Addiction to substance abuse and which many individuals are enslaved to is more of a disease rather than a condition. This is so since the addicts are often faced with relapses even after they have undergone rehabilitation procedures. These relapses are usually compulsive in nature forcing the substance abuse addicts to find relief in indulging in drug addiction once more. This disease is too severe that the users are not concerned about the harmful effects these behaviors will bring unto them as well as those around them. Ultimately the efforts to help such individuals to conquer this addiction are usually fruitless due to the constant reoccurrence of the habits that these people had once vowed never to go back to. The reason why addiction is considered a disease and not a condition is the fact that it is not permanent, but rather it is periodic, unlike a state which may be regarded as permanent.
Addiction to drugs and substance use is a severe mental illness since according to National Institute on Drug Abuse (2010), it tends to change an individual’s brain in such a tremendous way which in turn destabilizes that individual’s hierarchy of desires and needs. As such, this person adapts new priorities which are usually connected with effective ways of accessing and using the drug at work. From this point, one can then compare substance abuse to the existing chronic diseases such as cancer, diabetes, hypertension, and others which tend to change an individual’s preferences as well as eating habits. For example, patients with diabetes will crave less sugar and change their lifestyles drastically to accommodate the change in their entire body system (National Institute on Drug Abuse, 2010). As such addiction as a disease has a tendency of bringing a total overhaul to the persons thinking as they adapt to a new lifestyle they cannot have control over. Additionally, there is a general agreement that addiction's disease model focuses on those changes which usually occur as result of chemical dependency and which are typically beyond an individual's control making the addict lack choices in controlling his or her addictive tendencies.
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Drug addiction tends to override an individual’s ability to control and manage impulses in as much as he or she understands their consequences which are similar to those related to other mental illnesses. The fact that addiction is a disease has been existence since 1784 when Dr. Benjamin Rush declared that addiction should be considered an illness that should be carefully treated by physicians. (American Society of Addiction Medicine, 2011) This declaration was further affirmed with the founding of Alcoholics Anonymous in the 1930s where most addicts went to seek help to deal with this disease called addiction. As a result of this most health care professional today are in agreement that addiction is a disease and should be treated as such following the set procedures of dealing with any other known disease.
Drug abuse can change an individual's neural processes as evidenced by the fact that neural functions are different in both non-abusers and abusers. As such, addition is tied to those changes in the brain function and structure which are a common characteristic linked to diseases. According to Branch (2011), those people who are in support of the fact that addiction is a disease tend to claim that genetic factors play a fundamental role in making an individual turn to drug addiction. This is true with other chronic diseases such as cancer and diabetes which are highly related to genetic factors. What Branch (2011), points to is the fact that individuals who get into drug abuse are usually predisposed to doing so since their ancestors or parents were drug addicts themselves.
Various research studies exist to reveal that drug and substance addiction is indeed a disease since it tends to follow a similar pattern like other chronic diseases such as diabetes and asthma. This means that a drug addiction individual just like the diabetic and asthmatic individual will undergo into remission which may be followed by various relapses before eventually conquering the addiction (Gould, 2016). Additionally, drug addiction just like these other diseases can be managed and eventually treated. More so addiction is regarded as a disease due to its ability to make radical changes to an individual's brain making that individual lose his or her ability to make decisions that are reasonable. Furthermore, it causes that individual to have drug dependency in that attempts to stop taking these drugs causes the addict to experience withdrawal symptoms (Gould, 2016). Interestingly just like chronic illnesses, addiction is curable especially with repeated treatments just like the way cancer can be cured through various chemotherapy and radiotherapy sessions or how diabetes can be cured through various dialysis sessions.
In conclusion, an addiction which is considered a global challenge can be quantified as more of a disease rather than a condition. This is so since most of the drug addicts usually go through relapses even after attending therapy sessions. Most people who agree that addiction is more a disease rather than a condition tend to compare it with other chronic diseases. Addiction just like chronic diseases can be inherited from ancestors in addition to the fact that addicts just like chronic diseases patients usually tend to go through remissions which may be followed by relapses before finally getting over the addiction. More so just like the chronic diseases patients, drug addicts can be cured of their addiction through repeated treatments just like cancer patients undergo various chemotherapy and radiotherapy sessions. As such it is faithful to make conclusions that addiction is indeed a disease and should be regarded as so if any meaningful help is to be offered to the many struggling drug addicts in various societies around the world.
References
American Society of Addiction Medicine. (2011). Public Policy Statement: Definition of Addiction . Retrieved from https://www.asam.org/quality-practice/definition-of-addiction.
Branch, M.N. (2011). Drug addiction. Is it a disease or is it based on choice? A review of Gene Heyman's Addiction: A disorder of choice. Journal of the Experimental Analysis of Behavior 95(2): 263–267.
Gould, J. (2016). Is Drug Addiction a Disease or Choice? The Recovery Village. Retrieved from https://www.therecoveryvillage.com/recovery-blog/drug-addiction-disease-choice/#gref.
National Institute on Drug Abuse. (2010). Is Drug Addiction a Mental Illness? In Comorbidity: Addiction and other mental illnesses . Retrieved from https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/research-reports/comorbidity-addiction-other-mental-illnesses/drug-addiction-mental-illness.
