For instance, if you use opioids for pain for a long time, you could become physically dependent and/or acquire tolerance. You are not an addict because of this. In general, only a tiny fraction of persons develop addiction when using drugs under competent medical care.
Effect on Your Brain: Your brain is programmed to encourage you to repeat positive experiences. You're inspired to perform them repeatedly as a result.
The reward system in your brain is the target of potentially addictive medications. Dopamine is flooded into your brain by them. An strong sense of pleasure results from this. To maintain that high, you keep using the substance.


There is no single element that can indicate whether or not a person would get addicted to drugs. Addiction risk is influenced by a mix of genetic, environmental, and developmental variables. The more risk factors a person possesses, the more likely it is that drug use will lead to addiction.
Another piece of good news is that drug usage and addiction may be avoided. Teachers, parents, and health-care providers all play important roles in teaching children and avoiding drug use and addiction.

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A person who has relapsed may resume using drugs after trying to stop. Relapse is an indication that more therapy or another therapeutic strategy are required.
Dopamine, a chemical messenger released by medicines, is released in excess into the brain's reward system. The reward circuit releases dopamine, which can cause a surge of dopamine to reinforce dangerous behavior. People often take part in these types of behaviours.
Tolerance is caused by the brain's adaptation to dopamine over the course of time. This reduces the dose and results in a lower level of high than the first time they took the medication. You can increase the amount of medication to feel the same amount of dopamine.

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Addiction and Tolerance Drug Abuse and Tolerance. You may be prescribed more medication than you are allowed to or take more pills. You might take drugs to avoid reality or feel better. However, it is possible to either change your unhealthy behavior or stop using.
Addiction is when you just can't stop. Not when it threatens your health. It should not cause financial, psychological, or other problems to you or your family. The desire to use or get drug can be overwhelming, even if your heart is set on quitting.

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Dopamine will eventually adapt to your brain. To achieve the same effect, you may need to take more of the medication. You might also find that other pleasures, such as food and family time, are not as appealing to you now.

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You might initially decide to use medication because you love how it makes you feel. You may believe that you are in control of how much and how often you take it. Medicines can change how your brain functions over time. These bodily alterations can be lasting for a very long time. They may cause you to lose control, which can lead you to take harmful actions.

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The brain adjusts when a person uses drugs by lowering the capacity of cells in the reward circuit to react to it. As a result, the individual experiences a lower high than they did when they initially started using the drug. This is a phenomenon known as tolerance. To try to get the same high, they can use more of the substance. These brain changes frequently result in the person's ability to enjoy formerly enjoyable activities like eating, sex, or social interactions diminishing with time.
Long-term usage also alters other chemical circuits and systems in the brain, which impacts cognitive processes including memory, stress management, learning, and behaviour. Many drug users continue to use drugs despite being aware of these negative effects; this is typical of addiction.
Why do some people develop a drug addiction but not others? Nobody's susceptibility to drug addiction can be predicted by a single factor. Risk for addiction is influenced by a number of variables. The likelihood that using drugs will result in addiction increases as a person's risk factors increase.