Describing Addiction

Question 1

What is addiction?

Answer 1

psychological disorder characterised by an inability to stop engaging in certain behaviours or consuming certain substances despite negative consequences.

Question 2

What are the three main symptoms that describe addiction?

Answer 2

Dependence
Tolerance
Withdrawal

Question 3

What is physical dependence?

Answer 3

When someone experiences withdrawal symptoms (e.g. pain, shaking, seizures) when they stop using the substance.

Question 4

What is psychological dependence

Answer 4

When someone has a strong desire to use the substance.

Question 5

What is Tolerance?

Answer 5

when a person’s response to a drug reduces such that they need higher and higher doses to achieve the same effect.

Question 6

Why does Tolerance occur?

Answer 6

the body adjusts to use of the drug in order to maintain homeostasis
e.g.drinking alcohol disrupts the brain’s normal functioning and so the brain reacts to bring things back to normal and achieve homeostasis.

Question 7

What is meant by ‘ cross-tolerance’?

Answer 7

When tolerance to one drug/ substance often creates increased tolerance to other drugs/subtances

Question 8

What is withdrawal syndrome

Answer 8

when a person develops unpleasant symptoms upon stopping or reducing drug use. These may include pain, anxiety, depression, insomnia, and shaking.

Question 9

What are the consequences of withdrawal sypmtoms in terms of drug use .

Answer 9

unpleasantness of withdrawal symptoms creates a motivation to continue using the drug:

Question 10

What does the extent of withdrawal syndrome?

Answer 10

which drug the person is addicted to (e.g. heroin withdrawal is typically more severe then nicotine), how much they use (typically, the greater quantity of drugs a person uses, the worse the withdrawal), and how frequently they use it