The Basics of Drug Addiction in New York
Drug addiction is a problem that can be found throughout the United States in communities of all sizes. It is something that does not discriminate based on age, sex, economic status, ethnicity, or any other factor. Any individual who voluntarily starts down the road of recreational drug use can become addicted. Therefore, it's imperative for every individual to know the basics of drug addiction and how it works, in order to make sure they do not fall victim, and get help from a drug addiction treatment center if they do.
There remains some debate within the medical community as to whether addiction is a disease in the same sense as cancer or diabetes. Some would argue that addiction is a manifestation of poor choices and bad behavior; others maintain that drug addiction is a physical illness.
The government defines drug addiction as “a chronic, often relapsing brain disease that causes compulsive drug seeking and use, despite harmful consequences to the addicted individual and those around him or her.” According to the National Institutes for Health, an established addiction results in compulsive behavior the user cannot control through willpower and decision-making alone.
New York
Treatment Center in New York
Addiction Recovery in New York
Hempstead NY
Brook Haven NY
New York City
Practical Aspects of Addiction
All of the official definitions aside, drug addiction manifests itself practically as a nearly uncontrollable compulsion to use drugs. It may start out as casual recreational drug use, but by the time a person is diagnosed as an addict, he or she is controlled by the substances being used. Everything in the individual's life is somehow related to drug use.
More often than not, the average American thinks of the illicit drugs of the 1960s and 70s when the topic of drug addiction comes up. In reality, addiction is much more broad. People can be addicted to:
Alcoholism is also a drug addiction in the strictest definition of the terms. Alcohol is a drug in beverage form and one that affects the brain just as profoundly as any illicit or prescription drug.
Regardless of the substance of choice, it is very difficult to overcome addiction without some sort of professional intervention. The nature of some addictive substances is such that trying to 'kick the habit' without professional help can be dangerous enough to result in serious injury or death. For this reason, experts insist drug addicts never attempt to solve their problems by themselves.
Mechanics of Drug Addiction
Classifying drug addiction as a brain disease is partly the result of a new understanding of the mechanics of drug addiction that were unavailable to the medical community prior to the late 20th century. The reality is that addictive drugs cause measurable chemical changes in the brain that go on to affect not only thought patterns and emotions, but also the way the brain directs the rest of the body to function.
During the early stages of drug misuse, future addicts are prompted to continue using drugs by the brain's reward center – it creates feelings of pleasure when under the influence. It is believed that people predisposed to addiction derive an unusual amount of pleasure compared to others. If this is true, it would explain why some people can use drugs casually and never develop addiction while others go from casual user to full-blown addict in a short amount of time.
At any rate, the feelings of pleasure produced by the brain's reward center encourage the user to use again, and then again and again. Eventually, the brain gets used to a certain volume of chemicals in the system, requiring the user to increase volume in order to still achieve the same level of pleasure. This is known as tolerance. Once tolerance kicks in, addiction is on the doorstep.
Professional treatment for drug addiction is necessary in order to retrain the mind and body to function without drugs. Part of the process is physical; the other part is mental and emotional. This is why standard drug addiction treatment includes physical detox followed by weeks or months of counseling and psychotherapy.
Whether drug addiction is a literal disease or the result of poor choices really does not matter in the end. What matters is that those in the throes of addiction get the treatment they need to bring it to an end.
Sources:
NIH – https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/understanding-drug-abuse-addictio
There remains some debate within the medical community as to whether addiction is a disease in the same sense as cancer or diabetes. Some would argue that addiction is a manifestation of poor choices and bad behavior; others maintain that drug addiction is a physical illness.
The government defines drug addiction as “a chronic, often relapsing brain disease that causes compulsive drug seeking and use, despite harmful consequences to the addicted individual and those around him or her.” According to the National Institutes for Health, an established addiction results in compulsive behavior the user cannot control through willpower and decision-making alone.
New York
Treatment Center in New York
Addiction Recovery in New York
Hempstead NY
Brook Haven NY
New York City
Practical Aspects of Addiction
All of the official definitions aside, drug addiction manifests itself practically as a nearly uncontrollable compulsion to use drugs. It may start out as casual recreational drug use, but by the time a person is diagnosed as an addict, he or she is controlled by the substances being used. Everything in the individual's life is somehow related to drug use.
More often than not, the average American thinks of the illicit drugs of the 1960s and 70s when the topic of drug addiction comes up. In reality, addiction is much more broad. People can be addicted to:
- Illicit drugs – heroin, cocaine, etc.
- Prescription medications – pain meds, tranquilizers, etc.
- OTC medications – sleeping pills, etc.
- Legal highs – synthetic marijuana, opioids, etc.
- Household chemicals and solvents.
Alcoholism is also a drug addiction in the strictest definition of the terms. Alcohol is a drug in beverage form and one that affects the brain just as profoundly as any illicit or prescription drug.
Regardless of the substance of choice, it is very difficult to overcome addiction without some sort of professional intervention. The nature of some addictive substances is such that trying to 'kick the habit' without professional help can be dangerous enough to result in serious injury or death. For this reason, experts insist drug addicts never attempt to solve their problems by themselves.
Mechanics of Drug Addiction
Classifying drug addiction as a brain disease is partly the result of a new understanding of the mechanics of drug addiction that were unavailable to the medical community prior to the late 20th century. The reality is that addictive drugs cause measurable chemical changes in the brain that go on to affect not only thought patterns and emotions, but also the way the brain directs the rest of the body to function.
During the early stages of drug misuse, future addicts are prompted to continue using drugs by the brain's reward center – it creates feelings of pleasure when under the influence. It is believed that people predisposed to addiction derive an unusual amount of pleasure compared to others. If this is true, it would explain why some people can use drugs casually and never develop addiction while others go from casual user to full-blown addict in a short amount of time.
At any rate, the feelings of pleasure produced by the brain's reward center encourage the user to use again, and then again and again. Eventually, the brain gets used to a certain volume of chemicals in the system, requiring the user to increase volume in order to still achieve the same level of pleasure. This is known as tolerance. Once tolerance kicks in, addiction is on the doorstep.
Professional treatment for drug addiction is necessary in order to retrain the mind and body to function without drugs. Part of the process is physical; the other part is mental and emotional. This is why standard drug addiction treatment includes physical detox followed by weeks or months of counseling and psychotherapy.
Whether drug addiction is a literal disease or the result of poor choices really does not matter in the end. What matters is that those in the throes of addiction get the treatment they need to bring it to an end.
Sources:
NIH – https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/understanding-drug-abuse-addictio