About What is Addiction ? and Types of Addictions !

Addiction can be broadly defined as dependency of a person for psychoactive substances like Drugs, Alcohol, Tobacco etc, which when ingested may change the activity of brain and also psychological dependency of persons for activities like food, sex, pornography, Computer’s, Video Games, work, exercise, shopping, and even spirituality obsession.

As a result these addictions may cause symptoms of shame hopelessness, guilt, fear, rejection, failure, humiliation, and lead to depression and symptoms like epilepsy.

What are the Types of Addiction ?

Addictions can be conveniently grouped into three types.

1. Drug Addiction

2. Substance Addiction

3. Behavioral Addiction

What is Drug Addiction ?

- Drug Addiction arises due to frequent use of Drugs. Drug Addiction is a pathological condition where the addict develops drug seeking behavior. There are three main stages in Addiction and those are Preoccupation, intoxication, and Withdrawal.An addict constantly craves for the Drug or substance, as the drug use progress, he seeks more and more quantity of the drug to get the intoxication effect, and finally develops tolerance and withdrawal symptoms. The addict shows subnormal in normal activities.

Therefore Drug Addiction is a pathological condition due to repeated or chronic intoxication caused by habitual consumption of a substance(natural or synthetic). It is characterized by an abnormal or compulsive desire to take the drug by obtaining it by any means. Over a period of time the patient may need increased dose of the drug to get intoxicated. He develops a psychological and physical dependence on the effect of the Drugs. As a consequence it result in detrimental effects to the individual as well as the society.[smartads]

There is another term associated with Drug Addiction i.e Drug habituation, this results due to repeated consumption of a Substance (natural or synthetic). Drug habituation causes a desire for taking the substance for the sense of improved well being, and it is not compulsive desire. There is no tendency to increase the dosage of the substance. There may be some dependency to develop psychological dependence, but no physical dependency. There are no withdrawal symptoms. Detrimental effects may be limited to the individual.

As American Academy of pain Medicine, the American Pain Society, and the American Society of Addiction Medicine jointly given definitions related to the use of opioids for the Treatment of Pain.

Addiction

- This is a primary, chronic, neurobiology disease, with genetic, psychological, and environmental factors influencing its developments and manifestations. It is characterized by impaired control over Drug use, compulsive use, continued use despite harm, and craving.

Physical Dependence

- This is a state of adaptation that is that is manifested by a drug class specific withdrawal syndrome, that can be produced by abrupt cessation, rapid dose reduction, decreasing blood level of the drug and/or administration of an antagonist.

Tolerance

- This is body’s physical adoption to a drug over a period of repeated use, when persons develop tolerance to the drugs, they require higher and higher doses of the drugs to achieve the initial effects, since the body gets used to the substance and adopts to the intake.