Addiction is a Disease
Why is it that addiction causes us to abandon our morals and go to such great lengths to obtain our goals? How can addicts lie and steal from those they love? No, addicts are not evil people or lost causes. Addiction is a disease and I’ll tell you why.
I did terrible things during my addiction. I said terrible things, lied, betrayed, and stole (a lot). I didn’t want to do those things. I watched myself do them with regret and sadness, knowing how awful it was and hating every second of who I had become. I’ve compared it to feeling possessed, because while I hated what I was doing, I also could not stop.
Disease is defined as a chronic, treatable, ailment involving interactions of genetics, environment, and lifestyle among brain circuits and bodily functioning. So far, addiction fits the bill. Some may argue that addiction is a choice. You’re right, Bob! But according to the APA (American Psychological Association), genetics account for 60% of an individual’s tendency to become addicted and up to 54% of their ability to quit. There’s that genetic factor! While addiction does begin with a choice, there are many unseen factors that contribute to its formation.
Regardless of whether addiction begins with a choice, it continues to land squarely in the disease column. Some may not like this comparison, but there are clear and abundant similarities between addiction and lifestyle induced diseases such as type 2 diabetes and some forms of heart disease. These diseases too, begin with a choice, yet no one questions their validity as a real disease.
Some humans choose to do drugs. Some choose to eat too many french fries. Both are lifestyle choices that can lead to the development of a disease. Both choices cause a physical reaction within our body. Eating greasy foods coat our arteries in fat, which can lead to heart disease. Using drugs causes chemical changes in our brain, resulting in erratic behavior that is an attempt to correct these chemical imbalances.
While addiction causes many physiological changes, the main chemical behind the erratic behavior is dopamine. Dopamine is a chemical in our brain that we use everyday. It is responsible for our pleasure, motivation, energy, etc. Without sufficient dopamine, we would not be able to get out of bed each morning. Dopamine drives us to get up each day and do the things that we need to survive (HMA Institute on Addiction, 2018).
Drug addiction takes our dopamine levels to extraordinary heights, reaching levels into the 1000’s (nanogams per deciliter) as opposed to the normal range of 50-100 we are supposed to be at. When we no longer have drugs, dopamine crashes big time, sometimes leaving us with as little as 5 nanograms (HMA Institute of Addiction, 2018). When dopamine is this low, we cannot get out of bed or function normally. When dopamine is this low, our body enters survival mode and feels a desperate and primal need to correct the problem.
Imagine you are lost in the desert, with no water for days. Hot, thirsty, and dying of dehydration, you come upon a spring full of clean, cool water. There is a guard at the spring that tells you, you cannot have this water. You know without the water, you will surely die. What do you do?
Your body and mind will fight for your survival, and you will do what you must to get that water. Perhaps you would bargain, lie, or steal for it. This primal survival instinct for water, is exactly what addicts are experiencing when they no longer have drugs. Our dopamine levels drop and our body tells us that we need to get it back to survive. It is human nature to do what we must to survive and that is why addicts may bargain, lie, or steal to get what they need. An addict’s behavior is directly related to this chemical (HMA Institute on Addiction, 2018). It is NOT a reflection of their morals or feelings toward you.
To provide another example of the intensity of the desire for drugs, the HMA Institute conducted a study where people were deprived of basic necessities such as water and food for a few days. They were then placed into an MRI tube, spoken to about water, or brought their favorite foods to smell. The MRI recorded a basketball sized area of the brain light up in desire for these things. To recap, when people are deprived of a substance they will literally die without, a basketball sized area of desire lights up (HMA Institute on Addiction, 2018).
The same experiment was conducted on addicts using their drug of choice. The area that lit up in the brain indicating their desire for their drug of choice, was equivalent to the size of a baseball field. This shows us that the brain’s cravings for drugs are more intense than even something as necessary as food and water (HMA Institute on Addiction).
Let us also note that you never know the cause of the initial decision to do drugs. In addition to genetic factors, there are various circumstances to consider prior to placing judgment. Some addictions begin after being prescribed medication from a physician. Physicians rarely provide education on medication dependency, and this is a common route to first time addiction. Some people grew in a household where parents use and normalize drugs. Some people may have experienced a trauma so great, they had no idea how to deal. Often, people are unknowingly struggling with mental illness and drug use is an attempt to self-medicate.
While the actions of those deep in addiction can be frustrating and it can be so easy to take it personally, please remember that addiction is a disease. No addict chose to be there. No addict likes the things that they do to get drugs and most importantly, every addict is capable of being treated and saved.
HMA Institute on Addiction. (2018) Addiction Neuroscience 101. Retrieved from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bwZcPwlRRcc
N.A. (2008) Genes Matter in Addiction. American Psychological Association.