The The Nature of Substance Dependency

                                                         

          Substance dependency is commonly thought of when addiction is mentioned. It also includes non-substance addictive practices or dry addictions. For example, there is a frequent association between alcoholism and compulsive gambling. Not only are they found frequently in the same person, but the alcoholic person may occasionally switch completely from alcohol to compulsive gambling or vice versa. Both substance dependency and compulsive gambling are addictive practices.  The former just happens to also involve the ingestion of addictive substances. Of course, the psychopharmacological properties of the addictive substance are important but substance dependency is much more than the sum of these effects. At one time, cocaine addiction was not thought to really exist, because there were not any pronounced withdrawal effects upon cessation of its regular use. Substance dependency represents a group of very complex behavioral disorders. The addictive process in all addictions is a learning one. It follow that the value of animal experimentation to better understand human substance dependency is very limited.

       There was a psychological experiment carried out on volunteer alcoholic persons who were recent dropouts from treatment programs. They were truthfully told that a randomly chosen half of their group would receive a placebo beverage, and the other half would receive an alcoholic one. The placebo drink was pure tonic water, and the experimental one contained tonic water and vodka at a ratio of five parts to one. Essentially, the two beverages looked, smelled and tasted the same. Each group was given subtle, but misleading clues as to which beverage they were actually receiving. Each person was given an amount of beverage, which if it were the alcoholic one, would yield a blood alcohol level of .10%After drinking the beverages; the volunteers were then subjected to some relatively minor provocative behavior of a negative type. The individual responses could be objectively evaluated and the results were very interesting. They showed that “typical alcoholic behavior” was elicited much more by what the person thought he or she was receiving as oppose to what actually was received.

      Placebo effect is very real , in “voodoo death.” It is a phenomenon which is found occasionally in  primitive cultures. After breaking a major taboo, a person simply lies down to die by the hands of the gods, and is usually dead within 24 hours. It is an interesting and consistent finding among substance dependent persons that they are all strong placebo responders. This is partly because the stimulating of a habitual placebo response to the    substance an integral part of the addictive process. The  importance of the placebo-affecting “set and setting” in addictive drug use is well illustrated by the e example of the alcoholic man who responds so differently at times to the same amount of alcohol, but in different situations. He may be, somnolent in a library, tearful at a sentimental movie, belligerent at a bar, the life of a party, sexually passionate in the bed.

To be continued…

 DR. KARL WALLACE D.D.S.To read more of my writings please go to:

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