The Self-medication Theory For Drug Addiction

What exactly is the self-medication theory? Since time immemorial, people have been looking for medicinal plants or plants that contain substances that they can use for curative or recreational purposes. This may also be the reason why so many people consume psychoactive substances today.

This custom is part of the beliefs and ideas of every era regarding health and disease. In the early 1900s, for example, people saw addicts as lazy and despicable creatures who lacked the willpower to control their impulses.

Khantzian, a psychoanalyst who treated drug addicts at Harvard University, however, began to think about why drug addicts tend to consume these types of substances.

Based on his findings , he developed the self-medication theory, which states that the primary reason for drug use is a person’s inability to tolerate negative states.

Today, drug use has become quite a big problem. It has a major impact on society and major social, legal and political implications. This is why many people do thorough research into the causes and consequences of addiction.

What is the self-medication theory?

While studying his patients, Khantzian noted that they had all consumed at least three different psychoactive substances before developing the addiction they were being treated for. At that point, he wondered why they chose those drugs over others. Then he came to a conclusion.

Depending on the underlying mental disorder each patient was suffering from, they chose the drug that most relieved their psychopathological symptoms.

For example, a shy businessman turned to alcohol to boost his sales. A teen with anger issues used heroin to better control his impulses. They both tried several drugs first until they found the drug that was most effective for them. This, of course, led to another problem: addiction.

Today , according to the Manual for the Classification of Mental Disorders , people must meet two or more of the following criteria for at least 12 consecutive months in order to qualify as drug addiction.

• Consumption of large amounts of psychoactive substances for a longer period of time than expected.

• Persistent urge to regulate or stop its use, with unsuccessful attempts.
• Investing a lot of time trying to get hold of, consume or recover from the drug.
• Intense desire to consume the substance.
• Continued consumption can cause them to neglect their academic, work or household duties.
• The use can continue regardless of the recurring problems it has caused or made worse in their personal lives.
• Losing important social, occupational, and recreational activities because of substance use.
• Continued consumption despite the fact that they know it can aggravate or cause physical or mental problems.
• Tolerance.
• withdrawal.

Is there evidence to support the self-medication theory?

As we explained earlier, according to the self-medication theory, patients develop disorders as a result of their drug abuse because they suffer from psychopathological conditions that have directly or indirectly led them to take psychoactive substances as a way of treating themselves..

This hypothesis is based on the discovery of opiate receptors in the central nervous system:

• Each substance can cause an effect on the central nervous system that involves interaction with specific brain structures.
• The substance itself (such as heroin or cocaine), acting repeatedly on the brain structures, causes a series of changes that make the individual addicted.

Although this hypothesis was originally proposed for opiates and psychostimulants, it also applies to alcohol. There is data both for and against the self-medication theory. Researchers have found partial evidence in patients with schizophrenia, as well as patients with personality disorders.

In addition to Khantzian’s theory, other historical hypotheses have also been considered. In fact, the debate is still ongoing. Obviously, every patient is different. Each patient therefore needs an individual diagnosis and treatment.

The fact that this theory can be scientifically supported does not mean that all patients who are addicted to drugs also have other pathologies.