C.O.B.Z: ADDICTION

Addiction

Hey y'all, i was just talking to my parents about quitting their addiction to smoking. What is and addiction you ask an addiction is something that the person has no control to what they are doing, taking, or using. Their addiction can and may reach the point to where it can really hurt them or even cause death. Addiction can also be defined as a dependence on an object such as ( internet, food, eating, gambling, video games, heroin, alcohol, work, exercise, and other drugs.

Drug and Acholol

There are many more types of addiction such as drug and alcohol addictions, there are also some pretty weird ones like bleach, dryer sheets, ashes(human), teddy bears, and just other ordinary everyday things. Usually drug and alcohol addictions have something to do with their childhood and how they were treated. Let's say for example that a child(about four to ten) has a drug or alcohol addict parent or parents. The child, because this is all the child knows will begin to think that this is normal for their parent to do. But once he/she gets older they have a better chance of becoming and addict themselves because that is what they grew up with. But sometimes addictions can also be psychological. When and if the child was either beaten or abused in any kind of way (it is usually mentally) the child can sometimes carry that with them into their adulthood and because of that then they turn to things that they think can help them (or make them feel good) to make the badness go away.

Compulsive and OCD

Compulsive addictions are like gambling, shopping, eating, hoarding, and computers. It means that even though you don't have the resources you continue to do it. Alcohol and drug addictions are somewhat different because most of the time it is a need to feel a certain way and to (travel) away from your problems. But in compulsive you do it compulsively. OCD is obsessive compulsive disorder. but it doesn't just mean a germaphobe it can also mean washing and cleaning, checking, repeating, counting, ordering and arranging, mental rituals, hoarding, and collecting.

This picture is of a man with OCD.he has to check everything.

Addictions Effect on The Brain

When alcohol or drug etc. enters the brain, it is absorbed through mouth, nose, shot etc. Drugs entering act on the brain like the body's natural chemicals (such as endorphins and dopamine) that are involved in producing the sensation of pleasure. When the body getting the substances from the outside , the brain produces much less of its own and begins to rely on the outside source. As the brain adapts to the drugs presence, the person using the drug builds tolerance and must keep using more and more to produce the feeling . However most addicts say that they never got that feeling of pleasure . Then begins the cycle of using more and more drugs to get an even worse feeling witch "doesn't make you even feel normal anymore."If the drug is stopped immediately, it usually triggers a withdrawal syndrome. Symptoms may and may not occur depending on the thing used and the how long you used it for , but common symptoms may include anxiety, irritability, chills and hot flashes, nausea, cramps and even death. As a person goes through withdrawal, the body "begs" for more of the addictive drug in order to escape withdrawal.

Smoking

I just recently found out why my parents have a hard time not smoking a cigarette. The cigarette has a substance in the top part called tobacco. The substance in tobacco that makes addiction is called nicotine. Nicotine is a stimulant that causes people to feel good or energized for a while. If you are depressed, it can provide a short boost. It also causes the release of natural chemicals in our brain called beta-endorphins. These chemicals cause us to feel more alert and calm. The problem is that nicotine isn't stored in the body so these effects last only a few minutes. We need to absorb more and more nicotine to make the effects last.If people who smoke inhale nicotine long enough, our brains may lower our natural energy level or mood. So, instead of wanting to feel high, people smoke just to feel "normal"as smokers will say . When some people go without tobacco for more than a few hours they may experience retreat symptoms like lack of energy, slight depression, and a hard time concentrating. They smoke to stop feeling this way. But when you quit forever, retreat symptoms will go away within a few days.