The use of illegal drugs in the United States is rampant and almost spiraling out of control.
But why? Here are common reasons why people use drugs.
At first glance, it can be very difficult to understand why people use drugs. If that someone is close to you then it can also be profoundly upsetting.
In 2018, almost 12% of the US population over the age of twelve was illegally using drugs, not including alcohol and tobacco.
In the same year over 67,300 deaths in the US were a result of an overdose, so why are people gambling with their lives?
The Reasons Why People Use Drugs
There are a lot of common misconceptions in regards to drug use.
As with a lot of anomalies of human behavior, it can be easier, and immediately more comforting, to draw simpler conclusions.
In the case of drug use we often hear things like ‘they just wanted to fit in’ or ‘they were always rebellious’ when attempting to explain why someone might turn to drugs.
This is all well and good when explaining one-off users, but what about why people continue to use drugs, even when they themselves can explain the risks?
Past Trauma
Two-thirds of people undergoing treatment for drug abuse report being the victims of childhood trauma in the form of abuse or neglect, but why the link?
Simply put, whilst the brain is developing during childhood, our experiences affect it in a similar way to learning how to speak.
Neural connections are created, strengthened, and sometimes discarded, affecting how the brain develops.
How a person feels when they are young will often manifest later in life.
The loss of a parent, physical abuse, or neglect can leave a stamp on the brain which can lead to behavioral addictions later in life.
Individuals use drugs as an attempt to regulate their emotional state because they do not feel comfortable.
Behavioral specialists such as Gabor Mate believe that this discomfort stems from childhood.
Loneliness
Following on from childhood trauma, individuals can turn to drugs when they feel isolated from others.
Neglect at an earlier age can lead to feelings of disassociation later in life.
They turn to drugs in an attempt to fill a void.
If a person feels as if they are lacking positive interaction then they may choose drugs to attempt to create feelings of content.
Rehab centers such as the Dana Point Rehab Campus have such good success rates with drug users because they offer the individual a genuine connection with others, thus reducing the learned need to use drugs.
Stress
Stress affects the body and mind in such a way that an individual may seem to exist entirely in a ‘fight or flight’ scenario.
This leads to huge spikes in cortisol levels and as a result reduces the body’s ability to create dopamine and serotonin -the happy chemicals.
If left untreated, this can lead to anxiety and depression.
An individual will look for means to reduce their symptoms in order to ‘get by’.
Many drugs including cannabis, alcohol, and even heroin offer the user a sense of escape, allowing them to feel relaxed or even ‘removed’ from their reality.
Drugs Make You Feel Good
The fact of the matter is that drugs allow individuals to feel better.
Of course, people are likely to experiment at some point in their lives, be it individually or recreationally, but returning to a substance frequently is because it inevitably makes the user feel good.
In an attempt to understand the reasons why people use drugs, it is paramount that we look deeper into what feelings they might be trying to avoid.
For more information, please have a look at some of our other blogs.