Psychology of Drug Addiction and Substance Abuse Disorder

Question: Discuss about the Psychology of Drug Addiction and Substance Abuse Disorder. Answer: Introduction: Drug addiction and substance abuse disorder is a disorder that has become quite common among all the age groups starting from adolescents and continuing up to the aged people of the society. This often tends to result in various physical and mental effects among the different individuals destroying lives. Psychology Drug Addiction Substance Abuse Disorder: Drug addiction is a chronic disorder, which often accompanies compulsive, uncontrollable and harmful effects due to the variety of different changes in the brain that may have a long-term effect on the individual. Addiction to drugs is mainly backed up by both physical and psychological explanations. The physical explanation portrays the revival of pain and uneasiness that results from the withdrawal symptoms on an individual depending upon a particular drug. The psychological explanation accompanies the addicted persons needs to take in drugs to overcome certain unpleasant feelings and emotions that one tries to avoid in lives such as loneliness, anxiety and a feeling of being worthless in different aspects of life (Khantzian, 2013). Causes Drug Addiction Substance Abuse Disorder: Severe emotional pain and feelings of losses often make the person dependent on drugs. This addiction seems to relieve them from the pain from which they want to run away. The psychological factors that make the more addicted are the rewarding sensation that they derive from remaining addicted to various substances (Wise, 2014). This habitual means for making oneself free from any undesired activity forces the individual to remain addicted to it even if the person wants to be relieved from addiction. A neurological effect that occurs as a result of running away from learning mechanisms and also the inability to develop ones own wishes and desire for entertainment and enjoyment are the other reasons that psychologically leads to the path of addiction of substances (Everitt Robbins, 2016). Solution for Drug Addiction Substance Abuse Disorder: For commenting on the solution of Addiction of Drug, one must always remember that prevention is better than cure. Therefore, prevention criteria should be focused on by involving the negative aspects in several workshops and programs like universal programs that would assess the risk factors to all the children in a particular setting like schools, colleges, university, workplaces, and local communities. Selective programs should be consulting target-based audiences of a particular age. Indicated programs should include those individuals who have already started taking substances. These types of programs would be more effective than a wide array of different individuals given a same intervention. Often long term and repeated care should be provided to the patients who have already been addicted to it. Medications such as Buproprion, methamphetamine and others along with behavioral therapies such as Multisystemic Therapy ( MST), Brief Strategic Family Therapy (BSFT) and Cognitive Beh avioral therapy (CBP) are also effective interventions which are used (Hoffman et al., 2013). Conclusions: Drug addiction and substance abuse has become a leading concern among different nations that require urgent attention. Variety of psychological factors act as main causes that lead to an individuals increased addiction to various drugs. As a result proper behavioral therapies, medication and awareness workshops should be conducted to make the nation free from such addiction and spread awareness. References: Everitt, B. J., Robbins, T. W. (2016). Drug addiction: updating actions to habits to compulsions ten years on.Annual Review of Psychology,67, 23-50. Hofmann, S. G., Asnaani, A., Vonk, I. J., Sawyer, A. T., Fang, A. (2012). The efficacy of cognitive behavioral therapy: a review of meta-analyses.Cognitive therapy and research,36(5), 427-440. Khantzian, E. J. (2013). Addiction as a self?regulation disorder and the role of self?medication.Addiction,108(4), 668-669. Wise, R. A., Koob, G. F. (2014). The development and maintenance of drug addiction.Neuropsychopharmacology,39(2), 254-262.