Addiction : Behavioral Addiction And Substance Addiction

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.

The meaning of a word portrays what it encompasses and if the phrase itself is misunderstood then defining what it’s trying to explain can be a studious task. Addiction has been defined by many and holds different meanings based on the context it’s used in. Addiction can be defined as a condition in which a person undertakes the use of substance, or engages in activities, which in turn brings pleasure, and tends to divert oneself from their day-to-day duties and responsibilities. Addiction is mostly related to drug use but it is also used to describe non-drug entities, such as gambling, and Internet addictions (Avena et al, 2008). Researchers (Herbert, J. D., Forman, E. M., 2010) have been keen on identifying the factors that lead to

Addiction can be separated into three categories: mind (neurological), body (physical), and spirit (psychological). Within in this breakdown addiction can possibly be explained and properly understood.

The main two psychological issues are addiction and eating disorders and the concept of addiction has developed over the past several years. Substance dependence is the most closely related concept of the everyday meaning of addiction, and to meet the criteria for substance dependence one must demonstrate several, but not all of the following criteria:

Chapter seven teaches us that there are more addictions other than substance addictions. These can be described as behavioral or process addiction. Most of these addictions include compulsive and obsessive behavior which are comparable to substance addictions. There are several process addictions. For example, eating disorders like anorexia, bulimia and other structures of disorder eating. Shop lifting, internet, sex/love addiction, gaming, gambling, and self-harm are other examples of addictions.

Is addiction a disease? This question has long been debated and not just among the medical community. It seems if you ask this question to any random people you can find varying opinions on the issue. Stanley Peele's wrote an article which argues that addiction is not a disease and the growing influence of addiction as a disease will create problems within our society. Stanley presents several arguments for his points, however these are not strong enough arguments for people to consider his point of view. Addiction is not a disease, because addiction is a choice, it's something a person does and not has, and it refers to a behavior. This essay will expand on Stanley Peele's arguments.

If you’re looking for a definition of addiction, you’re not going to find it here, in fact the

Addiction kills more than 300,000 people each year (NIDA 1). Addiction to a substance or multiple substances affect the brain and body's functioning's. Addiction is classified as a disease that affects both the brain and behavior (CDC).

When people see the word addiction they immediately think of the usage of illegal substances. There’s more to think of than just one type of definition for this word, addiction can be viewed as a brain disease or a need for a particular substance. The definition of addiction is most commonly known as a condition that results when a person ingest a substance.

When you hear the word ¨äddiction¨ the first thing that usually comes to mind is drugs and alcohol. These sadly are not the only types of addiction. Humans can come psychologically be obsessed or addicted” to many things like: media or technology, food, gambling, work, and even shopping or spending money. To better understand the word addiction and its meaning, the definition is the fact or condition of being addicted to a particular substance, thing, or activity. The word addiction came from a latin term meaning ënslaved by or bound to.

As defined by (Henderson, 2000), addition can be explained as a situation in which a person becomes too dependent on a substance to the extent of not being able to live without it. The author further adds that addiction does not only involve substances as it can also be as a result of a persistent behavior. Referring to the behavioral addiction, the author termed activities such as shopping, driving, and gambling among others as capable of addicting. The author added that the easiest way of identifying addiction in a person is by observing whether or not they exhibit repeated, compulsive behavior in order to maximize rewards. Such behaviors are observed from an intense craving depicted by the victim. The most common form of addition according to the author is, however, substance based (drug

However, with respect to which many have been called “behavioral addictions” it has been a large controversy between those who believe that conditions such as food, shopping, sex, shopping etc. could be addictions, and those who believe that these are just another classification of conditions of human behavior.

All types of addictions should be looked at from a philosophical and psychological point of view. Those in the fields of neuroscience, psychology and philosophy often compare their views to show the similarities of addictions whether they be substance induced or behavioral. “Behavioral science experts believe that all entities capable of stimulating a person can be addictive; and whenever a habit changes into an obligation, it can be considered as addiction” (Alaghemandan et al 290). Some addictions can affect people physically. Caffeine and nicotine provide prime examples. The body’s physical state becomes dependent on its effects and causes withdrawal symptoms without use. One of the main differences in behavioral and substance addictions is that behavioral addictions have no apparent physiological or physical withdrawal symptoms. It is not the physical body that is addicted, but the feeling that one gets mentally. The physical body is only affected by the

Addiction is a dependence on a substance in which the affected individual feels powerless to stop. Millions of Americans have addictions to drugs, alcohol, nicotine, and even to behaviors such as compulsive gambling and shopping. Recent studies suggest that millions of Americans are addicted to food, as well.

“Addiction is a brain disease expressed in the form of compulsive behavior,” says by Alan Leshner in his article, “Addiction Is a Brain Disease” featured in the book Drug Abuse: Opposing Viewpoints. Addiction has a variety of meanings depending on what your viewpoint of addiction. According to dictionary.com, the concrete definition of the word addiction is, “the state of being enslaved to a habit or practice or to something that is psychologically or physically habit-forming, as narcotics, to such an extent that its cessation causes severe trauma.” Basically various doctors and therapist consider addiction to be a genetic disorder. “Provocative, controversial, unquestionably incomplete, the dopamine hypothesis provides a basic framework