Drug Addiction is a Complex Disease

Scott Adams once said “Freewill is an illusion. People always choose the perceived path of greatest pleasure.” In the article” Why People Take Drugs “ by Andrew Weil; the author discusses this when he analyzes the real reason he believes people use drugs. Drug use has always been a prevalent problem in our society. People wonder how others become addicted to drugs; some even associate drug use with a lack of morals. A lot of people fail to realize that drug addiction is a complex disease and is inevitable for many people.

A common misconception about drug addiction is that it’s a term used for only hard core drugs such as; K2, Cocaine,Heroin or Ecstasy. When in fact it can be prescribed drugs such as OxyContin, Codeine, Morphine and other pain killers. One can even be addicted to bath salts and cleaning supplies. Everyone knows that drugs are dangerous but there’s no way to know how strong each drug is until you try it; which is why most people get addicted to it. Addicts start to have s intense carving for it. A person addicted to drugs may not be able to control their drug use and they will want to continue using the drug despite the harm it causes.

Many theories have been put together to figure out why drug use is and has always been such a reoccurring issue. People believe that drugs are used to relieve stress and or pain. According to the article people use drugs to alter their consciousness. Sometimes people experience a euphoric feeing in their adolescence that they try to relive in their adult life. The problem is that they cant have the same life they did when they were young, so they turn to drugs to give them back that sensation. The author compares drugs in this sense to waking and sleeping. He believes it offered many possibilities for usual sensations such as hallucinations, which they look forward to.

In the article the author talks about his most memorable moments; one being the time he got his tonsils removed. Although the anesthesia they gave him frightened him he ended up looking for something else to satisfy that feeling he felt. He ended up finding a cleaning fluid in his basement which made him relive that experience every time he inhale it. The sense of euphoria he experienced was strong enough to make him do things that he knew wasn’t rational all to satiate his desire for that feeling. Weil is very candid about the lengths that he has gone to obtain drugs, he even discussing the time where he waited two months to legally obtain mescaline so he and seven of his schoolmates could experience the effects of it.

All in all, people are tempted to try different drugs just for the excitement and to satisfy their inner need for experiencing other forms of consciousness; according to Weil. “ Although trying different drugs may not always be a bad thing; learning the facts about drugs can help one safely change their state of mind.

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