“Addiction is the factor or condition of being addicted to a particular substance, thing, or activity.” Addiction is said to be a disease of the brain, but many researchers are thinking it is a learning disorder instead. Addiction does not just happen to bad people. In fact, it can happen to anyone such as me or you, rich or poor, young or old, male or female. It is said that major factors such as; genetics, social groups, and psychological factors can have a big impact on addiction.
Many children have had parents or guardians that drink and abuse drugs while growing up. Does this have an impact on whether the child abuses drugs or alcohol? In fact it does, children of alcoholics are four times more likely to develop alcoholism. Children have a choice whether to drink or do drugs, but it is said that 40-60% of people are more prone to to fall into addiction due to genetics. In 2004 researchers were able to identify a protein called PSD-95 that had a relationship to drug addiction. Mice that had low levels of PSD-95 were more sensitive to the drug cocaine then mice with a high level of PSD-95. This shows that genetics play a factor in drug and alcohol addiction.
Social groups often play a key role in someone becoming addicted to drugs or alcohol. Students going through high school and middle school can often become involved in friend groups who are more likely to experiment. These groups are not subject to one type, they can be athletes, band members, drama kids, and simply students who are just attending school. The friend groups these kids find themselves in can lead to being peer pressured into doing drugs or drinking alcohol. Students who try these substances because of peer pressure are often doing it to fit in, which leads to using the substances more, and later becoming an addiction. Social groups play a big factor in addiction and are not always targeted to good or bad people, it can happen to anyone.
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On the psychological aspects, people fall to drugs and alcohol for temporary relief. About 300 million people in the world suffer from depression and anxiety. Using drugs and alcohol to relieve stress and get temporary relief leads to people using and drinking more and then possibly causing addiction. In the brain there is something like a lock and key, once taking drugs or drinking alcohol, the brain either likes how it makes you feel, which fits the key into the lock or it doesn’t like it and it will let you know. When something is pleasurable to someone then they continue doing and cannot stop, called addiction.
To ease stress people will drink or use drugs. After using and when it starts to wear off and the bad thoughts start coming back, people will drink or use drugs again to get rid of those thoughts. When something bad happens such as; family death, relationship ends, losing a job or just stress with school, you just want something to make that bad feeling go away and many people turn to drugs or alcohol for that.
Everyone goes through rough times during their lifetime. Some people deal with it by drinking or doing drugs. That does not consider them a bad person. Drug and alcohol addiction can happen to anyone, not just “bad people.” It can happen to a football player, school teacher, doctor, or anyone else in the world. Many people say “I’m not that type of person.”, there is no certain person that can become addicted but many things such as; genetics, social groups, and psychological facts can encourage or have a bigger impact on addiction.
