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Dr John Marsden Addiction is a complex problem that affects not only the physical and mental health of individuals, but also their families and social environment.

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There are a lot of misconceptions and a fair bit of uncertainty about the nature of addictions, how they're caused, what course they follow and how best to treat them. This section will shine some light on the key issues.

Impossible to control

If you ask anyone what an addiction is, they'll probably say it's being unable to stop using a substance, for example an illegal drug such as heroin, or maybe alcohol.

Perhaps the best example is cigarette smoking. Anyone who has ever smoked will recognize the strong sense of compulsion to light up, particularly in situations where this is not allowed, such as in an airplane.

These aspects of addiction have a physiological basis related to how the substance acts on the brain and a psychological aspect relating to the reasons for taking the substance (such as smoking to improve concentration).

Dependence

Overall, we shouldn't view addiction or dependence in absolute terms. Dependence exists in many different ways and to a variety of degrees of intensity.

There are some people who use substances on a fairly regular basis and over a prolonged period and experience few, if any, problems as a result. For others, however, the capacity to control how often and how much is used seems to erode quickly and a more powerful state of attachment or preoccupation with taking the substance develops.

What happens next depends on the nature of the substance, how someone's using it, the problems that it may be linked with, and the various aspects of the person's psychological make-up, their personal and social relationships.

Stages of addiction

Most addictions take time to develop and almost no one deliberately sets out to become addicted to a substance. What happens is a person's consumption progresses through several stages.

Following initiation - maybe to experiment to see what the substance is like - a person may go on to use the substance again, and perhaps begin to use on an occasional then regular basis. Meanwhile, the amount that's consumed may also begin to increase. For some substances, the body rapidly becomes tolerant of a dose taken and the user will increase the amount to achieve a desired effect.

Addictions and addictive behaviors

Popular conceptions of addiction do not stop at drugs and alcohol. People can become overly attached to gambling, chocolate, computer games - even using the internet. These non-drug addictive behaviors are similar in that the person has a lack of control over their behaviors.

There are popular and professional definitions of addiction. In everyday language, we think of someone who is addicted to something as having what could be called an unhealthy habit.

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Reviewed: 11/2005