Theories Of Addiction

Now this is where choice in very important. Choice works throughout the entire addiction process along with environment and brain chemistry. Addiction is commonly developed in this order. At this point addiction has taken over the over the life of the individual and usually effects anyone close to them. The addict must make the choice to continue along this path or pull out of the situation. Not all addicts have to hit “rock bottom” to overcome their addiction. Addiction can show its self in many different forms and is not the same for everyone. It can effect people in

Drug and Alcohol Treatment in America has been based on the Medical Model of Treatment. According to Wikipedia, the medical model of addiction is rooted in the philosophy that addiction is a disease and has biological, neurological, genetic, and environmental sources of origin. Treatment includes potential detox with a 28 day or more stay at a residential treatment facility. The continuum of care can include an additional 28 days at the partial hospitalization level, followed by another 6 weeks of Intensive Outpatient.

Many people spend a ton of time, energy and imagination on their “hobby”, when in reality it is an addiction. One way of describing an addiction would be to say that it refers to the continued use of a mood altering substance or behavior despite adverse consequences. Addiction could include things like electronics, drugs, alcohol, porn addiction, internet addiction, and being a workaholic. An addiction can also take other non-traditional forms such as being addicted to a TV show, movie series, television/movie characters, actors, musicians/pop starts.

While there are many myths about addiction we will only be looking at a few of them to establish if these myths are true or false. The number one assumption is that an addict can stop if they choose to. While a very small amount might be able to quit, research has shown that long term use of substances like nicotine, alcohol or other drugs alters the user’s chemistry in their brain, challenging the addicts’ self-control and resistance to the intense urge of whatever the addiction is to (drug, food, shopping, sex, video game).

According to the American Psychological Association, addiction is a condition in which the body must have a drug to avoid physical and psychological withdrawal symptoms. Addiction’s first stage is dependence, during which the search for a drug dominates an individual’s life. An addict eventually develops tolerance, which forces the person to consume larger and larger doses of the drug to get

When dealing with addictive behaviors in Psychology, people find that adolescents are more likely to get involved with addictions and uncontrollable wants with things such as alcohol, smoking, drugs, sex, and much more. With those subjects listed, the age groups more prone to opening up doors to these addictions are the ages of 18-23. This is said for a number of reasons. There is loneliness from living away from home, there is more personal responsibility to manage, there is a desire to escape hard challenges of independence, there is a fear of not finding an occupational foothold in the future, there is more availability and diversity of illegal substances, and there is much more partying with peers (Pickhardt, 2012). When growing into the stages of adolescence, different urges and wants that are hard to turn away from appeal greater to the minds of a youth than simply turning away. This age group falls under the temptation of peer pressure, which could also be a leading cause to the addictions as well. Sometimes, when first developing an addiction to something, it is easier to walk away when not commonly opening up to it everyday. Once the beginning stages of addiction pass, it becomes harder to turn away from what they have been used to doing for a great period of time which is proven to ultimately lead to destruction of ones body, mind, and life.

It says that addiction occurs from changes in the brain. What really causes addiction to occur is stress. How do they influence each other? The person gets so stress and start looking for a way to ease the stress. As we all know, smoking, drinking, drug abuse are the most popular addiction nowadays. By getting drunk, the person gets to forget about the stress events in his or her life. Addiction serves a way to clear the mind, and thus release stress. Let’s take an example of professional models, they are always very skinny. That is because society expects models to be very thin and have a certain shape. Now this puts a stress on the model to always maintain a skinny body. This is how an addiction can starts, the model can become addicted to

Addiction is a far more serious concern rather than drug abuse. The addict physically can’t stop themselves from using a substance (Addiction Resource 6). “Addicts can experience withdrawal symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, dizziness and changes in their mood” (Addiction Resource 4).

When dealing with a problem like drug or alcohol addiction, sometimes a little sound advice can be the first push toward recovery and a brighter future. Drug addiction counseling plays a major role in the treatment of an addict. A person with a severe addiction often already has or can develop deep mental or emotional problems. A few words of hope can begin to usher in a new life and give a reason to live and enjoy life. In counseling sessions, the addict explores the root causes of his addiction and works through personal issues that have affected him. The addict however needs to be honest if he wants to receive the full benefit.

When an addict tries to stop by willpower, only then does he feel the full strength of the addiction. They often don't know the full strength of their addiction because they are always giving in. Once they make the decision to try to quit they are often defeated and may seem lazy because they lay in bed without a fix. But that is because they have a depleted dopamine level caused by long-term

On further extent, all addictions have the capacity to induce the feeling of shame and guilt, sense of hopelessness and feeling of failure. Moreover depression and anxiety are the most common conditions among the addicts. All the addictions have a great impact on various circuits of brain including those which are related to reward, motivation and memory.

On Intervention Canada, Aimee a 26 year old from Ottawa Ontario, has been diagnosed with addiction to Fentanyl. Fentanyl is a prescription painkiller 100 times more powerful than morphine. The drugs come in a patch form which is boiled down until there is nothing left. Her addiction consists of a shot of the drug every six hours which she does with a hypodermic needle that gives her a sense of “high” or euphoria. She has been doing it for the last two years because she feels desperate and upset about her life and this drug gives her the feeling of relaxation. The purpose of this paper is to apply theories of drug use discussed in class to a real case of addiction as depicted in the Intervention video. The three theories related to Aimee’s

There are several theories on addictions. I have been exposed to one from a very early age. Addiction is not something that is intentionally planned. In my mother’s case, it was all a learned behavior from her friends. It all started as a casual beer here and there while hanging out with her associates. She engaged with her friends more often and with that came the frequency in which she drank. I believe it was an act just to feel accepted and part of the group. Years kept going by and alcohol and drugs became a necessity. Her body’s biochemistry had changed without her realizing what she had done to herself. I believe all three are a real problem and the individuals who are affected by the addiction do no really understand what is going

The three topics I have chosen is Addiction stop bullying and Placing Abusive kids in loving homes. My first topic is Addiction I chose this topic because it’s a lot of people in the world who is suffering with different types of addiction. The second topic is bullying, kids everyday are taking their lives because they cant deal with the pressure of kids picking on them. The last topic would be placing abusive kids in loving homes. I think kids who don’t have a voice needs a advocate with a voice.

Sometimes the symptoms and signs of addictions are not always hidden. Signs and Symptoms are different for each person, maybe because of the substance they are addicted too, or their family history or their personal circumstances may also play a role. Withdrawal symptoms happen usually when the body levels of that substance goes below a certain level, a person may have physical and mood related symptoms. They may also have cravings, moodiness, bad temper, poor focus, experiencing depression and emptiness, frustration, anger, bitterness and resentment.(www.medicalnewstoday.com) Some people who have withdrawal symptoms have a sudden loss in appetite, and insomnia is also a common symptom. In some case a person may become constipated or have diarrhea. Withdrawal can also trigger someone to be violent, cause them to have tremors, seizures, hallucinations and