The 14 most common causes of drug addiction

Drug use is an increasingly widespread problem worldwide, and the consequences of these cause numerous problems for people on a physical, psychological and social level.

Therefore, the first step in the fight against drug addiction is to know the causes of it. In this article we will see 14 causes of drug addiction that have been shown to be common; They range from social and family influences to the performance of neurotransmitters and genetics.

• Related article: "15 consequences of drug use (in your mind and in your body)"

Are there factors that cause drug addiction?

Of course, both the onset of drug addiction habits and their maintenance do not appear spontaneously or randomly, but rather are the response or the result of a series of previous situations that predispose to it.

However, it is necessary to specify that each person is totally different when dealing with these situations, and that the experience of these does not necessarily have to end with a habit of drug addiction. Even in those causes of genetic origin, the person must be influenced by many other factors that predispose him to it.

This means that the drug does not have a single cause. Although there are numerous elements that influence its appearance, Two or more of these must appear together for the person to decide to start using drugs on a recurring basis.

• You may be interested: "Types of drugs: know their characteristics and effects"

Most common causes of drug addiction

Among the most common causes of drug addiction we find the following.

1. Curiosity

After numerous investigations it has been concluded that Curiosity is one of the main causes of drug addiction behaviors.

This factor occurs especially in the younger population, which begins with drug use influenced by information received from the environment or the media.

2. Traumatic experiences

Although not all people who have experienced a traumatic or emotional experience develop drug addiction behaviors or habits, many others find in drugs an escape route that helps them cope with certain especially complicated situations.

The objective of these behaviors is to forget certain memories that torture the mind of the person and thus, distract the intellect so as not to have to face them. In this way, many people decide to experiment with drugs to achieve a state of relaxation or daze.

• Related article: "What is trauma and how does it influence our lives?"

3. Stress relief

This point is closely related to the previous one. Those people whose pace of life involves great pressure or stressWhether at work, family or social level, they may find in drugs a way to relax and relieve tension even for a few moments.

Nevertheless, the addiction itself will generate more and more tension between one use and another, so the person will need more and more doses and will do so more and more recurrently.

• Related article: "Types of stress and their triggers"

4. Improve performance

In certain fields such as sports or academics, it is common for some people to resort to the consumption of some type of narcotic substance to try to improve their performance.

What these people ignore or think they can avoid is that even if the drug is only consumed in specific moments with a specific purpose, there are many probabilities that it will end up becoming a addiction.

5. Lack of motivation and goals

There are numerous cases of drug addiction, people who do not find any type of motivation in their life, therefore they look at drugs experiencing pleasant or euphoric sensations.

6. Influence of the family context

Certain studies establish that coexistence in an unstable family environment, being the child of drug-addicted parents or mental disorders in parents are factors that facilitate drug use in the youngest.

In a family environment where drug use is common and even normalized, it is common for drug users to children develop some type of addiction and that parents, due to their status as consumers, do not condemn these behaviors.

7. Pressure or influence from the circle of friends

One of the most common causes of drug addiction in adolescents is the pressure they receive from their group of friends to start using. In groups in which consumption is habitual or frequent, it is very possible that the minor initiates and maintains drug use with the intention of fitting in or integrating into it.

8. Lack of social skills

The properties of certain drugs of abuse make it easier for a person to feel uninhibited and safe. Therefore, those introverted people or people with poor social skills They are more likely to consume a substance at times when they have to face social interaction.

9. Imitation out of admiration

Especially at younger ages, the influence of certain well-known people or public figures can achieve that some people want to imitate some of their behaviors, among which is experimentation with drugs

10. Sleeping problems

Sleep problems are becoming more and more common in many people, also those who need rest properly for any reason, or that they do their work at night and need to sleep for the day, they may start taking drugs or relaxing compounds to help them sleep.

However, if the person begins to stubbornly sleep and tired, the repetitive use of these compounds or drugs can lead to serious addiction.

• Related article: "Fight insomnia: 10 solutions to sleep better"

11. Medical prescription

In most cases, when we think of an addiction, only all kinds of illegal substances or alcohol come to mind. However, those drugs prescribed with risk of addiction and mismanaged, are susceptible to becoming possible drugs of abuse or, at least, generating a lot of dependency.

12. Mental diseases

There are certain disorders and mental illnesses whose symptoms can instigate the person to consume some type of drug. Good for pain relief. or to alleviate psychological discomfort.

The disorders most frequently associated with drug use are:

• Depression.
• Anxiety.
• Psychotic disorders: schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.
• Attention deficit disorder and hyperactivity.

13. Genetic factors

Although it cannot be considered a direct cause of drug addiction, there is an extensive debate among the investigations that defend the existence of a genetic predisposition to drug addiction and those who insist that this association is really due to learning.

However, studies carried out on twin brothers have found evidence that points to a strong relationship between the partial relationship between drug addiction and genetics.

14. Neurochemical mechanisms

In most cases, the pleasure and reward mechanism itself carried out by different neurotransmitters involved in addiction processes are what lead the person to love re-experience the pleasant sensations they felt during the first consumption.

In this way, a person with an organism especially sensitive to the action of certain substances, can go from experiencing using drugs for the first time to develop an addiction that allows you to repeatedly experience the same feelings of pleasure.