What is addiction?

Last reviewed Thu 25 Oct 2018

By Adam Felman

Reviewed by Vara Saripalli, PsyD

Table of contents

Addiction is a psychological and physical inability to stop consuming a

chemical, drug, activity, or substance, even though it is causing psychological
and physical harm.

The term addiction does not only refer to dependence on substances such as
heroin or cocaine. A person who cannot stop taking a particular drug or chemical
has a substance dependence.

Some addictions also involve an inability to stop partaking in activities, such as

gambling, eating, or working. In these circumstances, a person has a behavioral
addiction.

Addiction is a chronic disease that can also result from taking medications. The
overuse of prescribed opioid painkillers, for example, causes 115 deaths every
day in the United States.

When a person experiences addiction, they cannot control how they use a
substance or partake in an activity, and they become dependent on it to cope
with daily life.

Every year, addiction to alcohol, tobacco, illicit drugs, and prescription opioids
costs the U.S. economy upward of $740 billion in treatment costs, lost work, and
the effects of crime.

Most people start using a drug or first engage in an activity voluntarily. However,
addiction can take over and reduce self-control.
 Addiction vs. misuse

Drug addiction and drug misuse are different.

Misuse refers to the incorrect, excessive, or non-therapeutic use of body- and

mind-altering substances.

However, not everybody that misuses a substance has an addiction. Addiction is

the long-term inability to moderate or cease intake.

For example, a person who drinks alcohol heavily on a night out may experience
both the euphoric and harmful effects of the substance.

However, this does not qualify as an addiction until the person feels the need to
consume this amount of alcohol regularly, alone, or at times of day when the
alcohol will likely impair regular activities, such as in the morning.

A person who has not yet developed an addiction may be put off further use by
the harmful side effects of substance abuse. For example, vomiting or waking up
with a hangover after drinking too much alcohol may deter some people from
drinking that amount anytime soon.

Someone with an addiction will continue to misuse the substance in spite of the
harmful effects.

Symptoms
The primary indications of addiction are:

 uncontrollably seeking drugs

 uncontrollably engaging in harmful levels of habit-forming behavior

 neglecting or losing interest in activities that do not involve the harmful
substance or behavior

 relationship difficulties, which often involve lashing out at people who identify
the dependency

 an inability to stop using a drug, though it may be causing health problems or

personal problems, such as issues with employment or relationships

 hiding substances or behaviors and otherwise exercising secrecy, for

example, by refusing to explain injuries that occurred while under the
influence

 profound changes in appearance, including a noticeable abandonment of

hygiene

 increased risk-taking, both to access the substance or activity and while

using it or engaging in it

Withdrawal

Stopping the use of a drug can lead to anxiety.

When a person has an addiction, and they stop taking the substance or engaging
in the behavior, they may experience certain symptoms.

These symptoms include:

 anxiety

 irritability

 tremors and shaking

 nausea
 vomiting

 fatigue

 a loss of appetite
If a person has regularly used alcohol or benzodiazepines, and they stop
suddenly or without medical supervision, withdrawal can be fatal.

Treatments

Medicinal advances and progress in diagnosing have helped the medical

community develop various ways to manage and resolve addiction.

Methods include:

 behavioral therapy and counseling

 medication and drug-based treatment

 medical devices to treat withdrawal

 treating related psychological factors, such as depression

 ongoing care to reduce the risk of relapse

Addiction treatment is highly personalized and often requires the support of the
individual's community or family.

Treatment can take a long time and may be complicated. Addiction is a chronic
condition with a range of psychological and physical effects. Each substance or
behavior may require different management.

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/323465.php
 Watch the Documentary

WHY DO PEOPLE TAKE DRUGS?

People take drugs because they want to change something about their lives.

Here are some of the reasons young people have given for taking drugs:

 To fit in
 To escape or relax
 To relieve boredom
 To seem grown up
 To rebel
 To experiment

They think drugs are a solution. But eventually, the drugs become the problem.

Difficult as it may be to face one’s problems, the consequences of drug use are always
worse than the problem one is trying to solve with them. The real answer is to get the
facts and not to take drugs in the first place.

How Do Drugs Work?

Drugs are essentially poisons. The amount taken determines the effect.

A small amount acts as a stimulant (speeds you up). A greater amount acts as a
sedative (slows you down). An even larger amount poisons and can kill.

This is true of any drug. Only the amount needed to achieve the effect differs.

But many drugs have another liability: they directly affect the mind. They can distort the
user’s perception of what is happening around him or her. As a result, the person’s
actions may be odd, irrational, inappropriate and even destructive.
Drugs block off all sensations, the desirable ones with the unwanted. So, while
providing short-term help in the relief of pain, they also wipe out ability and alertness
and muddy one’s thinking.

Medicines are drugs that are intended to speed up or slow down or change something
about the way your body is working, to try to make it work better. Sometimes they are
necessary. But they are still drugs: they act as stimulants or sedatives, and too much
can kill you. So if you do not use medicines as they are supposed to be used, they can
be as dangerous as illegal drugs.

Drugs Affect the Mind

Normally, when a person remembers something, the mind is very fast and information
comes to him quickly. But drugs blur memory, causing blank spots. When a person tries to get
information through this cloudy mess, he can’t do it. Drugs make a person feel slow or stupid
and cause him to have failures in life. And as he has more failures and life gets harder, he
wants more drugs to help him deal with the problem.

Drugs Destroy Creativity

One lie told about drugs is that they help a person become more creative. The truth is
quite different.

Someone who is sad might use drugs to get a feeling of happiness, but it does not work.
Drugs can lift a person into a fake kind of cheerfulness, but when the drug wears off, he
or she crashes even lower than before. And each time, the emotional plunge is lower
and lower. Eventually, drugs will completely destroy all the creativity a person has.

https://www.drugfreeworld.org/drugfacts/drugs/why-do-people-take-drugs.html
Addiction
Drugs are chemicals that affect the body and brain. Different drugs can have
different effects. Some effects of drugs include health consequences that are long-
lasting and permanent. They can even continue after a person has stopped taking
the substance.

There are a few ways a person can take drugs, including injection, inhalation and
ingestion. The effects of the drug on the body can depend on how the drug is
delivered. For example, the injection of drugs directly into the bloodstream has
an immediate impact, while ingestion has a delayed effect. But all misused drugs
affect the brain. They cause large amounts of dopamine, a neurotransmitter that
helps regulate our emotions, motivation and feelings of pleasure, to flood the
brain and produce a “high.” Eventually, drugs can change how the brain works
and interfere with a person’s ability to make choices, leading to intense cravings
and compulsive drug use. Over time, this behavior can turn into a substance
dependency, or drug addiction.

Today, more than 7 million people suffer from an illicit drug disorder, and one in
four deaths results from illicit drug use. In fact, more deaths, illnesses and
disabilities are associated with drug abuse than any other preventable health
condition. People suffering from drug and alcohol addiction also have a higher
risk of unintentional injuries, accidents and domestic violence incidents.

The good news is: Substance use disorders are treatable.

What is drug abuse?

Clinically known as substance use disorder, drug abuse or addiction is caused by
the habitual taking of addictive substances. Drugs include alcohol, marijuana,
 hallucinogens and opioids. Substance use disorder is a disease, causing people to
compulsively use drugs despite consequences.

The Effects of Drug Abuse on Health

Substance use disorders are associated with a wide range of short- and long-term
health effects. They can vary depending on the type of drug, how much and how
often it’s taken and the person’s general health. Overall, the effects of drug abuse
and dependence can be far-reaching. They can impact almost every organ in the
human body.

Side effects of drug addiction may include:

 A weakened immune system, increasing the risk of illness and infection
 Heart conditions ranging from abnormal heart rates to heart attacks and
collapsed veins and blood vessel infections from injected drugs
 Nausea and abdominal pain, which can also lead to changes in appetite and
weight loss
 Increased strain on the liver, which puts the person at risk of significant liver
damage or liver failure
 Seizures, stroke, mental confusion and brain damage
 Lung disease
 Problems with memory, attention and decision-making, which make daily living
more difficult
 Global effects of drugs on the body, such as breast development in men and
increases in body temperature, which can lead to other health problems
The most severe health consequences of drug abuse is death. Deaths
related to synthetic opioids and heroin have seen the sharpest rise. In the
past 12 months, 212,000 people aged 12 or older have used heroin for the
first time. Every day, more than 90 Americans die after overdosing on
opioids.

Effects of Drug Addiction on the Brain

All drugs–nicotine, cocaine, marijuana and others–affect the brain’s “reward”
circuit, which is part of the limbic system. This area of the brain affects instinct
and mood. Drugs target this system, which causes large amounts of dopamine—a
brain chemical that helps regulate emotions and feelings of pleasure—to flood
 the brain. This flood of dopamine is what causes a “high.” It’s one of the main
causes of drug addiction.

Although initial drug use may be voluntary, drugs can alter brain chemistry. This
can actually change how the brain performs and interfere with a person’s ability
to make choices. It can lead to intense cravings and compulsive drug use. Over
time, this behavior can turn into a substance dependency or drug and alcohol
addiction.
Alcohol can have short- and long-term effects on the brainand disrupts the
brain’s communication pathways. These can influence mood, behavior and other
cognitive function.
Brain damage may also occur through alcohol-induced nutrition deficiencies,
alcohol-induced seizures and liver disease. In pregnant women, alcohol exposure
can impact the brains of unborn babies, resulting in fetal alcohol spectrum
disorders.

It is reported that alcohol-induced brain problems can often be corrected with

proper treatment. Abstinence from alcohol for months or years can help partially
repair thinking abilities, like memory skills.

Drug Effects on Behavior

Substance use disorders can lead to multiple behavioral problems, both in the
short- and long-term, which can include:

 Paranoia
 Aggressiveness
 Hallucinations
 Addiction
 Impaired judgment
 Impulsiveness
 Loss of self-control
These effects of drug abuse have serious consequences, like missed work,
punishable offenses, accidents and injuries. In fact, alcohol and drugs are partly
to blame in an estimated 80 percent of offenses leading to jail time in the U.S.
ïuThese incidents include domestic violence, driving while intoxicated and
offenses related to damaged property. Legal and illegal drugs excluding alcohol
are involved in about 16 percent of motor vehicle crashes. In the past year,
 almost 12 million people drove under the influence of illicit drugs, and
almost 4,000 fatally injureddrivers tested positive for drug involvement.

Effects of Drug Abuse on Unborn Babies

Illicit drug use poses risks for pregnant women and their babies. Drugs may
contain impurities that can be harmful to an unborn baby. Pregnant women who
use drugs may be more likely to harm the fetus with risky behaviors and poor
nutrition. Drug use can lead to premature birth or low birth weight. It can also
cause the baby to have withdrawal symptoms (sometimes in the form of
neonatal abstinence syndrome), birth defects or learning and behavioral
problems later in life.

An estimated 14 percent of adults with an illicit substance use disorder reported

receiving treatment in the past year. At Gateway Foundation, we offer treatment
programs for all levels of drug addiction.

Know the Facts:

1. Prescription drugs are second only to marijuana as the nation’s most commonly
abused illicit drugs.
2. 4.3 million Americans engaged in non-medical use of prescription medication in
one month.
3. According to SAMHSA, nearly 2 million Americans met the criteria for
prescription drug use disorder in 2014.
4. Prescription medications are one of the most commonly misused substances
leading to a rise in the amount of opioid overdoses in the United States over the
past decade.
5. Research suggests that prescription opioid misuse costs the United States
economy an estimated 78.5 billion each year.
https://www.gatewayfoundation.org/substance-abuse-treatment-programs/effects-of-drug-
abuse/amp/

7 Common Reasons Why

People Use Drugs
Why does someone begin abusing drugs?

Certain people are at risk for substance abuse and for developing addiction
disorders. Their vulnerability might originate from a variety of factors, including
their genetic endowment, family background, psychological factors, and social
norms. Overall, these factors make the person value drug use highly, even
though the decision might be against their long-term interests. Please note that a
risk factor for one person may not be for another. Most people at risk for drug
abuse do not become addicted.

1. Genetic vulnerability

Individuals’ preferences to engage in one behavior versus another are shaped by

their genetic endowment in interaction with their past experiences. The
interactions between genetics and social environment may explain why some
people become addicted and some do not (Kreek et al., 2005). For example, due
to genetic vulnerability, children of alcoholics are at higher risk for future alcohol
problems, and many of these children show high levels of impulsivity.

2. Cultural attitudes

The value that a person attaches to using drugs is strongly influenced by the
community in which the person lives (Wilson, 2005). For example, students drink
more on campuses that have a strong drinking culture, few alcohol-control
policies on campus and easier access to alcohol through special promotions and
low pricing by local stores and bars (Sher and Rutledge, 2007). Social norms
help to define the circumstances in which it is appropriate to drink and how much
alcohol should be consumed.

3. Financial incentives

Evidence shows that people will stop using when the costs become too high
(Dalrymple, 2006). Many of the states that have the lowest smoking rates are
those that have been the most aggressive about indoor smoking laws and about
state taxes that drive up the cost of cigarettes. In general, when cigarette’s price
increases people smoke less. Increases in taxes on alcohol lead to reductions in
alcohol consumption generally and reductions specifically in binge and other
kinds of excessive drinking.

4. Personality

Impulsivity is a personality trait that has often been identified as a risk factor for
alcohol and other substance misuse (MacKillop, 2016). Addicted individuals
assign lower values to delayed rewards than to immediate ones. The excessive
preference for the immediate rewards despite longer-term consequences leads
to problems with addiction.

5. Self-medication

The self-medication theory of addiction suggests that suffering is at the heart of

addictive disorders (Khantzian, 2012). That is, individuals with deficits in emotion-
regulation skills (i.e., skills relevant for modifying emotional reactions and
tolerance for negative emotions) use drugs in an attempt to manage negative or
distressing affective states. Alcohol is frequently used as a way of coping
with social anxiety. The drinking removes, at least temporarily,
the stress of anxiety. Mate (2010) suggests that addictive behaviors ultimately
driven by our unwillingness to allow ourselves to really feel and experience pain,
frustration, fear, and all the negative emotions that are part of being
human. Instead, we choose the chemical shortcut to avoid those emotions and
become trapped there.

6. The lonely addict

Addicts commonly lack enough positive human contacts to sustain happiness,
and they resort to drug intake partly as self-medication (Panksepp, 2012). The
feeling of isolation is a major source of unhappiness. The subjective experience
of loneliness is painful. That is why we turn to ice cream or other fatty foods when
we are sitting at home feeling all alone in the world. Problems in self-
regulation specifically attributed to loneliness have manifested in alcohol abuse,
drug abuse, eating disorders, and even suicide. Moreover, heavy drug users may
avoid or alienate friends or family who are not using. The social control
hypothesis suggests that the absence of caring friends and family lead people to
neglect themselves and indulge in health-damaging behaviors, such as eating
unhealthy and not exercising.

7. The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step

Choices that create an undesirable way of life are made one day at a time. They
are not made at the level of a long-term lifestyle consideration. On any occasion,
using drugs (or overeating) produces limited harm. The damage occurs after
repeated indulgences. No one would choose to be an addict. One day of drug
use does not mean addiction. As the days accumulate, the addictive behavior
emerges. Consequently, a person who never chose to be an addict ends up an
addict (Hyman, 2009). Similarly, someone who has a second helping of dessert
every night ends up twenty pounds heavier without any intention.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.psychology
today.com/intl/blog/science-choice/201711/7-common-reasons-why-people-use-
drugs%3Famp&ved=2ahUKEwiAuYSrj4jjAhUSQd4KHRf7AKAQFjAAegQIBxAC&
usg=AOvVaw1r6Ou6QgrCkKB4FjxxgNMH&ampcf=1
Many people use drugs – but here’s why most
don’t become addicts
Paul Hayes, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine
January 6, 2015 2.03pm GMT

Drug use is common, drug addiction is rare. About one adult in three will use an
illegal drug in their lifetime and just under 3m people will do so this year in England
and Wales alone. Most will suffer no long-term harm.

There are immediate risks from overdose and intoxication, and longer-term health
risks associated with heavy or prolonged use; damage to lungs from smoking cannabis
or the bladder from ketamine for example. However most people will either pass
unscathed through a short period of experimentation or learn to accommodate their
drug use into their lifestyle, adjusting patterns of use to their social and domestic
circumstances, as they do with alcohol.

Compared to the 3m currently using illegal drugs there are around 300,000 heroin
and/or crack addicts while around 30,000 were successfully treated for dependency on
drugs in England in 2011-12, typically cannabis, or powder cocaine.

A powerful cultural narrative focusing on the power of illegal drugs to disrupt

otherwise stable, happy lives dominates our media and political discourse, and shapes
policy responses. Drug use is deemed to “spiral out of control”, destroying an
individual’s ability to earn their living or care for their children, transforming honest
productive citizens into welfare dependent, criminal “families from hell”.

This is a key component of the Broken Britaincritique of welfare and social policy
advanced by the Centre for Social Justice and pursued in government by the CSJ’s
founder Iain Duncan Smith in his role as secretary of state for work and pensions.
However, the narrative has resonance far beyond the political arena and underpins
most media coverage of drug addiction and the drug storylines of popular culture.

Most drug users are ..?

In reality the likelihood of individuals without pre-existing vulnerabilities succumbing
to long-term addiction is slim. Heroin and crack addicts are not a random sub set of
England’s 3m current drug users.

Addiction, unlike use, is heavily concentrated in our poorest communities – and

within those communities it is the individuals who struggle most with life who will
succumb. Compared to the rest of the population, heroin and crack addicts are: male,
working-class, offenders, have poor educational records, little or no history of
employment, experience of the care system, a vulnerability to mental illness and
increasingly are over 40 with declining physical health.

The usual message

Problem cannabis use is less concentrated among the poor, but is closely associated
with indicators of social stress and a vulnerability to developing mental health
conditions.

Most drug users are intelligent resourceful people with good life skills, supportive
networks and loving families. These assets enable them to manage the risks associated
with their drug use, avoiding the most dangerous drugs and managing their frequency
and scale of use to reduce harm and maximise pleasure. Crucially they will have
access to support from family and friends should they begin to develop problems, and
a realistic prospect of a job, a house and a stake in society to focus and sustain their
motivation to get back on track.

In contrast the most vulnerable individuals in our poorest communities lack life skills
and have networks that entrench their problems rather than offering solutions. Their
decision making will tend to prioritise immediate benefit rather than long-term
consequences. The multiplicity of overlapping challenges they face gives them little
incentive to avoid high risk behaviours.

Together these factors make it more likely that, instead of carefully calibrating their
drug use to minimise risk, they will be prepared to use the most dangerous drugs in
the most dangerous ways. And once addicted, motivation to recover and the likelihood
of success is weakened by an absence of family support, poor prospects of
employment, insecure housing and social isolation.

In short what determines whether or not drug use escalates into addiction, and the
prognosis once it has, is less to do with the power of the drug and more to do with the
social, personal and economic circumstances of the user.

Heads in the sand

Unfortunately the strong relationship between social distress and addiction is ignored
by politicians and media commentators in favour of an assumption that addiction is a
random risk driven by the power of the drug.

It does happen. But the atypical experience of the relatively small number of drug
users from stable backgrounds who stumble into addiction and can legitimately
attribute the chaos of their subsequent lives to this one event drowns out the
experience of the overwhelming majority of addicts for whom social isolation,
economic exclusion, criminality and fragile mental health preceded their drug use
rather than being caused by it.

Viewing addiction through the distorting lens of the minority causes policy makers to
misunderstand the flow of causality and pushes them towards interventions focused
on changing individual drug-using behaviour and away from addressing the structural
inequality in which the vulnerabilities to addiction can flourish.

Until we re-frame our understanding of drug addiction as more often the consequence
of social evils than their root cause, then we are doomed to misdirect our energy and
resources towards blaming the outcasts and the vulnerable for their plight rather than
recasting our economic and social structures to give them access to the sources of
resilience that protect the rest of us.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/theconversation.com/amp/many-people-use-drugs-but-heres-why-
most-dont-become-addicts-35504

Who Drug Addiction Affects

Drug addiction impacts individuals of all ages, genders, ethnicities, backgrounds, and
professions.

Who Drug Addiction Affects

Drug addiction not only affects the user, it affects their friends, families, coworkers, and
anyone else they associate with. It breaks bonds between the user and their loved
ones, which makes it even harder for the user to seek out help.

Drug addiction is a detrimental disease that affects the user’s mind, body, feelings, and
actions. Families and relationships are destroyed due to constant, daily, or even
recreational drug use. When someone abuses drugs, they are not the same person as
they once were. Their priorities and desires are very different. Drug addiction changes
you as a person in every way possible, which is why it is so important to get help before
it completely changes your life forever.

Find out more

Populations at Special Risk of Drug Addiction

Teenage Drug Addiction

The teenage years are very stressful. Your body is constantly changing, and you are
just trying to fit in with the rest of the crowd. However, the desire to fit in puts any teen at
risk to succumbing to peer pressure on drugs.

Being that drugs bring new experiences for them, teens try out different substances just
to see what it might feel like or to conform to what their friends are doing. Experimenting
with drugs is not necessarily a drug addiction, but it is often the first step.

Teen drug experimentation often leads to:

 Use of other, harsher drugs

 Continued drug use leading into adulthood
 Less time spent with family
 Losing good friendships and positive influences
 Associating with negative influences
 Pushing school aside and focusing on drugs
College Drug Addiction
Those who were smart enough to decline drugs in high school might have a hard time
keeping the promise to refuse drugs once they move away for college. They don’t have
their good friends and family there to support them and might give in to taking drugs in
order to make new friends.

College is known as the party after high school when you are old enough to actually buy
drugs (such as alcohol or nicotine) and thus abuse this privilege.

Abusing drugs at this age can form habits such as:

 Skipping school to do drugs

 Procrastinating on important assignments
 Communicating less with family
 Trying out new, more intense drugs
 Breaking off old friendships
 Committing crimes
Professional Drug Addiction
Professionals who are addicted to drugs don’t only affect their friends and families, they
affect the entire workplace around them. Their work begins to slip, they lose track of
clients and what needs to be done, and in the end are unable to perform their job duties.
This can result in suspension at their job, or even worse, losing their job altogether.

The professional world can be a stressful environment with constant deadlines, angry
clients, and pressure to keep it all together. Turning to drugs to deal with the troubles of
your profession is not a healthy or efficient way to reduce stress.

Some might think “Popping a few Adderalls to stay focused or a Xanax to relax after a
long day of work would never lead to anything.” Many think these actions are normal.
Unfortunately, as these coping mechanisms turn into habits, a drug addiction is sure to
follow.

Senior Citizen Drug Addiction

Although it is not widely discussed, many senior citizens abuse their medications and
other drugs for reasons that may include:

 Therapeutic purposes
 Unintentional abuse due to memory loss
 Trouble sleeping
 Depression
 Tolerance to medication
 Recreation
Senior citizen drug abuse is not to be taken lightly. It is easy for them to get addicted
due to the wide availability and selection of drugs. If you suspect an older loved one is
abusing medications, talk to their doctor about a lower dose and supervise their
medicines.

Veteran Drug Addiction

A main reason why veterans abuse drugs is to cope with post-traumatic stress disorder
(PTSD). PTSD is a very common problem in Veterans and can alter their daily life;
however, drug addiction can do the same. Abusing drugs is not an efficient way to deal
with PTSD. It could potentially make the situation and feelings worse, which is why it is
important to seek help as soon as possible

. https://www.rehabspot.com/drugs/who-addiction-affects/