discussion Addiction&Dependency

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In the substance abuse word, the use of alcohol and drugs uncontrollably, without consideration of its harmful effects is referred to as addiction, while dependence is relying on either drugs or alcohol to cope with the daily life or feel good, therefore, when the human brain gets used to the drug’s effects, physical dependence takes place and develops endurance. An individual will use the drug excessively to retain the good effect, therefore, preventing the painful withdrawal effects like restlessness, difficulty to sleep and serious joint and muscle pain.
There are several factors that predispose a person to substance abuse, some of which include; stress from either work or family, peer influence, low self-esteem, and curiosity. Abuse of opiates, for example, is very common for an individual with terminal illnesses like cancer because of its effect to relieve pain (Best et al, 2016). Most individuals get immediate effects like insomnia, nausea and vomiting and dry oral membranes. These effects cause a senseless and energetic feeling to the individual (“Heroin”, 2018), therefore, relieving pain and this leads to tricking the brain to believe that when the individual uses opiates, pain is relieved, making it a routine for the brain to demand for opiates for pain to be relieved.
Heroin, a synthetic drug in powder form, causes similar short-term and withdrawal symptoms as other drugs when abused and might comprise of a mixture of methamphetamine or cocaine, the individual act like they are depressed (“Are There Risks of Mixing Opiates & Alcohol?”, 2018).

Some people combine either opiates or heroin with alcohol and the two substances are depressants, therefore, causing a depression of the central nervous system this could lead to a decreased heart rate and respiratory rate and eventually death, this can also happen when mixed with psychoactive medication(Palombi et al. 2017). For treatment individual experiences severe withdrawal symptoms, therefore, one has to be willing to quit and register into a rehabilitation center for professional treatment and with support from the community, the individuals achieve abstinence and a healthy lifestyle.

References
Are There Risks of Mixing Opiates & Alcohol?. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.alcohol.org/mixing-with/opiate/
Best, D., Beckwith, M., Haslam, C., Alexander Haslam, S., Jetten, J., Mawson, E., & Lubman, D. I. (2016). Overcoming alcohol and other drug addiction as a process of social identity transition: the social identity model of recovery (SIMOR). Addiction Research & Theory, 24(2), 111-123.
Heroin. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/heroin
Palombi, L. C., Vargo, J., Bennett, L., Hendler, J., Coughlin, P., Winter, G., & LaRue, A. (2017). A community partnership to respond to the heroin and opioid abuse epidemic. The Journal of Rural Health, 33(1), 110-113.