The Disease Of Drug Addiction Cunning Baffling

The Disease Of Drug Addiction Cunning, Baffling, And Powerful Essay, Research Paper

In this term paper, I will address the disease of drug addiction, a disease that affects the lives of millions of people worldwide. Drug addiction not only destroys those that use the drugs, but also the lives of people close to the addict. I will give you a look at the disease from the biological standpoint, starting with a definition of an addict. In the fellowship of Narcotics Anonymous, an addict is defined as a man or woman whose life is controlled by drugs. Our whole life is centered in drugs in one form or another, the getting, using, and finding ways and means to get more. We lived to use and used to live. We are people in the grip of a continuing and progressive illness whose ends are always the same: Jails, institutions, and death.

Addiction History

Historically, alcohol and drug dependency was viewed as a sin or a disease. In recent decades, it has been thought to be a maladaptive behavior patterns. (I.e., debilitative habits are overlearned ). I believe that it s a combination of all 3: A disease in which people learn to act in immoral ways. A drug is any chemical agent that affects biological function. Some act in the brain, others in organs, and some in several parts of the body at the same time. A psychotropic drug is one that acts in the brain to alter mood, thought process, or behavior. Addictive drugs are defined by the fact that they are self-administered, without medical prescription: repeatedly, compulsively, and even self-destructively. Drugs have been classified into seven different families and each affects a different part of the brain (See table 1) In the past, drug addiction was viewed as a morally reprehensive behavior that addicts could control if only they made the effort. Today, it is argued that drug addictions are in many ways like infectious diseases; some people are infected, but not everyone. There are differing degrees of immunity. Susceptibility depends typically on a complex set of genetic and environmental factors, ethnicity, degree of crowding / lack of sanitation, and primarily new users transmit the behavior to their peers.

What is Addiction.

Millions of Americans have been trapped by a vicious, biologic phenomenon called addiction. No sane person ever started out intending to become an addict, yet millions of our neighbors are either addicted to chemicals today or may have spent years trying to free themselves from this insidious cycle. Addiction is neither bad nor good . Addiction is a complex disease that involves both biology and behavior. This high-low trap involves the relationship between stimulation and sedation. Stimulants and sedatives trap people on a biological roller coaster before they even recognize they are addicted. The roller coaster ride is a good analogy for understanding addiction. Your bravado, which got you on the ride in the first place, quickly vanishes as you go through a succession of terrifying falls, twists, and turns and you may wish to change your mind. However, once the roller coaster ride has begun, you cannot reverse course or leave the car. Drug addiction is not a character flaw or personality disorder. Its more along the lines of a syndrome swinging between sedation and stimulation, up and down, stringing our bodies and minds along on a path for certain destruction.

Drugs are chemicals that trick the brain s control system. This control center is located at the base of the brain and is where people experience pleasure and pain. Your brain is designed to handle fundamental behaviors such as aggression, feeding, and reproduction. When the brain s pleasure centers are stimulated, it sends out powerful signals to repeat the pleasure-producing behaviors. With respect to these behaviors, the brain is very selfish. It wants what it wants and it wants it now! The brain only knows how to say more or no more . The problems with these automatic mechanisms are they don t take into consideration other people s feelings or needs or know the importance of delayed gratification.

Addiction begins when the brain comes into contact with alcohol or other addicting substance. Without this interaction of the reinforcing chemical and the pleasure centers, there is no addiction. People who have never been addicted find the behavior of addicts to be incomprehensible. Why would anyone spend hundreds of dollars a week to smoke a little white rock. Why would someone want to stick a needle in their arm five or six times a day, every day of their life. Why would a person snort cocaine up their nose to the point that It causes irreversible brain damage and completely deteriorates their nasal and sinus passages. Why would a woman or man sell themselves on the street and eat out of garbage cans just so they can get another fix. The book entitled The Selfish Brain compares the drug addict s behavior with the experience of sex. If you take away the pleasurable sensations associated with sex, it is unbelievable that anyone would engage in such bizarre activity. The explanation for these irrational behaviors can be found in feelings, including sensations and emotions. The feelings that are experienced by drug addicts are very powerful. In the end these feelings completely take over the whole self of addicts. This encompasses what we call Total self centeredness It is the very core of our disease. It is