State of Addiction

An State of Addiction is a compulsive behavior (towards a rewarding stimuli) that is difficult to stop despite serious adverse consequences.

• Context:
  • It can range from being a Mild Addiction to being a Severe Addiction.
  • It can (typically) be attributed to Motivation Centers and Pleasure Centers.
  • It can (typically) include Withdrawal Symptoms (behavioral withdrawal Symptom and physical withdrawal symptom).
  • ...
• Example(s):
  • a Alcohol Addiction.
  • a Cigarette Addiction.
  • an Oppioid Addiction.
  • a Pain-Killer Addiction, such as a cocaine addiction.
  • a Gambling Addiction.
  • a Shopping Addiction.
  • a Video Game Addiction (within clinical gaming behavior).
  • a Sex Addiction.
  • a Web Addiction.
  • a Ultra-Sport Addiction.
  • …
• Counter-Example(s):
  • a Choice to Binge with irregular frequency (e.g. twice per year).
  • a State of Mindfulness.
• See: Obsessive Behavior, Substance Dependence, Reward System, Positive Reinforcement, Motivation, Workaholic, Killing Time, Radical Honesty.

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References

2016

• (Szalavitz, 2016) ⇒ Maia Szalavitz. (2016). “Can You Get Over an Addiction?.” In: The New York Times, June 25, 2016
  • QUOTE: The studies show that addiction alters the interactions between midbrain regions like the ventral tegmentum and the nucleus accumbens, which are involved with motivation and pleasure, and parts of the prefrontal cortex that mediate decisions and help set priorities. Acting in concert, these networks determine what we value in order to ensure that we attain critical biological goals: namely, survival and reproduction. In essence, addiction occurs when these brain systems are focused on the wrong objects: a drug or self-destructive behavior like excessive gambling instead of a new sexual partner or a baby.

2015

• (Wikipedia, 2015) ⇒ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/addiction Retrieved:2015-11-29.
  • Addiction is a state characterized by compulsive engagement in rewarding stimuli, despite adverse consequences. It can be thought of as a disease or biological process leading to such behaviors. The two properties that characterize all addictive stimuli are that they are reinforcing (i.e., they increase the likelihood that a person will seek repeated exposure to them) and intrinsically rewarding (i.e., something perceived as being positive or desirable). Addiction is a disorder of the brain's reward system which arises through transcriptional and epigenetic mechanisms and occurs over time from chronically high levels of exposure to an addictive stimulus (e.g., morphine, cocaine, sexual intercourse, gambling, etc.). ΔFosB, a gene transcription factor, is a critical component and common factor in the development of virtually all forms of behavioral and drug addictions; two decades of research into ΔFosB's role in addiction have demonstrated that addiction arises, and addictive behavior intensifies or attenuates, along with the genetic overexpression of ΔFosB in the D1-type medium spiny neurons of the nucleus accumbens; due to the causal relationship between ΔFosB expression and addictions, it is used preclinically as an addiction biomarker. ΔFosB expression in these neurons directly and positively regulates drug self-administration and reward sensitization through positive reinforcement, while decreasing sensitivity to aversion. Addiction exacts an astoundingly high toll on individuals and society as a whole through the direct adverse effects of drugs, associated healthcare costs, long-term complications (e.g., lung cancer with smoking tobacco, liver cirrhosis with drinking alcohol, or meth mouth from intravenous methamphetamine), the functional consequences of altered neural plasticity in the brain, and the consequent loss of productivity. Classic hallmarks of addiction include impaired control over substances or behavior, preoccupation with substance or behavior, and continued use despite consequences. Habits and patterns associated with addiction are typically characterized by immediate gratification (short-term reward), coupled with delayed deleterious effects (long-term costs). Examples of drug and behavioral addictions include: alcoholism, amphetamine addiction, cocaine addiction, nicotine addiction, opiate addiction, exercise addiction, food addiction, gambling addiction, and sexual addiction. The only behavioral addiction recognized by the DSM-5 is gambling addiction. The term addiction is misused frequently to refer to other compulsive behaviors or disorders, particularly dependence, in news media.

1980

• (Slater, 1980) ⇒ Philip Elliot Slater. (1980). “Wealth Addiction." Dutton. ISBN:0525477047

1860

• Baudelaire, Charles. "Les Paradis Artificiels." Le livre de poche, (1860).

1821

• De Quincey, Thomas. "Confessions of an English Opium-Eater." ReadHowYouWant.com, (1821).

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