Addiction refers to the physical and psychological inability to quit consumption of a drug, substance or activity despite its psychological harm. Different people have varying opinions regarding this topic. While some think it is a disease, others like me believe it is a problem just like with marijuana and alcohol. Addictions are bad habits and habits can be stopped. For successful stoppage though, the addict has to be willing to cut away the bad addictive habits. The biggest misconceptions about addiction are those spread by anti-drug slogans. They are two-fold depicting simplicity whereas the underlying issues are complex and secondly, their focus is always on the substance and action while the real problem in addiction is the addicted person.
The willpower may include seeking help from professionals like counsellors and physicians who will help with medical intervention in assisting the victim cope with withdrawal symptoms that come with quitting. Alone, willpower cannot make an addict overcome the substance abuse problem because the abuse is mostly accompanied by psychological and physical damage. Such a person requires integrative therapies, individualized medical attention and mindful practices to assist in restoring their lives balance. Therefore, slogans like “I can quit my addiction whenever I want” are myths and untrue.
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I believe alcohol and marijuana should be the last drugs to lead to addiction. The two drugs are the most available making it easy to spot the users on the road addiction. The findings of National Drug Threat Assessment revealed that unlike what the myth holds that one cannot get addicted when they have families, many addicts hold onto their families and jobs to mas their addiction. The report called such addicts the “functional” types. 8 % of all addicts were found to be fully employed while 10.2% were part-time employees and on illicit drugs ("DEA Releases 2017 National Drug Threat Assessment", 2019). These people lead “normal” lives excelling in high ranking positions. Addicts only seek help after admitting that indeed they have a problem, and it is the work of friends and family to take note of behavioral changes that suggest signs of substance abuse offering intervention.
Another renowned myth is that addiction is a choice that people make. While the initial attempts to substance abuse maybe voluntary, their brains reaction to the substance is not voluntary. The brain is substantially changed by the drugs making their discontinuation without professional use challenging. According to the American Society of Addiction, addiction is defined as “a primary, chronic disease of brain reward, motivation, memory, and related circuitry”. The society further provides some characteristics of addiction which include a craving for the substance of choice, lack of proper behavior control, inability to keep away from the substance misuse and a dysfunctional emotional response ("ASAM Definition of Addiction", 2019).
Lastly, it is also a widespread myth prescription drugs addiction is different from illegal drug’s addiction. Many people have also believed that it is safer to misuse prescription drugs because they lack the negative connotation that “street” drugs are pegged with. However, the truth is that both categories of drugs are as addictive and dangerous. Chances of having an overdose on prescription pills are far higher especially when the patient takes them together with other drugs. According to the CDC, between 1999 and 2014, more than 165,000 people had lost their lives due to opioids prescription overdoses in the US alone. This shows that the opioid epidemic has been going on and that the public requires to be sensitized against the dangers that come with such misuses ("Prescription Opioid Data | Drug Overdose | CDC Injury Center", 2019).
In conclusion, it is clear that only a small number of Americans who require addiction treatment receive it. This is because of many reasons that hinder an individual from seeking treatment, the biggest of them all being myths. Beliefs about addiction have been misleading preventing the addicts from pursuing recovery. These include relying on willpower alone, perceiving addiction as a choice, and believing that a family can protect one from addiction. It has also argued that prescription drugs are not as addictive as illicit drugs. All these myths are untrue and should be quelled if successful addiction treatment is to be achieved.
References
ASAM Definition of Addiction. (2019). Retrieved from https://www.asam.org/quality-practice/definition-of-addiction
DEA Releases 2017 National Drug Threat Assessment. (2019). Retrieved from https://www.dea.gov/press-releases/2017/10/23/dea-releases-2017-national-drug-threat-assessment
Prescription Opioid Data | Drug Overdose | CDC Injury Center. (2019). Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/drugoverdose/data/prescribing.html?CDC_AA_refVal=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cdc.gov%2Fdrugoverdose%2Fdata%2Foverdose.html
