The limbic system is the part of the brain that learns and responds on a primitive level. According to many alcohol treatment center scientists, this part of the brain is most affected by alcoholism and addiction. Many researchers at substance abuse treatment centers call this part of the brain the "lizard brain." The lizard brain has remained with human beings as we have evolved to our current level of intelligence. It functions to help us avoid pain and to acquire the satisfaction of basic needs. The lizard brain, therefore, can be viewed as an emergency system, unlike the neocortex, which is the higher level intelligence portion of the brain. The neocortex helps people analyze situations to make decisions. The lizard brain does not analyze. It simply reacts as a survival mechanism, according to some drug rehab professionals.
When we are placed in a situation where a quick decision may be made without any time for processing, the lizard brain activates to protect us. For instance, if a person places his or her hand on a hot stove, the lizard brain by -passes the neocortex and takes control of the brain quickly to let this person know that the heat is painful. In response, the person removes their hand from the hot stove immediately.
While the lizard brain is a necessary component of our genetic make-up, it does not utilize rational judgment and it does not analyze situations to postpone satisfactions. It simply reacts. This part influences feelings and actions related to feelings, such as eating when hungry, fleeing when afraid, and satisfying urges for pleasure. Because human beings are advanced creatures compared to animals, the neocortex protects us from making bad judgments related to our primitive lizard brain’s desires. The neocortex helps people to evaluate situations, delay gratification, take preventative measures and overwrite decisions based on primal urges when they are not beneficial to us at the time.
Biological addiction, however, confuses addicts and alcoholics. For these individuals, the limbic system associates drugs and alcohol with the primary source of pleasure and relief. In time, this correlation becomes so confusing that the lizard brain misguides the addict into believing that the drugs and alcohol he or she consumes is necessary for survival. The limbic system associates addiction with relief from fear, anxiety, and depression. It tricks the addict into believing drugs and alcohol are pleasurable rewards, even though an addict deep in the throngs of addiction may not feel any pleasure or comfort from their use any longer.
Non-addicts do not have this confusing biological condition. They have other pleasure/relief methods that they depend on. For non-addicts, it is easy to know when to stop using or taking drugs when they feel it no longer satisfies them. The typical addict who first enters a drug and alcohol treatment center does not have the ability to utilize this type of rational thinking. Their limbic system overrides the neocortex and tells their body to continue consuming drugs and or alcohol. The lizard brain uses rationalizations that outweigh the logic of the neocortex.
In order to recover from a lizard brain that has dominated and consumed the rational thinking of the neocortex, an addict needs to discontinue use of the drug. Most often, addicts require some type of medically supervised detoxification and psycho-social methods to help them heal from how the lizard brain has tricked their bodies. Entering a substance abuse treatment center can help a person who needs medically supervised drug and alcohol detox. After detox, total abstinence from drugs and alcohol is the only cure for such destructive, misguided thinking. In time, dependency weakens and the body normalizes. However, people with the disease of addiction must never take drugs and/or alcohol again if they hope to not be consumed and influenced by the irrational thinking of their lizard brains.
For most addicts, a quality opiate drug treatment program can be completed in a month. The reality is, however, that treatment can take less time or more time, depending on the individual. Most treatment centers have a comprehensive approach to t ...
Released On: 11/20/2012
Views: 5343
Every day people become ensnared in the web of prescription medication addiction, and the reality is that the addiction most often begins at home. The negative and often deadly consequences of prescription drug abuse are devastating for families ...
Released On: 11/9/2012
Views: 5094
Many drug rehab patients go through drug detox centers unaware of the damage they have done to their bodies until the drugs begin to wear off and they realize they are no longer numb. This experience can be very uncomfortable for drug rehab pati ...
Released On: 11/1/2012
Views: 4649
Drug rehabs are watching two cases that appear before the U.S. Supreme Court this week concerning drug sniffing dogs in Florida. Many substance abuse treatment centers house patients who have been sent to drug rehab as a result of being busted wi ...
Released On: 10/31/2012
Views: 4126
Drug rehabs are intrigued by a recent study conducted by a University of Michigan addiction researcher named Jennifer Cummings. According to drug treatment center experts, Cummings has stumbled upon an interesting difference between cocaine respo ...
Released On: 10/24/2012
Views: 11710
Acupuncture involves the insertion of very thin needles into specific areas of the body along channels of bio-electromagnetic energy known as Qi. Drug rehab physicians understand how beneficial this procedure can be for their drug treatment cente ...
Released On: 10/24/2012
Views: 4027
Researchers from the University of Texas have found that cirrhosis of the liver, a common complication of alcoholism, increases brain damage. Dr. R. Dayne Mayfield was the lead researcher of the study. He and his colleagues found that cirrhotic a ...
Released On: 10/23/2012
Views: 4058
One state in particular with a large heroin problem is Massachusetts. Drug rehabs report that Massachusetts is one of the top ten states for high drug abuse rates.
Released On: 10/18/2012
Views: 3560
The most commonly used drug in New Jersey is marijuana, drug treatment centers report. However, a federally funded report shows that 5 percent of young adults have heroin habits. Nationally, heroin abuse among young adults is at an average of 2.5 ...
Released On: 10/17/2012
Views: 3926
Opioids are often legally prescribed by doctors for pain, or they are taken illegally simply to "get high." Drug detox centers also inform us that some people are so dependent on opioids they need to take them just to feel "normal."
Released On: 10/12/2012
Views: 3934
Experts from addiction treatment centers hope this type of "alcoholic mice" research can help drug rehab therapists to find therapies to help reverse this type of learned response to environments in their addiction treatment center patients.
Released On: 10/9/2012
Views: 4131
The DSM V is published by the American Psychiatric Association. Drug rehab administrators say it influences how doctors diagnose mental disorders. It also influences which conditions insurance companies will cover, including coverage for addictio ...
Released On: 10/4/2012
Views: 4097
The biggest problem with xanax is that, when abused, it has a high tendency to cause overdose deaths. These overdoses are especially prevalent for people who take large quantities of the drug and drink alcohol. Because xanax is a benzodiazapene, ...
Released On: 9/27/2012
Views: 4622
Often, therapists in drug rehabs use a variety of techniques to help addicts curb these destructive personality traits. The addictive personality is not something that can be cured overnight. However, cognitive behavior therapy over long periods ...
Released On: 9/26/2012
Views: 4797
The answer for heroin addiction is total abstinence from the drug. Patients at drug rehabs are learning how to help themselves by acquiring the tools necessary to stay off the street dope.
Released On: 9/21/2012
Views: 4323
Drug rehabs are giving their substance abuse treatment patients the straight truth about cocaine use. They say more emergency room visits occur each year from cocaine than any other drug in the United States. Substance Abuse Treatment Center pati ...
Released On: 9/19/2012
Views: 5914
Teenagers in Ohio are in the midst of a deadly drug epidemic. Many of them do not understand the ramifications of what toll the drug will take on their lives the first time they try heroin. The state health department, police, and other agencies ...
Released On: 9/17/2012
Views: 3929
Dual diagnosis treatment centers assist drug rehab patients who have addiction problems and any of these common mental illnesses: depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety disorders, schizophrenia, and personality disorders. Additionally, 29 percent ...
Released On: 9/14/2012
Views: 4266