It is often portrayed that people who consume drugs are doing so to fill a void and to escape a reality that they are not content with. However, in the majority of cases individuals initially take drugs due to a curiosity that all humans possess. It is innate human nature to want to explore alternate realities to what we deem ‘normal’. It is in the same way a child will spin around in circles to purposefully make themselves dizzy because it alters their perception momentarily. Drug addicts can easily be compared to adrenaline junkies – both possess a need for a ‘rush’ at a risk of their own safety.
The want to feel a high actually goes beyond human nature, and is even prevalent in the animal kingdom. Wallabies ingest opium, dolphins experiment with puffer fish inducing them into trance-like states, and many other animals utilize natural highs.
Ayahuasca – the ‘jungle drug’
The use of psychoactive substances is reported in the earliest human records. An example of this is the South American jungle drug ayahuasca. It has been used by Shamans in the Amazonian rainforest for thousands of years as a plant medicine. The combination of two plants causes vivid hallucinations as they contain DMT – a strong psychoactive chemical. Ayahuasca is used in ceremonies hosted by Shamans where people enter new realms of their own realities. In this culture ayahuasca is seen as a catalyst allowing people’s minds to enter otherworldly realities and parts of their own subconscious. Drugs are used in an attempt to broaden people’s horizons, and the concept of drug addiction is not recognized as seriously as it is in mainstream Western culture. This is hugely down to how drugs are stigmatized in US culture, rather than celebrated.
Acceptance of drugs in society
Although ‘hard’ drugs are stigmatized and criminalized, drugs are a staple of modern society with alcohol, caffeine and nicotine serving as vehicles of social interaction. Clubs and bars revolve around the notion of drinking alcohol in a sociable environment. Arguably, Christianity also highly condones alcohol as a means of engaging social interaction as the disciples famously drank wine to symbolize the blood of Christ, a ritual that is still a part of church services today.
The notion of addiction
The notion of addiction has been debated from as early as the 17th century. When does recreational use constitute ‘addiction’? Should addiction be treated as a moral or medical issue? Is addiction inevitable as long as drugs are available in society? And can the problem of addiction be tackled by regulating drugs or legalizing their use?
Addiction and dependence go hand in hand, however addiction specifically refers to a psychological need and dependence is a physical symptom where a person’s body has become tolerant to a drug and requires more for a desired effect. A patient depending on a drug may also suffer from withdrawal symptoms if deprived of the substance they are dependent on. Although dependence does not technically constitute an addiction, the two often exist simultaneously.
Medicinal Use
When contemplating the effect drugs have on society medicinal purposes can be overlooked, however they play a key role in society’s functioning. Medicine is a multi-billion dollar industry in the US with a forecast of over $600 billion being spent on medicine in 2021 across the country. Drugs are at the epicenter of the health sector and if used responsibly can cure diseases, relieve terminally ill patients from severe pain and can increase the standard of living for a nation.
Prescription drugs are not safe, however, as they are a significant contributor to drug addiction with patients become addicted to strong pain killers such as morphine and opioids. Arguably prescription drugs can be more deadly than illegal drugs. In 2016 alone over 20,000 people died in the US from consuming fentanyl and other synthetic opioids.
By Cerys May