Addiction

Why do people get addicted? Of the countless books that have been published on this topic, this is the first that focuses on the self-medication hypothesis (SMH). Understanding Addiction as Self Medication is largely based on the experiences of the authors and other clinicians with individuals who... More »

Self-administration of drugs of abuse often causes changes in the brain that potentiate the development or intensification of addiction. However, an addictive disorder does not develop in every person who uses alcohol or abuses an illicit drug. Whether exposure to a substance of abuse leads to... More »

Physicians generally display better health and have lower rates of all-cause mortality than the general population.1 However, their education, nutrition, and lifestyle do not offer similar protection from substance abuse and dependence. Prevalence rates of alcohol abuse and dependence among... More »

Fewer than a handful of books have been published on the ethical dimensions and challenges in treating and helping persons living with an addiction. Therefore, this book is a welcome contribution to the literature almost from the start. The contributors in this 9-chapter text range from community-... More »

The study and treatment of human sexual problems should fall under the purview of clinical psychiatry. Sexual behavior is an important factor in most of our patients’ lives and may help define their sense of competence and serve as a force leading to interpersonal bonding More »

Addiction has been defined as a condition in which a behavior that can function both to produce pleasure and to reduce painful affects is used in a pattern that is characterized by 2 key features: More »

The molecular events that accompany drug abuse and addiction are different for women than for men, according to new studies presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychiatric Association (APA). As yet, little if any of this knowledge has made its way into gender-based differences in... More »

The nation's leading causes of death are related to alcohol and drug use, tobacco smoke exposure, and behavioral addictions. Each year, more than 400,000 Americans die as a result of smoking, overeating, substance use, and related accidents and suicide. In addition, the comorbidity of addictions and... More »

In my last column, "Accountable but Not Responsible" (April 2008), I suggested that long-term substance use could lead to a state in which the addiction had so co-opted a person's neurobiology that the individual could no longer exercise free will to any meaningful degree. I argued that a substance... More »

In 2006, substance dependence or abuse was diagnosed in about 22.6 million persons in the United States.¹ Addiction-related morbidity and mortality pose a major burden to society, costing our economy more than $500 billion annually: about $181 billion for illicit drugs,² $168... More »