Philosophy Science Psychology Society Culture

DonateNewsletterSIGN IN

Addiction

Essays and videos offering insights into the self, relationships, cognition and neuroscience

Addiction Ageing and death Childhood and adolescence Cognition and intelligence Consciousness and altered states Family life Gender and identity Language and linguistics Life stages Love and friendship Mental health Mood and emotion Neurodiversity Neuroscience Personality Pleasure and pain Psychiatry and psychotherapy Self-improvement Sex and sexuality Sleep and dreams Social psychology Spirituality Teaching and learning Technology and the self Wellbeing

Explore more Psychology

Dried ground leaves being poured from a scoop into a container indoors.

essayAddiction

The kratom question

Millions are turning to an unregulated herbal extract to curb their opioid addiction. But do the risks outweigh the benefits?

Xi Chen

Vintage advertising poster for ‘Cocaine Toothache Drops’ featuring two children playing happily, building a house from sticks, in front of a house with a wooden fence.

essaySubcultures

An undulating thrill

Once lauded as a wonder of the age, cocaine soon became the object of profound anxieties. What happened?

Douglas Small

Animated characters, a man in a blue shirt and a woman in a red top, talk on phones separated by a wall.

videoAddiction

From back pain to addiction – one man’s struggle with opioids, as told to his sister

14 minutes

Three people in medical scrubs, all smoking and one looking at a phone, sit on a bench outside a blue building.

videoWork

Catch those idle moments of connection between coworkers on a smoke break

10 minutes

A group of people sitting at a wooden table outdoors, with their faces out of frame and a woman’s legs wearing red high heels behind them. A glass of wine, a bowl and a spoon sit on the table, blurred in the foreground.

essayAddiction

Why we crave

The neuroscientific picture of addiction overlooks the psychological and social factors that make cravings so hard to resist

Zoey Lavallee

Collage with the Eiffel Tower, roses, a cherub, heart-shaped chocolate box, and vintage couple photo on a red and blue background.

videoMental health

When crushes become crushing – how to know if you’re in a ‘limerent episode’

4 minutes

Black-and-white photo of two young people in a city street, one has piercings and looks down, the other leans on his hand thoughtfully.

essayAddiction

The addiction trap

Our inability to treat substance use disorders stems from a narrow-minded view that brains and genes are their real cause

Judith Grisel

A vibrant casino exterior with neon lights and swirling ceiling designs in red, orange and white against a twilight sky.

essayMathematics

Mathematics for gamblers

If philosophers and mathematicians struggle with probability, can gamblers really hope to grasp their losing game?

Catalin Barboianu

Six women in white uniforms with “Alabama Dept of Corrections” on the back sit in a circle on dorm beds, looking at photos, with a barred window behind them.

videoHuman rights and justice

Childbirth classes, doulas, lactation rooms – but is birth behind bars ever humane?

34 minutes

A yellow and green retro bus parked in an open area near a high brick wall. A few people stand nearby. A couple of cars are parked in the background.

videoPublic health

Basic healthcare and clean needles is all in a day’s work at a roving addiction clinic

16 minutes

Illustration of a hand holding a smartphone using a dating app with cartoon character profiles.

videoAddiction

Is ‘tech addiction’ really akin to drug addiction? Here’s what the research says

3 minutes

Black and white photo of a woman with a cigarette supporting an unsteady man, indoors by a wall, creating a sense of tension.

ideaConsciousness and altered states

Solving the heroin overdose mystery: how small doses can kill

Shepard Siegel

Assorted round multi-coloured tablets. Tablets are pink, blue, yellow, green and peach.

ideaMedicine

We need ecstasy and opioids in place of Prozac and Xanax

Marc Lewis & Shaun Shelly

A woman in an orange outfit sitting under a blue mosquito net looking thoughtfully to the side with her hand raised.

ideaPoverty and development

Want to reduce drug use? Listen to women drug users

Kasia Malinowska & Bethany Medley

Five men in white clothing, sitting in chairs and smiling, one holding a guitar. The room has tiled walls and large windows.

videoAddiction

Can writing an 11,000-page autobiographical thesis cure addiction?

16 minutes

Black and white photo of an elderly person with long hair drinking from a bottle, face showing deep wrinkles and a distant expression.

essayAddiction

The addiction habit

Addiction changes the brain but it’s not a disease that can be cured with medicine. In fact, it’s learned – like a habit

Marc Lewis

A man in headphones and a cap in front of a colourful, abstract mural with green, blue, and orange figures.

essayAddiction

Ageing out of drugs

Most addicts just stop using in time, without needing costly treatment. Why do some people walk away while others can’t?

Stacey McKenna

A syringe, a cotton ball and a lighter on a table with a spoon, indicating drug use paraphernalia.

ideaAddiction

How the ‘war on drugs’ entrenches patterns of drug addiction

Joel Finkelstein

Painting of a couple in historical clothing sharing a passionate kiss against a stone wall, with the man in a hat and cloak.

essayAddiction

Should desire be curable?

Passion stabs, unrequited love hurts and taboo desires can torment the spirit. Is it time to fix our love lives for good?

Angela Chen

Drawing of a fast food worker wearing a yellow apron and red cap holding a tray with food next to a sign reading ‘Food Corp’.

videoAddiction

How cooking for yourself can free you from the grip of salt, sugar and fat

2 minutes

Black and white photo of an outstretched arm with self-harm scars, against a dimly lit background.

essayAddiction

Why self-harm?

Cutting brings relief because emotion and pain criss-cross in the brain. Can we untangle the circuits and stop self-harm?

Carrie Arnold

A cocktail with a cherry, in a martini glass on a napkin atop a wooden bar. Stools are lined up along the bar in the background.

essayAddiction

The 12-step dogma

The new science of addiction makes 12-step programmes seem like folk medicine. Is the concept of a higher power obsolete?

Rebecca Ruiz

A man in a suit looking at his phone, standing next to a suitcase, while a woman squats near a wall with a handbag.

essayAddiction

Escape from the matrix

The fear of missing out haunts our social networks and our real lives alike. But there is a way to break free

Jacob Burak

Painting of three women lounging on a patterned sofa in relaxed poses, wearing light-coloured robes, with a smoky background.

essayAddiction

Missing marijuana

When I stopped smoking weed, my appetite shrivelled and my head throbbed – but it was the dreams that really shook me

Malcolm Harris