A Deep Dive Into Drug/Alcohol Abuse during adolescence

                                             A Deep Dive Into Drug/Alcohol Abuse during adolescence

Introduction

In the aftermath of a breakup, people can find themselves obsessively focusing on their ex-partners. Thus, you may spend more time and energy on trying to see your ex, compulsively check in on them online, and feel like you’re losing self-control. You might feel, in other words, like you’re addicted to your ex.

The reason for this behavior may lie deep within our brain’s circuitry. Addiction studies have found that drug cravings increased levels of the neurotransmitter dopamine in the nucleus accumbens, a part of the brain associated with reward — and the same thing happens when we think about or see an ex.

Adolescence is deemed to be ‘a period’ and ‘a process’ during which a child becomes mature in terms of his/her attitudes and believes for effective participation in society.

A child’s natural curiosity motivates him/her to experiment. This is complicated further the bizzare notion that there are benefits of alcohol or drug use. Thus the beginning of first use of drugs or alcohol may be out of curiosity, but later child starts using these to escape facing problems. Stress which occurs from pressures to excel in academics or examinations, has played a significant role in promoting youngsters to go for alcohol and drugs.

The immediate adverse effects of drugs and alcohol abuse can be observed through reckless behavior, vandalism and violence.

By reading this blogpost you will be able to know the adverse effects and disadvantages of drug/alcohol abuse and thus you will acquire a mindset to avoid/eliminate drug alcohol abuse.

What is drug/alcohol abuse?

The use of illegal drugs or the use of prescription or over-the-counter drugs or alcohol for purposes other than those for which they are meant to be used, or in excessive amounts. Substance abuse may lead to social, physical, emotional, and job-related problems.

Habits are the actions that are initiated by cues/stimulus, such as a time of day, an activity, or a location. They result in the feel-good reward that, through repetition, makes the connection between cue and reward firmly in the brain.

When your brain recognizes a relation between action and satisfaction, it documents that information in area of the brain which is called the basal ganglia. This is also the area of the brain which is responsible for emotions and memories, whereas conscious decisions are made in the prefrontal cortex.

Due to the perceived benefits, drugs are frequently used repeatedly. Addiction is deemed to be psychological attachment to certain effects- such as euphoria and a temporary feeling of well- being which are perceived by adolescents to be associated with drugs and alcohol.

These effects of drugs/alcohol cause people to consume even when these are not needed, or even when their usage becomes self-harming.

With repeated usage of drugs, the tolerance level of the receptors present in our body increases. As a consequence, the receptors display the pharmacologic effects of drugs or alcohol at higher doses leading to greater intake and thus addiction. It should be borne in mind that once these drugs are used, can lead to addiction for long period (even lifetime).

Thus, the drugs and alcohol teleports the user into a vicious circle leading to their regular use(abuse) from which he/she may not be able to remove himself/herself.

For information, click here

Solution to the problem

Solution to the problem is that the help is there in the form of highly qualified psychologists, psychiatrists, and de-addiction and rehabilitation programmes in order to help individuals who have unfortunately got in the trouble of drug/alcohol abuse. With the aid of such help, the affected individual who is affected can be freed of the problem completely with sufficient efforts and will power which will lead to a perfectly normal and healthy life.

To avail the aid, click here

References:

1.      1.The Science of Habit. Medically reviewed by Debra Rose Wilson, Ph.D., MSN, R.N., IBCLC, AHN-BC, CHT — By Stacey McLachlan on December 22, 2021.

2.      2.An Overview of Breakup Depression

 By Kendra Cherry  Medically reviewed by Steven Gans, MD