The Link Between Drug Addiction And Stress
Here’s something I bet you didn’t know: the fact that martini time starts immediately after work and that Mom likes a little nip to “relax” is directly associated to the stress. That’s right. Drug and alcohol use often starts as an attempt to mitigate stressful situations, lubricate conversation and shake off discomfort with oneself and others. Right. You knew that. But now, there is a scientific study to back up the assumption. Or at least there will be.
Mustafa al’Absi, Ph.D. and team have the next four years to study the relationship between psychosocial stress and drug use with a $1.6 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Another 45 studies will soon follow by various other research teams, all funded by the NIH with the goal of better understanding how genetics and environments affect drug use, and called the Exposure Biology Program.
Says al-Absi: “What we are doing with this research is unique and innovative, particularly because we are moving the research out of the laboratory and into the real world. Success with this research could lead to important improvements in how people at high risk for medical or psychosocial problems are monitored and treated.”
In the meantime, we have access to one more thing that has moved out of the laboratory: Subutex and Suboxone. These buprenorphine-based drugs are great ways to help those who are physically addicted to opiates break that addiction and learn how to deal with stress and other sources of mental, emotional and physical pain in a healthier way. The best part is that, just like the prescription painkillers they replace, Suboxone and Subutex can be taken at home rather than at a drug rehab or drug addiction treatment clinic.
I say, if buprenorphine is a result of grants and seemingly ubiquitous research, then keep the research coming.
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