Stimulants In The Us

Many people find themselves intentionally repeating an action weekly, daily, and even multiple times a day. These actions often make individuals feel good and allow them to take a break from reality. Repetitious actions with ¨feel good¨ effects may be referred to as addictions. Whether it be shopping, smoking, drinking coffee, or gaming, addictions often affect the day to day lives of individuals, especially if one does not get their daily fix of the addiction. When a person does meet their addictive needs however, a powerful sense of wellness and relief consumes them thus causing them to want to continue their actions. Addiction is defined as a chronic disorder with biological, psychological, social and environmental factors influencing its development and maintenance (Addictions). While any addiction is very complex, one of the most powerful addictions is drug addiction because of the extreme toll it takes on your body both psychologically and physiologically. Drug addiction is a very prevalent issue in our world today. An estimated 208 million people internationally consume illegal drugs (Truth). While people choose to use drugs for a variety of reasons, the mental processes of addicts are the same. The psychology behind drug addiction has always been very intriguing to me which has caused me to ask the question ¨What happens in the brain when a person is exposed to drugs?¨ and ¨What may cause addiction?¨

Addiction is regarded by most as a social problem to be solved with social solutions, i.e. incarceration. But, scientific evidence argues otherwise: addiction is a brain disease. “The World Health Organization has defined addiction as ‘A state, psychic and sometimes also physical, resulting in the interaction between a living organism and a drug, characterized by behavioral and other responses that always include a compulsion to take the drug on a continuous or periodic basis in order to experience its psychic effects, and sometimes to avoid the discomfort of its absences. Tolerance may or may not be present’” (4). Interestingly though, this clinical condition has both behavioral and social components that need to be attended to, just

Everyone needs a "kick" to finish to a project,study for a test, or even just to get out of bed nowadays. This is why the demand for stimulants are so high. Not all stimulants are created equal in terms of their potential to cause harm. We know that a little caffeine won't

Addiction is defined as a state characterized by compulsive engagement in rewarding stimuli, despite the adverse effects. Addiction can be broken down into two areas: substance dependence and behavioural addiction. Substance dependence involves the person being addicted to substances, for example, cocaine, heroin, nicotine and alcohol. On the other hand, behavioural addiction involves the person being addicted to various activities, which include, gambling, sex, exercise or the Internet (Nordqvist, C., 2009). Addicts have no control over the aspects of their addiction without help, because of the physical, psychological and social conditions involved. It must not be forgotten that these three factors interact with each other (McMurran, M., 1994). This

In this article, readers were taught about the different types of treatment, and research done on patients who have an addiction. An addiction does not always have to be on Drugs, it could be based off of Alcohol and hobbies/interests. “Scientists believe that many allures of modern life- junk food, shopping, smart phones- are potentially addictive because of their powerful effects on the brain’s reward system, the circuitry underlying craving.” There is a medication and treatment for each type of addiction but relapse is very common. Addictions are very unhealthy and damage the brain because it causes hundreds of changes in it’s anatomy and chemistry including the synapses. Addictions are likely caused by spikes in the neurotransmitters dopamine, which heightens salience, or the motivational pull of a stimulus.

Drug and alcohol addiction can be described as a chronic, often relapsing brain disease that causes compulsive drug seeking and use, and difficult to control use of these substances despite harmful consequences to the drug addict and those around them. Addiction is a brain disease since the abuse of drugs and alcohol results to changes in the structure and function of the brain which challenges a persons ability to resist the desire to take the drugs or even to control the number of drugs or alcohol taken. In the initial stages people take drugs and alcohol voluntarily but with the brain changes an individual will experience an intense impulse to take drugs which one cannot do without and this thus

Throughout history and in todays society, addiction has a global problem. Many relationships are destroyed, families broken up, and lives lost due to the addictions some people have. The reasoning behind a person being addicted to something, whether is be alcohol, substances, or a certain activity, comes from societal behaviors that humans possess. The human brain is an extremely complex organ that controls all of our thoughts, feelings, and movements while storing our experiences, observation and memories. With that being said, the brain plays a part in addiction because it makes it possible for us to focus on our attitudes about situations and decides whether or not to fall under the influence of others. The society they we live in helps to influence those decisions we make in our everyday lives. Social Psychology studies how we “focus on the power of situations and examines how we think about, influence, and relate to one another” (Myers 490).

The term addiction has been perplexing psychologists and humanity for many years. Normal people can’t seem to grasp what truly drives addiction and what addicts themselves go through on a daily basis when dealing with it. Hence, society has produced such a negative connotation associated with the term addiction such as cravings, compulsions, and dependence, that the true meaning of the term has been lost, and with it, its solution. People seem to believe that an addict is a lost cause, forever to dwell in the depths of depression and mischief, and can’t be reintegrated to society. In reality addiction is a major setback and obstacle in one’s life, but it is truly curable and can leave one even stronger than before.

Humanity has had a long relationship with drugs and alcohol, so long that Stone Age beer jugs dating back to 10,000 BC have been discovered. Some historians argue that beer predates bread as a staple of human consumption (Hanson, 2013, Para. 1). As the centuries passed alcohol and drugs became ingrained in the early cultures of recorded history, the Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, Chinese, and early Christians all utilized mind-altering substances in ceremony and celebration (Hanson, 2013, Para. 3). Today, drugs and alcohol still play an active role in societies around the world. Yet, governments in the majority of these societies have strict prohibitions against certain drugs, and limitations on the use of alcohol (Ratliff, 2014, Para. 2).

Aside from the purely psychological component, there is a chemical component to how addiction functions in humans. When studying drug addiction, two fields of study are involved. The first is Neuropharmacology. Neuropharmacology focuses on the drug induced changes to the functions of cells in the nervous system. The other is Psychopharmacology. Psychopharmacology deals with the changes in mood, thinking, and behavior caused by drug use. Both branches of medicine are equally important to explaining the nuances addiction. The work being done in these fields of study is making strides to help addiction become more widely understood.

There are many models of addiction. It appears that addiction is still not totally understood by the establishment due to the different interactions including everything from family dynamics, genetics, economic availability of substances to brain chemistry, morality, and social interactions as well as other criteria. The following is a sample of four different models of addiction with some of the positives and negatives of each model.

Addiction is an unexpected problem defined by excessive drug consumption. Whereas each drug produces peculiar physical effectiveness, any mistreat usage of drugs of the same manner: more than often usage can affect the behavior of the brain.

Addiction is defined as a state characterized by compulsive engagement in rewarding stimuli, despite the adverse effects. Addiction can be broken down into two areas: substance dependence and behavioural addiction. Substance dependence involves the person being addicted to substances, for example, cocaine, heroin, nicotine and alcohol. On the other hand, behavioural addiction involves the person being addicted to various activities, which include, gambling, sex, exercise or the Internet (Nordqvist, C., 2009). Addicts have no control over the aspects of their addiction without help, because of the physical, psychological and social conditions involved. It must not be forgotten that these three factors interact with each other (McMurran, M., 1994). This

Addiction is a disease that occurs when a person craves doing something even when it has harmful consequences. People can be addicted to practically anything but addiction tends to take form in things like alcohol, gambling, smoking, and drug use. When a person is addicted to something, it takes control of their life and the affected person will continue to partake in behavior even when they know it is causing problems in their life. Luckily, there are many different treatments that can effectively fight addictions. Society is slowly beginning to recognize that addiction is a disease, not something that people can stop if they want to. With 21.5 million Americans suffering from an addiction to drugs and/or alcohol (Schneider and Quartaro, 2016, p. 1), we have come to better understand addictions, but how does this disease begin and why do only some people become addicts? In the world of science, many people are either strong believers that the environment that someone lives in affects who they are, or that it is their genes that decide who they are. However, when it comes to people who have an addiction, both the environment that they are in and their genes are the cause of how they developed the addiction.

Drug addiction is a chronic brain disorder that affects millions of people around the world. It is characterized by compulsive drug seeking and use despite the harmful consequences that may occur. Surprisingly, drugs affect people in different ways. One person may habitually take a drug and never become addicted, while another person can have only a single experience with a drug and become iammediately addicted. To be clear, addicts are habitual drug users who continue to use a drug despite its unfavorable effects on their health and social life. It is also worthy of noting, that addiction does not solely occur with drugs, ambling, food, shopping and video games also can become an addiction. There are three stages in drug addiction that should be known, initial drug taking, habitual drug taking, and lastly, drug craving and addiction relapse.