Drug Addiction Essay

Many of the above may have contributed to the patient using drugs such as the environment they live in; the patient could have been living with other drug users which could result in the encouragement to continue abusing drugs, this could also make it difficult for the patient to stop if she is associating with people who also abuse drugs (WHO, 2015).

There are many factors such as biology, environment and development that results in the persons initial introduction into the world of drugs. Drug abuse may start as a way to socially connect. More often than not people try drugs for the first time in social

Cocaine, heroin, methamphetamines, alcohol, opium, tobacco, hypnotics, just to name a few. Addiction is a chronic disease that affects the chemicals in the brain. It dysfunctions the circuits in the brain that deal with memory, reward, sex, motivation, behavior, relationships and emotions all mostly resulting in substance use or other behaviors to fulfill those circuit rewards. This world is in a current addiction epidemic on drugs. Let’s try to understand addiction to make it a little clearer.

Risk factor like behavior patterns, peer influences, and genetics can increase a person’s likelihood of becoming addicted to drugs, whereas, protective factors have the opposite effect by helping to reduce the individual’s risk factors. It’s important to realize that not every individual will respond the same way to treatment measures because what works for one individual may not work the same way for another. The more risk factors an individual is exposed will increase their likelihood of becoming addicted to drugs. Also, the timing of when protective factors are in place are crucial because different protective factors work better at different stages for younger adolescents, teenagers, young adults, and adults. For teenagers, protective factors such as having a strong parental influence, parental monitoring, community involvement programs, and appropriate peer relationships can reduce a teen’s risk factor.

To understand addiction further, it is important to look at how drugs have neurological effects in a human body. Drugs can be ingested in various ways; while some are taken orally, some are smoked (cannabis) while others are injected directly into the blood stream (Heroin). Once in the body, they mainly affect the reward pathway in the brain, known as the dopaminergic pathway, which in turn gives pleasure. Even though all drugs affect the reward and motivation pathways in the brain, their speed depends on the way the drug has been consumed. Over constant use of drugs, the cognitive functions are impaired as the effects become more prominent in learning, memory

To begin with, studies have found that inherited genes are responsible for a considerably large part of the probability that someone will become addicted to any kind of substance or behavior. Addiction is strongly influenced by genetic factors in the later stages of addiction, such as problem use and dependence of an addictive substance. Some genetic factors can make an individual more likely to become addicted to only one specific drug. On the other hand, some genes can make an individual more likely to become addicted in general. Some individuals might be genetically inclined to risk-taking behavior such as receiving large jolts of dopamine through what they consider to be the “excitement” of drug use. These individuals could be subject to keep returning to the illicit and harmful drugs that they find enjoyable despite what they know of the harmful effects. These genetic influences could make them more likely to become addicted to alcohol, cocaine, tobacco, gambling, or any number of substances or activities. Addiction has an inherited component and it

Why is it that some people become addict to alcohol or other drugs, while another person does not? According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), “addiction is defined as a chronic, relapsing brain disease that is characterized by compulsive drug seeking and use, despite harmful consequences. It is considered a brain disease because drugs change the brain-they change its structure and how it works. These brain changes can be long lasting and can lead to the harmful behaviors seen in people who abuse drugs” (Drug Abuse). Keep this in mind when you are a health care professional dealing with patients that have an addiction. They may have initially chosen to take that first drink, but alcohol changes their brain. Also, you may find more patients in your office that are addicted to prescription drugs. They may have been injured in a car crash or broke their leg then were prescribed prescription pain killers such as Vicodin by the doctor that you work for. This patient has a different brain make-up and is now feeling that dependent on that drug.

Genes and environment both prove to be important when determining who will be susceptible to becoming addicted to substances and who will not (Durand, Barlow, 2016, 388-389). Using drugs is based on environmental factors but becoming dependent on drugs will occur if a person is genetically vulnerable. There is no specific gene that can be held responsible for this phenomenon, but rather a group of genes that put one at risk for substance use disorder broadly. Susceptibility to addiction to one substance in particular does not occur. Psychological factors must also be considered when discussing what causes substance abuse disorder. Positive reinforcement (making one feel good) and negative reinforcement (making one feel less bad) are two primary reasons for continuing drug use.

Dependence on drugs could also be due to genetically or biologically determined factors that influence a person towards drugs. Genetic predispositions to drugs which push individuals such as Blake towards the need to be high. The genetic factors create a gap that continually requires filling but which cannot be fully satisfied. Furthermore, low-income family and friendship ties may cause an individual to feel unwanted and eventually cause them to seek solace in substance abuse.

While genetics play a role in an addiction, they are only half of the equation. Environmental factors like relationships, work and stress can increase the chances of someone becoming an alcoholic. When these environmental factors are combined with alcoholism genetics, the results can be terrible. Someone who has a predisposition for an addiction is more likely to become an addict if they are in an environment where substance

One of the things that was talked about during the lecture was that not everyone is wired to become an addict. Some people can handle some substances really well but then be prone to being addicted to other things. There is definitely a genetic factor because alcoholism shows up in many generations of a family normally as opposed to just random people. The good thing about this is that just because someone has a predisposition to becoming addicted to a

People are quite prone to developing addictions to exogenous drugs, gambling, and other things that cause a response in the brain. Everyone may have unique risk factors like genetics and environment, though. The pattern from no use to addiction remains fairly similar across people groups with a variety of risk factors.

Social factors that cause addiction are factors in your environment such as friends and family that do drugs. The first piece of evidence is from true stories of Phoenix House, a teenage boy named Nic started his weed addiction because his friends were doing it. Phoenix House is a

They assume addicts lack moral principles or self-discipline and that they can quit by simply deciding to. The reality is, people who have struggled with substance abuse have often found it extremely difficult to quit due to the physical and/or mental addiction. Drug have the ability to change the brain patterns and cause health complications, making things harder in the long-term and may determine life or death. Fortunately, because of more research, there are more ways to back out of an addiction and seek help through an enduring and extensive treatment. Factors that affect the likelihood and speed of developing an addiction are environmental and individual factors, including genetics and

Eventually that addiction leads to drug tolerance. Tolerance is when drug user takes more and more of their drug of choice in order to receive the same type of euphoria feeling they once felt with smaller quantities.