Psychoactive substances and mechanisms of drug addiction formation. OBZhD

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Psychoactive substances and mechanisms of drug addiction formation. Basics of safe life

Fundamentals of Safe Life Activities (OBZhD)

Depending on the degree of danger to society, the list of drugs compiled by the Standing Committee on Drug Control (PKKN) of the Russian Federation is divided into four lists. Lists are denoted by Roman numerals. Schedule I includes the most dangerous and useless drugs (eg, heroin and LSD), Schedule II - the same dangerous, but used in medicine (eg, cocaine and morphine). The remaining lists contain less dangerous drugs and psychoactive substances.

So the term "drug" acquired a legal meaning along with the terms "strong substance", "psychotropic substance", "intoxicating substance", etc. In foreign countries, the situation is similar.

Heroin, methadone, cannabis preparations, LSD, cocaine and some others are recognized as drugs by the laws of all countries "due to their significant public danger and harm to the health of the individual" (according to the wording of the World Health Organization).

Substances are usually classified as drugs based on the following: criteria:

the ability to induce euphoria (high spirits) or at least subjectively pleasant experiences; the ability to cause dependence (mental and / or physical), i.e. the need to take the drug again and again;
significant harm to the mental and / or physical health of persons who regularly use them; the danger of widespread distribution of these substances among the population;
the use of the specified substance should not be traditional in this cultural environment (otherwise, tobacco and alcohol would have to be classified as drugs in the first place).

All drugs and psychoactive substances can be divided into three main groups:

1) oppressive nervous system ("sedatives", i.e. sedatives, sleeping pills, alcohol, opiates, etc.), otherwise "depressants";

2) exciting the nervous system, accelerating its work (for example, ephedrine), or "stimulants";

3) disturbing the balance nervous system and thereby altering consciousness (cannabis drugs, hallucinogens like LSD, etc.), they are also called "psycholeptics" or "psychedelics".

At the heart of the formation of drug addiction are:

addiction - the inability to eliminate the drug from your life due to the constant need for it;
tolerance - the need to constantly increase the dose of the drug taken to achieve the desired effect;
violation of somatic functions;
disruption of social or professional activities (eg, violence, loss of friends, problems in school and work, inability to study and work, breaking the law).

Exist biological mechanism of addiction formation. This is a mechanism associated with biochemical, bioelectrical, biomembrane, cellular, tissue and other processes occurring in the body. This dependency is called physical.

An example is addiction to opiate drugs, sleeping pills, alcohol, and some psychostimulants. Physical dependence develops as a result of the fact that the body "tunes" to take drugs and includes them in its internal biochemical processes. The main principle is simple: drugs each in their own way interfere with the balance of these processes (replacing natural substances for the body - hormones and mediators - or violating the sensitivity of cells to them). Our body, seeking to restore balance, changes the amount of synthesized substances, the number of receptors for them and the permeability of cell walls. If the process of "reconfiguring" the physiology of the organism "for drugs" has gone far enough, then in the absence of the latter, abstinence or "withdrawal" begins.

Another subtlety: the drugs themselves constantly destroy enzymes and are excreted through the kidneys, intestines, and lungs. Therefore, the "stock of drugs" in the body must be periodically "replenished". As a result, physical dependence forces you to use drugs regularly, without giving any respite. A patient with drug addiction is having a hard time with such a "marathon". By missing the time for taking the next dose, he dooms himself to excruciating suffering. For example, in the case of opiate addiction, this is not only pain, but also chills - "internal icy cold" without any hope of being able to warm up, cold sweat, abdominal pain with repeated diarrhea, nausea and vomiting, persistent runny nose, weakness, aching joints (for physical dependence on a number of sleeping pills, a large tremor is also characteristic, sometimes turning into convulsions).

Withdrawal is usually accompanied by depression (low mood, depression) and anxiety with more or less pronounced insomnia. Sometimes the anxiety reaches such strength that it seems to the addict that various "villains" (more often - policemen) are "hunting" for him, they are going to kill him, etc. Sometimes, on the contrary, depression and longing become the main problem; he begins to think that he is not worthy of life and tries to kill himself. That is why drug addicts are ready to commit a crime in order to get another dose.

All drugs regardless of the group or route of introduction into the body, to a greater or lesser extent necessarily damage:

nervous system (including the brain);
immune system;
liver;
a heart;
lungs.

Drugs are often administered intravenously. Therefore, those who use them are at high risk of contracting three of the most dangerous diseases: AIDS, syphilis and hepatitis (inflammation of the liver, or "jaundice"). This is indeed a real and very high risk.

In addition to the physical, there is also mental addiction. The drug addict simply experiences a feeling of love for drugs: he constantly thinks about the object of his passion; constantly expects and strives to meet him; rejoices if this meeting is about to take place, longing and nervous if it is postponed; ready for anything, just not for a minute to part with drugs.

Mental dependence is not felt during regular drug use, and young, inexperienced drug addicts refuse to believe in it. Often, when entering treatment, they ask to "just break" (to ease the withdrawal), believing that then they will easily give up drug use without additional effort. Many narcologists consider psychic addiction to be a derivative of memories of euphoria experienced in intoxication. Apparently, this is true, at least for young drug addicts, for whom such euphoria is still possible.

A drug (and alcohol) addict prefers to "hide" from unpleasant feelings, as a result of which he loses the ability to cope with his own emotions and overcome any significant crises without doping. Left without dope, he experiences severe stress, which is associated with a radical change in the usual way of life. Previously, he could “leave” into the inner world of pleasant dreams, or at least not so acutely feel the need for urgent and urgent, not always easy decisions (and often requiring certain sacrifices), but now he is no longer protected and forced to confront negative emotions, but not knows how it's done. This is why most addicts resume taking the potion after treatment. They are well aware of their "vicious cycle" and would be happy to break out of it if they could learn again not to be afraid to live without drugs. The tragedy is that no one believes in the possibility of losing this skill when trying drugs for the first time. Any beginner is firmly convinced that he will never become a drug addict.

Authors: Gubanov V.M., Mikhailov L.A., Solomin V.P.

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