How the Brain Changes During Addiction Recovery
Research has shown that drugs can alter the brain. These changes often mean that individuals become more addicted to drugs or other harmful substances. This dependency upon drugs inside the brain comes from the plasticity that the brain is capable of. Plasticity is the ability of the brain to change and adapt in response to stimuli like drugs. This ability to change is what is responsible for addiction, but it can also be used to recover from addiction as well. The plasticity of the brain, or the ability of the brain to adapt to environmental changes, is most often a good thing. It can allow individuals to learn useful behaviors, to cope with undesirable emotions, and to form essential memories. Adapting and changing at the cellular and chemical level in the brain is what allows individuals to evolve in their intelligence.
The ability of the brain to change has many downsides, mostly addiction. Taking drugs produces a rush of pleasure from the chemical release of dopamine causing the brain to react and change. Using drugs more often can allow those changes to become more permanent – resulting in addiction. Addiction occurs because the levels of dopamine rise when using drugs. The brain gets used to high levels of dopamine and struggles to counteract it over time. The result for the drug user is that over time, producing enough dopamine to feel pleasure becomes extremely difficult. Generally, this leads individuals to use drugs more often, or in larger quantities, and leads to addiction.
Another change in the brain during recovery is the weakening and strengthening of connections and receptors as well as a decrease in the production of new brain cells. These changes lead to learned behaviors which can be difficult for the drug user to break or change. Ongoing research is helping to understand more in this area of changing connections in the brain due to drug use.
However, on the other hand, the plasticity of the brain also allows for positive change when individuals begin to stop the cycle of addiction and begin recovery. Research shows that, unlike previously believed, addiction can be reversed and new cells and connections can be formed.
When an individual is actively recovering from addiction, they are encouraged to participate in behaviors that are healthy and promote well-being. These may include socializing with positive friends, serving others, exercising, eating nutritiously, practicing religion, or engaging in a hobby. Participating in these positive behaviors can help create new pathways that support these new healthy habits. In an addict, drug abuse has created pathways of destructive behaviors and addictions. But, as is being seen, in recovery from addiction, healthy habits can be engaged in and addictions can be left behind
The brain is a remarkable organ that changes and adapts to whatever it is asked to engage in. Most often, this plasticity is a positive thing, but during addiction it can have negative consequences. However, these adverse results can be changed back to positive outcomes through healthy habit building and reinforcing new pathways in the brain during addiction recovery.