A Dummies Guide to Drug Addiction

Before i go into the details of the different drugs that are addictive, i thought I should clear a few myths about drug addiction. The following is a complied list of common myths about addiction. It's important for every person to understand drug addiction without any prejudices or pre-conceived notions.

Common Myths about Prescription Drug Abuse

• Myth The abuse of prescription drugs comprises only a small part of the nation’s drug problem.
• Truth Fourteen of the twenty most abused mood-altering substances in this country are prescription drugs.

• Myth There is no such thing as becoming an addict innocently.
• Truth Many people become “unwitting” addicts. These are often individuals with noprior history of drug abuse, who first started using a prescribed drug for a legitimate medical problem. Then at some point they started increasing the dosages on their own because the drug made them feel better. Gradually the abuse became full-blown addiction.

• Myth Physiological dependence is the same as addiction.
• Truth One can become physically dependent on a drug, say a pain medication, over time.If the drug were stopped, the body would experience withdrawal symptoms. However, this type of dependence is not addiction. A patient with physiological dependence can quit the drug, usually by being tapered off it gradually with medical supervision and without admission into a drug treatment program.

• Myth You can quite drugs cold turkey if you really want to.
• Truth Most addicts require professional help to quit. The side effects from withdrawal from certain prescribed medications can be dangerous, leading to coma and even death.

• Myth Once you have been treated for an addiction to a narcotic, you can safely take other addictive medications.
• Truth Unfortunately, relapse often occurs when recovering drug addicts believe they are immune to other substances. Once addicted to a mood-altering substance, addicts have the brain chemistry that predisposes them to dependency. This puts them at risk for relapse from something as innocent as an over-the-counter cold medication or a glass of wine.

• Myth The use of opioids such as OxyContin for chronic pain inevitably leads to addiction.
• Truth Studies show that the incidence of addiction is low among patients who are treated for legitimate pain.

There are many myths about addiction and I would like to quote Dr. Phelps, who is the Clinical Professor at the Medical School of the University of Washington and is a self declared recovering addict. These myths are:

i. Addicts are criminals.

ii. Only illegal drugs are addictive.

iii. Problems, pressure or stress can turn somebody into an addict.

iv. Addiction is immoral and addicts have weak characters.

v. Addiction is a psychological problem - belief in this leads to treatment of peripheral symptoms which doesn't work and both patients and doctors come to believe the trouble must be in the patient’s mind.

vi. There are different kinds of addiction - this leads to doctors differentiating between physical and psychological addiction and insisting that there are addictive personalities which lead to addiction. In fact, addiction causes an addictive personality (if there is such a thing). As is frequently the case for benzo problems the medical profession puts the cart before the horse. I wonder why they do not suggest that the diabetic personality causes diabetes, or the hypoglycaemic personality causes low blood sugar problems.

I do not believe the medical profession has more than its fair share of members with personality disorders, defects or problems. There are other reasons why it is high in the league of addiction with 5% - 6% of its members addicted to either prescribed drugs, alcohol or hard drugs. Indeed some sections of the medical profession have higher rates e.g. 10% - 12% for anaesthetists in the USA (Aust. Journal of Addiction).