Understanding Addictive Behaviours is Essential
Psychoactive substances are a deep-rooted constant in society, standing a similar ground to language and music. Why do we take drugs and why are increasingly more prevalent?
As Mike Jay states, “We were taking drugs long before we were human.” The pursuit of an altered state of consciousness has been occurring since the beginning of humankind.
Even distant civilisations where psychoactive drugs were unheard of, people went to extreme lengths to experience altered states, such as starving themselves for several days. Drugs have always been and always will be prevalent in society because of the inherent desire to change the way we think and feel.
I’m often asked why I’m so interested in addictive behaviours — because we are all drug-takers. Oh, you’ve never taken drugs? What about your morning coffee, glass of wine, sleep pill or occasional cigarette? When I refer to drugs I am not just talking about illicit substances. Drugs include alcohol, tobacco and nicotine. The vast majority of us have tried drugs and many of us are regular users. Our curiosity and intrigue for seeking an altered state of consciousness makes these behaviours a worthy area of study.
May I mention that the biochemical pursuit of happiness is the number one cause of crime in the world? Half of US prisoners are there because of drugs and 62% of Australian convicts were under the influence of drugs when committing the crime they are incarcerated for.
The deep-rooted pursuit of psychoactive drugs suggests that waging a war against them will never be successful, as we’ll continue to seek biochemical alterations to our current state.
It is important to understand why drugs are prevalent globally and historically. Drug use broadly falls into four categories.
To feel good. Humans are actively seek desire. We enjoy feeling good. We get this from sex, delicious food, feel-good movies and rewarding exercise. But we also get that enjoyment from a few pints or a morning cigarette. The vast majority of us take drugs to feel good, as it’s often a largely pleasurable experience.
To feel better. Since we are pleasure-seekers, if we feel crap, naturally we want to feel better. Recreational drugs are often used to self-medicate. Many begin taking drugs to feel good but this can slowly turn into feeling better, which is when problematic use starts. I’m sure many of us have drank when we don’t feel so great, but the key is for this to not become a habit or a coping mechanism. It is important to be aware of when a psychoactive substance become a crutch in order to determine ways in which this can be changed and managed adaptively.
To do better. Certain drugs can enhance our cognitive abilities, or at least make us think we are doing better. Study drugs or smart drugs have recently seen a surge in popularity. There has been quite a lot of controversy around these drugs and whether they really work. It isn’t just smart drugs though. There is some evidence that alcohol and cannabis enhance our creativity. The same goes for caffeine — do you also struggle to work before your first cup of coffee in the morning? I certainly do!
To feel different. Recreational drugs such as psychedelics don’t elicit cravings. Plenty of people who experiment with certain drugs don’t do so for any of the above reasons, rather for a desire to experience an altered state of consciousness. Why? This is very dependent on your personality. Certain individuals are more open to experience and curious, which may predict experimentation with certain substances.
The reasons we take drugs vastly determine whether use is problematic. We may start taking a substance for one reason, yet overtime this can change. So, studying and understanding these behaviours is so important.
Biochemical alterations to the way we think, feel and behave is seen all throughout society. However, society dictates what good and bad biochemical alterations are — they often seem arbitrary. Alterations that strengthen stability and productivity are seen as good — drugs like Ritalin or SSRI’s can be classed under this. Though there is a fine line between good and bad manipulations. Many recreational drugs have incredible treatment potential, so who gets to decide which is good and bad?
Our pursuit of pleasure and desire to alter our consciousness is arguably growing in a society ridden with mental illness. Is this not a sign that we need to change the way we see addictive behaviours and drug use to tackle this?
We are waging a pointless and hopeless war on biochemical crime. But can we really blame the users? Or is it an inherent problem with society? I say the latter.
