary nature of addiction and relapse that occur during recovery and the immense efforts required from the recovering addicts greatly changed the way I perceived the recovery process. Now I know it takes intervention from others, in addition to the effort made by the affected individual desiring to recover. Indeed, one cannot easily recover from drug addiction and avoid relapsing without help from family, friends and the society at large.

    Read More

  • Effects of Drugs on Consciousness

    1057 Words  | 3 Pages

    The altered states of consciousness produced by drugs presents an all-to-common phenomenon in today’s society. Whether the desired sensation comes in the form of energy, a means of relaxation, or pain reduction, many people go to great lengths and present their bodies to threatening conditions in order to achieve this euphoric “high.” Unfortunately, the use of these drugs very often comes with dangerous side effects that users must learn to manage with for the rest of their life. According to neuroscientists, our entire conscious existence bases itself off of the lighting-fast reactions occurring in our nervous system (Nichols, 2012). Therefore, changing these neurological reactions can permanently effect our conscious being (Blatter, 2012). The physical and neurological effects from the use and abuse of stimulants, sedatives, hallucinogens, organic solvents, and athletic performance enhancing drugs will be discussed in order to better comprehend why certain individuals expose themselves to such dangerous materials with seemingly no regard to the permanent consequences associated with such actions.

    Read More

  • Drug Abuse

    1263 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...er says, that “eventually, the drugs decrease the person’s ability to experience pleasure without a drug” (Torr 13).

    Read More

  • Addiction in Adolescents

    992 Words  | 2 Pages

    Humans are environmentally and genetically predisposed to developing a motivated addictive behavior. Addiction is a brain disease and a behavior. All behaviors are choices. Choices that adolescences make at a young age directly affect the outcomes of their futures. Many factors contribute to an adolescence becoming an addict or exhibiting a drug seeking behavior. Nearly all drugs of abuse increase dopamine release. Dopamine is an important neurotransmitter in drug abuse and addiction. Dopamine plays a role in reward motivated behaviors, motor control and important hormones. It’s known as the “feel good hormone” which is why people abuse drugs that increase the release of dopamine. Since life is unpredictable, our brains have evolved the ability to remodel themselves in response to our experiences. The more we practice an activity the more neurons developed in order to fine-tune that activity causing addictive behaviors to be detrimental.

    Read More

  • An Essay About Drug Addiction

    1114 Words  | 3 Pages

    Drug addiction is a very big problem in today’s society. Many people have had their lives ruined due to drug addiction. The people that use the drugs don’t even realize that they have an addiction. They continue to use the drug not even realizing that their whole world is crashing down around them. Drug addicts normally lose their family and friends due to drug addiction.

    Read More

  • Argumentative Essay On Drug Abuse

    1089 Words  | 3 Pages

    Abuse can cause countless medical problems to the body. A person who is addicted will continue to stimulate themselves regardless if they are aware of the negative chain reactions. Once addicted, it becomes difficult to stop due to how the body has become dependent. Health will be harmed the more a stimulant is used. Health effects include: cardiovascular disease, strokes, cancer, HIV/AIDS, hepatitis, lung disease, mental disease, birth defects. Mental health is what keeps a person in the right mind to make better decisions and have better control in life. Drugs have the ability to change mood and behavior. If drugs have affected the brain already, the desire increases which changes mental health. Some may not realize that they have been affected their health negatively. “A person who abuses drugs may not realize they have a problem until pronounced effects of drug abuse are seen, often physically. While drug abuse effects on the body vary depending on the drug used, all drug abuse negatively impacts one 's health (Addictions Community). Since drugs create many health issues, treatment is not a simple task. Treatments are hard to obtain and addictions often go

    Read More

  • Illegal Drugs Essay

    1610 Words  | 4 Pages

    It is known as a mental addiction because they depend on stimulants to seek pleasure or comfort. Therefore, many parents who work hard for the whole day, and they would try illegal drugs to relax after a long day, but lead their children on the wrong path toward using drugs. From many surveys about drug use claim, addicted Americans want to feel high at parties feel interested doing whatever they want. Drugs are really dangerous, if people want to find some new challenges or feelings, they could choose some others things for satisfying themselves. If they have experienced something disappointed, they can share with their best friends. They can then figure out some way to solve it, not use drugs to forget

    Read More

More about Drug Addiction

Open Document