-When Drugs are abused they activate the same brain circuitsLinked to survival.such as: eating, bonding, and sex.

-Dopamine levels change, which results in feelings of pleasure.Soon the pleasure turns into a need for survival.

“It’s not as simple as just sayingNo, or just stopping. Once someoneHas arrived at the chronic conditionOf alcohol or drug dependence, it’s

Not that easy for them to quit.”

Personal willpower andAnd personal weakness have littleTo do with a persons addiction.

Drugs and Alcohol change The way people think, it affectsThe brain making it harder to

Just quit cold turkey.

“All major drugs of abuse affect a single brain circuit. Traditionally

Called the “Reward Center”, now known as the “ Mesolimbic Pathway”(Peck, R).

“There is an actual biochemical alteration of parts of the brain that are necessary for us to

make decisions and control our behavior”(Addition, 53-54).

“ The addictive process moves in, undoes or weakens what the brain knew before, and then teaches it something entirely knew”

(Addition,62).

-”Reduced dopamine activity. Drugs send rapid surges of dopamine, and the brain responds by reducing normal dopamine activity. -This can result in loss of feeling of pleasure.

-Altered brain regions that control decision makingAnd judgment.

-Drugs of abuse affect the regions of The brain that help us control our desires and Emptions .

-This leads addicted people to Compulsively pursue drugs, even when the drugsHave lost their power to reward”(Addition, 56).

“ The brains of chronic heavy drinkers shrink, specifically in the frontalCortex, which is responsible for higher-level cognitive functions

Such as planning and reasoning, and in the cerebellum, which governs gait, balance,And some kinds of learning.

Long-term alcohol abuse also damages the hippocampus, which is the brains centerFor learning, memory, and mood, and the factory supplies the entire brain with

New brain cells

Some very heavy drinkers may develop Wernickie-Korsakoff syndrome, in whichThe alcoholic cannot remember new information for more then a few seconds.

This condition is irreversible”(Addiction, 72).

“When people who are addicted to alcohol, nicotine, or a drugTry to kick the habit, the first challenge is dealing with withdrawal

Such as: agitation, nausea , and problems concentrating.

Depending of the substance, the withdrawal process may take days to weeks. But intense cravings for the desired substance may continue

For years, often triggering relapse”(Harvard Mental Health Letter, 7).

(2010). Why addiction causes craving. Harvard Mental Health Letter, 27(2), 7. Retrieved from Academic Search Complete database.

Peck, R. (1996). The addicted brain: An era of scientific breakthroughs. Behavioral Health Management, 16(5), 33. Retrieved from Academic Search Complete database

Sheff, Warren, Ketcham, Eban, D,L,K,K. (2007). Addition Why Can’t They Just Stop?. New York: Rodale Inc. from library of congress Cataloging-in-Publication database.