Relationship Between Happiness and Drugs Essay Sample
There are many people in the world that will argue that “happiness” can be found in drugs. However, it is just a temporary high which those people mistake for happiness. More often than not, being on drugs just numbs a person and leads to a mistaken feeling of contentment. Drugs cause more harm than good in the long run for everyone involved and do not create permanent happiness.
To begin, we have to understand what drugs actually are. Drugs aren’t just weed and cocaine or other illegal substances that people think of when they hear the word drugs. The definition of a drug is “a medicine or other substance which has a physiological effect when ingested or otherwise introduced into the body.” (Google dictionary). This definition means prescription medicines (one used often is Adderall), illegal substances, and even alcohol are drugs. There are plenty of articles, journals, and blogs that talk about drugs and their effects on the human body and mind. These articles, journals, and blogs also explain why people use drugs to obtain happiness. The first thing to know is that happiness is a term that is divided into two different meanings. The first definition is hedonic. “Hedonic happiness is brief and transitory, made up of emotions such as joy, amusement, or ecstasy.” This definition comes from Thaddeus Camlin with Practical Recovery. This form of happiness is brief and, stemming from certain emotions; it is effortless to achieve this form of happiness with drugs. The second definition of happiness is eudaimonic happiness. “Eudaimonic happiness is lasting and sustainable, made up of feelings like inner peace, contentment, and life satisfaction.” (Camlin). This form of happiness is long-lasting and cannot be obtained from drugs because they are ‘simple pleasures’ and not long-term satisfactions.
The article “What is Dopamine And How Does It Relate to Addiction?” by the Recovery Village explains that humans have a chemical in their brains called dopamine that “transmits nerve cell signals in our brains.” This chemical has been dubbed the happy chemical. Surges in dopamine result in feelings of wellness, calmness, and joy. (the Guest House). Addictive substances such as alcohol, opiates, methamphetamines, LSD, heroin, or Xanax can cause a surge in dopamine in the brain. A person can get attached to the feeling that the high brings and eventually become addicted because of the happy feeling. After a while, a person’s body and brain become dependent on the surges of dopamine and do not react correctly to its usual dopamine production. The dependency of the surges is proof that happiness from drugs is not permanent.
To further prove that the contented feeling induced from drugs is temporary, a family member (Kristin Scott) allowed me to interview her about her drug and alcohol addiction. She has a family history of addiction and is sadly one of the only ones to overcome it because, unfortunately, the others ended up OD-ing. The family members OD-ing made her realize she did not want to end up like them, and she chose to get help and became sober. To begin, Kristin told me the drugs she took- marijuana, ecstasy, acid, dab, and alcohol. She explained that some of the drugs were not used as often as others, such as acid and ecstasy, but she still took them. The main reason Kristin first started doing drugs was just for fun, a pastime kind of thing. Eventually, however, the drugs became necessary for her because she ‘needed’ the numbness that came with the drugs. Kristin has gone through a lot in life. It started with her two brothers, her sister, her grandmother, and her aunt dying in a house fire when she was only seven. She was able to suppress most of the negative emotions she felt until she was sexually assaulted in her own home and wanted to numb the pain. The first time Kristin actually used drugs was at her house with her step-sister. All they did was smoke weed, but it was enough to make Kristin realize it made her feel a bit better, a bit calmer. A lot of “anti-weed” people say that marijuana is a gateway drug, but according to Kristin, it is not. Weed is not what got her hooked on the other drugs she used.
The other drugs she took started as a “hey, this could be fun” because other people did them, and she figured trying them would not hurt. When asked if the drugs made her happy, Kristin responded with, “they did for a while, but with drugs, they create ‘fake’ dopamine, and after a while of having the fake dopamine, your body starts to not get the same effect from real dopamine, and you become dependent on the drugs for the fake dopamine.’ (Scott). In addition to this statement, Kristin added, “I got sober because I did not want to rely on the fake happiness.” After being sober for a few months, she explained that she could tell the difference between real and fake dopamine. She has more issues now than when she started drugs because she doesn’t have the high anymore and can’t hide behind the drugs or suppress her feelings. Kristin explained that, in her opinion, drugs will always do more harm than good in the long run. The issues that followed her becoming sober have made Kristin start telling her story and recommended not doing drugs, especially if you have a family history of addiction. If you are already addicted, she recommends definitely getting help because being sober is so much better. A final quote from the interview, “It is definitely just a temporary fix, and you can tell once you have been sober for a while. Sometimes it is good to step back and realize what is going on. At some point, you will actually have to face what is happening. It may be hard, but you can do it. If I, of all people, can do it, you definitely can.” (Scott).
Kristin may not have realized it, but she was self-medicating. Unfortunately, many people do not know that they self-medicate. Others may see that they do but choose to ignore the fact, or they may not know that self-medicating comes with risks. For some, they drink a glass of wine every night, others gamble, and some turn to harder drugs. Self-medicating can be eating certain foods in large amounts, having more than a couple of alcoholic drinks, smoking a joint, or taking pills. (Help Guide.) The article “Self-Medicating Depression, Anxiety, and Stress.” talks about self-medicating, reasons people self-medicate, and better ways to cope. In the article, it states, “In these times of widespread financial and social turmoil, many of us have tried to self-medicate our angst and uncertainty as the world seems to lurch from one crisis to another.”
In today’s world, especially after the last two years, this can seem understandable. There are a number of reasons to be sad, angry, or depressed such as Covid, the hurricanes that hit southwest Louisiana, and even political things. There is also the stigma around mental health. A large number of people believe that getting any form of help, whether it be therapy or medication, is weak. So often these days, people go unmedicated and do not seek professional help because it is looked down on and seen as soft or weak. So, it is understandable when people do not want to get professional help or get medicated, but it is so much safer in the long run. These people tend to start self-medicating, but it comes with risks. Symptoms, physical and emotional, may get worse, there may be dangerous reactions to already prescribed medicines, new mental problems, and it could delay (or completely prevent) someone from seeking mental help. The best bet for anyone struggling with any mental health problems, or drug addiction, is to get professional help. Everyone gets depressed at some point in their life, so the stigma that getting help is weak should just be ignored. It is not a warning not to get help. It is just people being rude and believing that getting help means that you are weak. If you do get professional help, just know that you are not in any sense weak. “There are people who get depressed despite having had loving, responsive parents, or who have healed their emotional wounds.” (Lubow). This says it best. Everyone can get depressed. At the same time, however, not everyone can get help because healthcare, especially in America, is expensive. So, instead, they turn to drugs and call it good.
In conclusion, after all the research, articles, and interview, one can conclude that drugs do not bring permanent happiness. Drugs do not even bring real temporary joy. They give a person a surge in fake dopamine that may temporarily feel like happiness. As shown in this paper, that temporary high is not happiness, nor is it suitable for obtaining actual happiness. In the end, drugs do more harm than good for everyone involved.
