Understanding what happens in the brain when you drink alcohol, gamble or smoke: Science author Gaby Guzek explains how this can help with addiction.
Almost eight million people between the ages of 14 and 64 in Germany drink alcohol at levels that pose a health risk. Even though many people are probably aware that they are addicted, they are unable to make the step out of it. That’s why many people don’t come from theirs Seeks because no one explains to them how the reward system in their brain keeps them in check?
Gaby Guzek: It’s not the sole reason for everyone, but it helps enormously if you understand how addiction works in the brain and why you can’t get it under control with sheer willpower. A lot of work is already being done with this approach in the USA, where there are clinics that present those affected with scans that then clearly show how messenger substances in the brain become unbalanced due to alcohol, nicotine and cannabis. This has great success in therapy.
Nevertheless, the belief still persists that addiction has something to do with a weak will and that those affected simply need to pull themselves together.
Yes, and this is strongly fueled by the alcohol and cigarette lobby: They praise their products for “moderate enjoyment”, which in turn means: Anyone who does not adhere to the moderation is weak and therefore has only themselves to blame. Which leads to those affected feeling ashamed and not getting help for years or decades.
You yourself were addicted to alcohol for a long time.
I started out as the classic recreational drinker, with a job and three kids and always in the fast lane. Alcohol was my way to wind down, and then it became more and more – over 20 years.
When were you able to admit to yourself that you were an addict?
Only at the very end. There was this one night when I really realized: You have a serious problem. I was lying awake because I had drunk way too much, my heart was racing and I felt miserable. I couldn’t believe that mental health problems were the main reason for me because I had a good childhood, my life was good – I just couldn’t stop drinking. I had the impression that it was more my body going crazy than my psyche. The more I learned about my brain chemistry, the better I was able to cope with addiction. That was my departure seven years ago.
What exactly helped you?
Having an idea that addiction is a biochemical and neurological event in the brain. It’s like a key: you are no longer at the mercy of the addiction, it no longer takes hold of you. A doctor also explains to a rheumatic patient how the immune system works – addicts also need this explanation.
Would this benefit everyone affected equally?
No, when there’s depression underneath the addiction, or ADHD, or trauma, and people need their substance to compensate for those conditions, it’s more difficult. But what is certain is that it is at least one building block for everyone. For some, it is also the last step beyond the tools of classic addiction therapy such as stress management. The idea that I can let my addiction highway run dry in my head gives me a new approach.
What happens in our heads when we become addicted?
There is a chemical cocktail in the brain made up of around 100 neurotransmitters, for example serotonin, the happiness messenger, or adrenaline, which is released in moments of fright. To put it simply, there are “exciters” and “calmers” that are usually in balance. Alcohol, cannabis, but also gambling or porn addiction shift this balance so that we feel happy and relaxed while consuming it, but at the same time the body counteracts because it wants to compensate for the shift – that’s why you feel significantly worse after consumption, and the hole you then fall into is even deeper. You have to consume more and more often to get out of it.
And yet not all people who smoke weed or play the lottery become addicted. Is their biochemical cocktail naturally mixed differently?
Correct. Take our ancestors: you hunted and then ate until you were full and had the corresponding dopamine releases without wanting more. If you’re lucky, you’ll also experience this condition with potentially addictive substances such as alcohol. He’s just happy, and that’s fine. The brain chemistry of these people just doesn’t work that way.
Can you rewire your addiction brain while abstinent?
Yes, you can create new connections. Just like a stroke patient can learn to speak again. However, the addiction will probably not disappear completely. There are studies that show that some people can resume normal drinking behavior after overcoming addiction. But I think this is dangerous, simply because it provides the perfect excuse to start drinking alcohol again. Abstinence is a big package, it also means changing your life, no longer overtaxing yourself, and simply living more mindfully.
It used to be said that addicted people first had to end up in the gutter for things to change.
The sentence really makes me angry. Some actually have to go very far for their self-preservation instinct to kick in. But if I hadn’t had my amazing husband, who lovingly accompanied me through this really difficult time, I wouldn’t have made it. He also separated himself at the right moment, but didn’t let me fall. That’s a big difference.
Gaby Guzek, 56, has been a specialist journalist for science and medicine for more than 30 years. Her current book “The Addiction Lie” was published by Heyne (13 euros).