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Why can certain users handle their drug use with responsibility while many can't?

deficiT said:
Modern addiction ideology presents the idea that addiction is based on both genetic and environmental factors. Both nature and nurture. I've found this to be true. People that become addicts struggle with both a mental obsession regarding drugs, and a physical compulsion to continue use despite negative consequences. Some people simply don't contend with the obsession and compulsion factors.

For example, I've seen plenty of people hold onto an 8ball of cocaine, or any amount, for some period of time. Not me personally. If I have any cocaine on me, I'm doing it til it's gone. But I could hold onto, and ration opioids a lot better, to some extent. But even then, I'm going to use the opioids a lot more compulsively then the next man who's not an addict of any kind. Different people are predisposed to different substances based on their internal chemistry. Some people just don't contend with the obsession and compulsion factors, and that's the difference between a normal recreational user and an addict.

It's not a matter of willpower. They can't control how their mind works.

It's a choice to use, but being an addict is not a choice.
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Im the same way i could never sell coke because if i have coke in the house im gonna do that coke until its gone. However i can ration morphine, benzos or z drugs granted not as easilyu as a non addicted person would.
 
I would have to agree with it being genetics and of course environmental factors.

Mind you, anything can become addicting beyond your control with constant use.

I can drop stimulants, sedatives, opioids no problem for years.

But alcohol was the hardest thing to quit, I blame that on genes and becoming used to having a glass with a meal, a glass with a line, a shot in my morning coffee
 
Lots of different factors come into play; individual character, personal background, social circumstances, mental health etc. But I've found two things to weigh on those metaphorical scales above all.

How much are you fixated on your drug, most importantly - if you see it as the ultimate pleasure, indispensable escape etc, you're going to find it near-impossible to use responsibly.

The second most important thing, from personal experience and observation, is what else matters to you in life and how that balances with your drug use. It goes without saying that if there's other things taking your attention, you have a life that takes precedence over your drug use, you're in a different boat as someone who sees no future for himself and has little to lose.


I've been a pleasure user and I've been a dopefiend. Obviously my genes are no different, nobody did a personality transplant on me (still as impulsive, hedonistic and mentally unstable as I've always been), the drug is the same. Literally the only things that changed, the only things that COULD change, were the abovementioned two.
 
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Like said, it's a combination of nature and nurture. The addict gene isn't necessarily a gene, aside from babies born with drugs in their system. But even then it's not a guarantee that those babies will grow into addicted adults, unless they are nurtured in a way to do so. I think it also heavily depends on will power. Not saying addicts can will themselves out of addiction (unless they go into recovery) but that users can will themselves away from becoming one in the first place.

I also heavily believe it's not a drug problem, its a living problem. I use to cope, I use to deal with stress and work and to make joyful experiences even more joyful. I have a problem with living.
My non addicted friends either live objectively better lives than I do, or they use occasionally to have fun or to open up their world experiences. They stop when it's no longer fun or they stop learning new things.

They can stay that way with willpower, however I cannot will myself back into being able to use normally.
 
I believe it has to do with their personalities AND their drug of choice. Some people are good with money, while others are not. Some people can handle their liquor and some don't.

As for the drug of choice, I believe that there are certain drugs that you cannot be "completely functional" while on them.
 
Some people are also born with lower production levels of serotonin and dopamine that others. You could say this would predispose them to addiction.
 
agreed. my dopamine/serotonin evels are fucked due to my mental health, life sober was more bland from the beginning. this made me more inclined to start using, even with a family full of active/ex addicts
 
deficiT said:
It's not a matter of willpower. They can't control how their mind works.

It's a choice to use, but being an addict is not a choice.
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It is a matter of willpower. They decided not to exercise it when they started towards their addiction.

I beg to differ. It absolutely is a choice to be an addict. Every single responsible user and every single addict was at the same point at one time and they asked them themselves. "Do I really want to get a little more high or do I really want to get high again?"

The responsible user knew they have the give up that high to maintain their responsible use.

And the addict knew that if they continued to use they would end up addicted like everyone else.

Let's stop treating addicts like it's not their fault or their choice because it absolutely is 100% their choice.

It may be a valid choice. It may be a difficult choice. It may be a choice that they feel they can't help but make for whatever reason. Moving towards pleasure and away from pain, but it's still a choice.
 
snmfmy said:
It is a matter of willpower. They decided not to exercise it when they started towards their addiction.

I beg to differ. It absolutely is a choice to be an addict. Every single responsible user and every single addict was at the same point at one time and they asked them themselves. "Do I really want to get a little more high or do I really want to get high again?"

The responsible user knew they have the give up that high to maintain their responsible use.

And the addict knew that if they continued to use they would end up addicted like everyone else.

Let's stop treating addicts like it's not their fault or their choice because it absolutely is 100% their choice.

It may be a valid choice. It may be a difficult choice. It may be a choice that they feel they can't help but make for whatever reason. Moving towards pleasure and away from pain, but it's still a choice.
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I'm sorry but you're mostly wrong. The entirety of medical science we know about addiction says you are wrong, or basically misstating what I literally just said in an effort to argue and feel right.

You may not know this,.but different people have different chemicals.

All you're doing is rephrasing exactly what I said, but with your own extra added judgement and stigma pointed at addicts.

To rehash what I said, and I won't be a dweeb and put it in all caps, but may require it, "It is a choice to USE. It is not a choice to BE an addict."

Not everyone reacts to substances the exact same way. Addiction is a mental disorder based on a mental obsession about drugs coupled with a physical compulsion to use drugs. This is something that often times isn't controllable for an addict. Yes. There are methods and technique to manage these issues, addicts can return to moderate use, they can quit entirely, but they do not experience life in the same manner as someone that does not have to deal with these issues. Yeah sure, an addict has to "want" it, and work hard to control it, so sure, will can be a factor. But that is not the only factor, there's far more that goes into it and you are basically just ignoring basic brain science.

It's real easy to shout "just be strong it's all about willpower" from on high when your brain doesn't compel you in a manner that tends toward consuming drugs.
 
Hardcore drug addicts are in a position to sacrifice health for pleasure and escape. This may tell everything necessary about the predicament.

Difficult life circumstances coupled with low tolerance for pain create addiction. Time preference is an important concept.

It's also a sad reflection of humanity's tendency toward polarization that strong taboo and epidemic addiction coexist, rather than a healthy communal appreciation for amazing drugs.
 
Genetic + personality traits + life circumstances. I m kinda addicted to cocaine and opioids, opioids have always been my DOCs, while cocaine...just happened because I live in South America, availability + good prices + stress+ boredom+ my wife loves the shit so it s almost always around.... I m snorting at least two grams per day, if I was in Italy let alone in the UK it would be economically unsustainable and probably a waste of money as well, while down here....
 
i definitely believe brain chemistry makes it harder for certain people to quit, but deep down it's the users choice... "It is a choice to USE. It is not a choice to BE an addict" is definitely true, a person also doesn't really decide whether or not they like to be under the influence more than sober, so an addict always has the knowlege they are going to enjoy being messed up more. can't really remove that from people once it's there, so that person will always be an addict in some way just because of that thought knowing that they like a drug state of mind better.

i wonder how much personality is tied to brain chemistry. i think people have personalities where the world is showing them certain stuff and making them depressed, they are stuck in a rut in a life and their personality can't really think of anything better than to use. there is no way for them to help, so they just use and forget about. using is for anyone a personal choice, but the world and what people are subjected to can feel like it's forcing people to use.

"Hardcore drug addicts are in a position to sacrifice health for pleasure and escape." i feel like this is apart of people's personalities. like it's not their brain chemistry saying i'm gonna take this unknown possibly laced substance, it's their personality choosing that they don't care if they live or die in some cases. i'm really gonna guess with my own behavior as a younger person that drug users can get off on "this could be my last night" and that's part of the high for them. that's probably going to be their personality responding to how they see the world.... i realize that people can be withdrawing and their brain chemistry and lack of testing equipment is definitely a reason why some people decide to just take unknown substances. but really that amounts to bad decision making, not leaving yourself some extra drugs to ween yourself off of which is a personal choice that a person just wanted to get very high instead of high and then gradually less high till they can handle being sober physically. brain chemistry and being impulsive also totally effect a person's choice, but they are still choosing to use drugs aside from their brain chemistry.

even people with the most addictive personalities and messed up chemical imbalances or anxieties can still live with out drugs after trying them. sometimes these people actually have to suffer to do so, and not everyone can find a reason to suffer, so that's a personal thing.,,

maybe i'm oversimplifying...
 
I dunno.. some people think they control their habits "they don't".

And as long as you can afford your habit, you're considered functional?
 
deficiT said:
I'm sorry but you're mostly wrong. The entirety of medical science we know about addiction says you are wrong, or basically misstating what I literally just said in an effort to argue and feel right.

You may not know this,.but different people have different chemicals.

All you're doing is rephrasing exactly what I said, but with your own extra added judgement and stigma pointed at addicts.

To rehash what I said, and I won't be a dweeb and put it in all caps, but may require it, "It is a choice to USE. It is not a choice to BE an addict."

Not everyone reacts to substances the exact same way. Addiction is a mental disorder based on a mental obsession about drugs coupled with a physical compulsion to use drugs. This is something that often times isn't controllable for an addict. Yes. There are methods and technique to manage these issues, addicts can return to moderate use, they can quit entirely, but they do not experience life in the same manner as someone that does not have to deal with these issues. Yeah sure, an addict has to "want" it, and work hard to control it, so sure, will can be a factor. But that is not the only factor, there's far more that goes into it and you are basically just ignoring basic brain science.

It's real easy to shout "just be strong it's all about willpower" from on high when your brain doesn't compel you in a manner that tends toward consuming drugs.
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Okay let me rephrase cuz I wasn't clear it is a choice to become an addict.

And for the overwhelming majority it is a choice to continue being an addict or else nobody would ever recover from addiction.

Medical science supports the following statement

" While there is a strong component of compulsion with respect to addiction, addicts still retain their capability to choose to use or not"
 
For it to be a real choice would mean that at some point prior to developing a substance addiction, the non-addicted person would have to think "I think I have decided to develop an addiction to X substance!" and then do this intentionally. This obviously never actually happens though because no one actually wants to become addicted, it happens by accident.
 
Vastness said:
For it to be a real choice would mean that at some point prior to developing a substance addiction, the non-addicted person would have to think "I think I have decided to develop an addiction to X substance!" and then do this intentionally. This obviously never actually happens though because no one actually wants to become addicted, it happens by accident.
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This is spot on. No one wants to become an addict when their brain still has the capacity to accurately analyze things. Not one. Addiction depends on genetic factors heavily.
 
I started off as a pleasure user, became an addict for close on six years, returned to using for pleasure only.

OBVIOUSLY my supposed 'addictive' genes didn't change, nobody did some mysterious personality transplant on me either, and the drug itself is what it always was.
The only thing that ever changed and ever made a difference was how I LOOKED at the drug. 'occasional extra treat' vs. 'absolute essential I require to just get by each day'. That's it.
 
Vastness said:
For it to be a real choice would mean that at some point prior to developing a substance addiction, the non-addicted person would have to think "I think I have decided to develop an addiction to X substance!" and then do this intentionally. This obviously never actually happens though because no one actually wants to become addicted, it happens by accident.
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Nobody wants or 'chooses' to be an addict. But you absolutely do choose each and every instance of substance use that takes you there. Unless anyone wants to propose that people literally put a bottle to their lips or stick a needle in their veins against their own will, which would be insane.
 
For some, it's escapism from trauma, abuse, neglect etc whether it be during childhood or recently. According to Gabor Mate, addiction is a response reaction to trauma.

Maybe for a minority, it could be poor lifestyle choices, a lack of positive role models or simply lacking discipline and personal responsibility.


 
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