Question: when somebody starts to take drugs how is it that they get addicted and sometimes just cannot walk away from the drug

Roisin Jones answered on 5 Nov 2016:

Hi Fintan, thanks for your question! Well, there are two types of dependency/addiction, physical (that is, has an effect on your body) and psychological (has an effect on your mind). Some drugs have an effect on your body that makes it painful to stop using them, giving what are called ‘withdrawal symptoms’, and so people continue taking them to prevent the symptoms. Other drugs, for example, cocaine, have very few actual withdrawal symptoms, but people who use cocaine report intense cravings for the drug, which shows a psychological addiction to the feeling that the drug gives them.

Some people seem to be more likely to get addicted to substances than others: this is probably due to their unique body chemistry, which subtly changes the way a drug reacts in their body. This is why you hear stories about some people who can just give up cigarettes and never look back, and others who try again and again to give them up and just can’t!