You crave it, you want it and you just can not stop thinking about it or, you just can’t stop doing it, they call it addiction. “Addiction is a chronic, but treatable, brain disorder. People who are addicted cannot control their need for alcohol or other drugs, even in the face of negative health, social or legal consequences. This lack of control is the result of alcohol- or drug-induced changes in the brain. Those changes, in turn, cause behavior changes” (What is Addiction). The behavior change happens when the brain can no longer see the picture as the “big picture”, with out the drug substance. That is when a person that has an addiction starts depending on the drug substance to enhance their experiences. An addicted person’s brain depends so much on the drug that when not abusing the substance the addict craves the drug just as if they were starving. The addict then starts craving the drug more and more as if they needed the drug to act normal or for them to function properly as their brain remembers it. The signal that is equivalent to the signal sent to the brain as starvation is the same kind of signal that is stored in the brains memory when a person has abused any kind of drug for a long period of time. The memory then tells the person that things just are not as fun anymore as when they were on any kind of substance. This causes the addict to crave and look for the drug of choice that will enhance the brains memory and release dopamine to how the brain remembers it, which is remembering it on drugs and satisfaction by drug only. Addiction can not only be harmful to the brain but it can also be physically harmful, that does not mean it can not be cured though. Addiction can be cured or treated with addiction treatment programs and after care (Understanding Addiction). Addiction treatment is often known as rehab. Addicts who are seeking help or people who have experienced with drugs may be sent to rehab to help change
Cited: "I need help for...." HBO Addiction. 2010. 9 Oct. 2010. .