Addiction & the Brain/Addiction Why Me

Addiction, the Brain, and Recovery

Most people understand that Drugs affect the Brain to produce the Euphoric effects that

users find so pleasing and that eventually are completely overwhelming for them. For those prone to addiction, it becomes a Disease; Addiction! How does the happen?

The Brain is a mass of nerve cells called "Neurons". Groups of these cells form pathways that are essentially "Memory" and "Behavior". These cells do not actually touch one and other. They connect with Chemicals, many that they themselves produce internally, and more or less "secrete" into the area between each other. These chemicals work like a "Conductor" to more-or-less, connect, the cells. For an example; it's like water allows electrical current to flow from one object to another. These cells actually communicate by passing an electrical charge from one to the other. The commonly abused or "illicit" drugs disrupt normal production or secretion of those brain cell chemicals that are called "Neurotransmitters". Some of these drugs even sort of, mimic, or replace some neurotransmitters. This all causes abnormal things to happen in a "Changed" brain. Then it is literally, no longer the same brain, thus, it's not the same person. The entire thought process is changed. We are what we think!

We'll use a "speed" drug, say Cocaine or Meth for an example. They cause excesses of chemicals that control our rate of breathing and pulse or heartbeat, speeding up our systems that require precise timing to work properly . They diminish the amount of the chemicals that induce sleep and hunger. Thus, the decrease of chemicals throws off the time regulation of the body resulting in lack of sleep and failure to eat. I've purposely simplified a very complicated Science, here, merely to get to the following:

Pertaining to recovery, the body "can" correct these excesses and depletions of the neurotransmitters, or chemicals. It just takes "Time" without the presence of the illicit drugs. This takes from months to years, making help or "Support" critical to Recovery!

Beginning

Beginning